Organization Structure Mgt 230

1096 Words5 Pages
Organizational Structure Paper James Cagney MGT/230 April 7, 2014 Henry Lacy Organizational Structure Paper I selected Aetna Life Insurance Company for this paper. Aetna is a Fortune 500 health insurance company with over $47 billion in annual revenue. I will touch on how being a functional organization has helped Aetna grow and maintain profitability and industry excellence for many years. Two different organizational structures will also be selected for contrast and comparison. In the paper, I will evaluate the various marketing, finance, and human resources functions and discuss how the organizational design influences Aetna's organizational structure as a whole. A Functional Organization As a functional organization, Aetna has a CEO and departments organized by specialized functions. Reporting to the CEO are Vice Presidents of Information Technology, Accounting, Legal, Human Resources and Sales. Each departmental leader is responsible for guiding their respective areas in support of the organization's ultimate goals. They motivate their staff members and communicate the high level messages received during leadership meetings. The functional structure allows each leader to concentrate their efforts in their specific areas of expertise. They report departmental performance and other information to top level management, helping create efficient, cost effective units. In a functional organization, processes are focused, goals are more clearly established, and bottom lines are met. Finance The Aetna Finance Department is set up with a hierarchy consisting of a Vice President, Director, managers, and employees. This structure matches that of the entire organization. Tasks that mirror the corporate objectives are delegated from V.P. down to staff members. The use of technology makes
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