Making the Matrix Work

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“Det definerende kendetegn ved en formel matrixorganisationsstruktur er, når personer har mere end én chef. Dette bryder med det traditionelle ledelsesprincip om enhed i kommandoen og ét entydigt ansvarspunkt, hvilket ikke længere fungerer i moderne, komplekse, organisationer.”

Kevan Hall & Alan Hall, 2023

Kort om bogen

”Making the matrix work – The agile remix” er anden udgave af Kevan Halls oprindelige bog fra 2013. De seneste års store fokus på ”Agile” i mange organisationer, samt eksplosionen i virtuelt samarbejde, bl.a. forårsaget pga. Covid19, har betydet endnu større fokus på matrixorganisering:

“Once distance is no longer the deciding factor, businesses become more integrated, and business processes, activities and virtual teams increasingly cut across traditional organizational boundaries. Internal siloes increasingly get in the way and a matrix becomes a logical next step.”

De grundlæggende årsager til at formalisere matrixstruktur er uændret, bl.a.:

“An organization sets up a matrix because it needs to be good at multiple things at the same time: the global and the local, the function and the business unit.”

Bogens tre første dele handler om hhv. klarhed, samarbejde og kontrol i en matrix. De tre begreber anskues både fra et organisatorisk, topleder, og mellemleder perspektiv. Det er ofte mellemledere der har de største udfordringer med at navigere i en matrix.

“It quickly becomes clear that the only person with a complete overview of your role, tasks, and priorities is you!”

Begrebet “matrix middle” introduceres til at pege på den gruppe af medarbejdere der er mest påvirket af den komplekse struktur.

Mest relevante pointer i kontekst af transparent mødepraksis

Den øverste ledelse mærker ikke direkte konsekvensen af den komplekse struktur, og det kan få den til at undervurdere betydningen.

“If you are right at the top of a matrix organization, then the matrix structure does not really change things that much for you. You are still the boss, and everyone still reports to you! Because of this, senior leaders can underestimate the impact of the matrix on other members of the organization, which can cause problems of perception both ways.”

Bogen hjælper både mellemledere og topledere med at forstå betydningen af et der ikke længere er enhed i kommandovejen (unity of command). Dvs. at en mellemleder kan have to, tre eller flere forskellige chefer og dermed mål eller prioriteter der skal forsøges indfris. I bogen bruges dog ofte kun to dimensioner til at illustrere matrixstruktur, nemlig den vertikale som referer til det traditionelle hierarki, f.eks. CEO -> CFO -> Finansdirektør -> Regnskabschef -> osv., mens det ”horisontale” referer til samarbejde der går på tværs, f.eks. mellem finans og HR, eller medarbejdere i centrale finans og medarbejdere i en region. Og selv i dette forsimplede scenarie, kan der opstå udfordringer i samarbejde:

“Despite the reality that work has become more horizontal, many organizations have struggled to break the power of vertical silos.”

Når samarbejdet i de forskellige dimensioner ikke fungerer skal der koordineres ekstra meget, hvilket betyder flere møder og langsommere beslutninger. Derfor har topledelsen grund til at være særligt opmærksom:

“Senior leaders have a vital role in creating the climate in which the matrix middle can succeed. If we do not give these individuals the skills, information, and authority to manage in this way, then you can expect to see elevated levels of escalation.”

For at topledelsen får bedre føling med hvad der sker ”nede” i organisationen, og hjælpe med at sikre det horisontale samarbejde og beslutningstagning:

“We also recommend creating more explicit interdependencies among executive level leaders so that they plan and execute activities that take them outside their own silos. This does not mean that everyone needs to be involved in everything, but it does mean creating smaller cross-functional groups, pairs, and triads of top leaders working collaboratively to plan and drive activities across the business.”

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Yderligere citater fra bogen

“This is also the reality of working in a multidimensional organization with multiple priorities in a fast-changing world. If we could give complete clarity and alignment around a single goal, then we would not need a matrix; we could simply cascade everything down from a perfectly informed top.”

“One of the reasons we set up a matrix is to balance the power of traditional silos by adding more horizontal reporting lines.”

“Consciously or unconsciously, powerful vertical managers may resist the loss of power to horizontal processes and reporting lines.”

“We need clarity in organizations so that we know what we are supposed to be doing and who is supposed to be doing it.”

“The matrixed middle also needs the capability, confidence, and information to manage the inevitable trade-offs and daily dilemmas that come from sitting within multiple reporting lines. To enable this, they need to be empowered to make decisions without constant escalations.”

“Role clarity is also about access to information. An issue may not be unclear to the organization as a whole, but if you are missing a critical perspective or piece of information, it may be unclear to you personally. Many ambiguities can be resolved by seeking out the person who does have the answers to these questions.”

“I agree that my goals are clear. I have a very clear set of goals from my business unit – for example, I know that it is essential to recruit three senior people as quickly as possible to support this year’s business plan.
I also have a very clear set of goals from my HR functional line – one of them is to reduce the cost of recruitment. Both are clear, but they are not aligned. The fastest way to recruit would be to use an executive search firm, but that would be the most expensive. So, which set of clear goals should I give priority to?”

Forlag og link

Udgivet af John Murray Business, 2023. Kan f.eks. købes på Saxo her. (Dette er ikke et sponosreret link)

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