The Advantages of Flexibility in an Organization

In the contemporary world, a small business must be flexible. If your business is too rigid, then it will fail. Rapid changes will occur- in technology and also in the economy - which means that only organizations that are flexible so that they can adapt to these changes will succeed, which will give them a massive advantage over more-rigid organizations.

(Nicky La Marco. December 03,2018)

1) Enhanced Competitiveness

2) Improved Efficiency

3) Your Scheduling Becomes More Flexible

4) Better Team Building

5) Better Continuity during Uncertainty

6) Your Environmental Impact Is Reduce

7) Hiring Costs and Turnover Costs Are Reduced

8) Your Organization Will Grow Faster

The need for flexibility in the workplace

The need for organizational flexibility is very important. When looking at why there is a need a for flexibility there are factors that are creating the need for flexibility in the workplace. Things are changing all the time, which means an organisation, must be able to take on these changes. Aspects such as social, technological, economical, legal, political and other global factors in which a business operate within are changing all the time, so organisations should be able to adapt when these changes happen. So in other words they need to be flexible. As it says there is a need for flexibility in the workplace, but there is also a need for flexibility in the workforce, meaning the staff. As change happens, how work gets done too changes therefore the workforce should also be flexible.

(UK essays)

Types of Organizational Flexibility

Functional Flexibility- Functional flexibility basically states that employees will do jobs that go beyond what they are actually there to do. So they will perform jobs that they weren’t originally specified to do. So employees should be able to do different jobs but still do their own. So the organisation will require multi-skilled employees. So for example would be in an organisation, a debtors clerk doing their own job, which is debtors, but also being able to do creditors when required.
Numerical Flexibility- This basically involves an organisation bring labor in or taking labor out in accordance service or product demand. The state of the economy can also be a factor for the organisation to bring in or go without labor. They can control this by the number of employees they need at the time. Therefore they will hire as they need. They can do this by hiring casuals or part time workers.
Financial Flexibility
Procedural Flexibility
Skills Flexibility
Attitudinal Flexibility
Structural Flexibility

CONCLUSION

The term organizational flexibility refers to the overall flexibility of an organization as a system (structure) defined by a set of resources (technology, personnel, financial resources, and knowledge), processes (operations, tasks, routines) and managerial functions (strategizing, organizing, planning, leading, directing)