Chapter 16 - Managing the multibusiness corporation. This chapter presents the following content: Structure of the multidivisional company, the role of corporate management, managing the corporate portfolio, managing individual businesses, managing internal linkages, recent trends. | Managing Managing the the Multibusiness Multibusiness Corporation Corporation OUTLINE Structure of the Multidivisional Company o Theory of the M-form o The divisionalized firm in practice The Role of Corporate Management Managing the Corporate Portfolio o Portfolio planning techniques o Value-creation through corporate restructuring Managing Individual Businesses Managing Internal Linkages Recent Trends The TheMultidivisional Multidivisional Structure Structure Theory Theoryof ofthe the M-Form M-Form Efficiency advantages of the multidivisional firm Recognizes bounded rationality top management has limited decision-making capacity Divides decision-making according to frequency high-frequency operating decisions at divisional level low-frequency strategic decisions at corporate level Reduces costs of communication and coordination business level decisions confined to divisional level reduces decision making at the top Global rather than local optimization - functional organizations encourage functional goals. M-form structure encourages focus on profitability. Efficient allocation of resources through internal capital and labor markets Resolves agency problem-- corporate management an interface between shareholders and business-level managers. The The Divisionalized Divisionalized Firm Firm in in Practice Practice Constraints upon decentralization. Difficult to achieve clear division of decision making between corporate and divisional levels. On-going dialogue and conflict between corporate and divisional managers over both strategic and operational issues. Standardization of divisional management Despite potential for divisions to develop distinctive strategies and structures corporate systems may impose uniformity. Managing divisional inter-relationships Requires more complex structures . matrix structures where functional and or geographical structure is imposed on top of a product market structure. Added complexity undermines the efficiency advantages of the
