The Organization

Having mustered knowledge of oneself,one must still know one's internal environment before one is ready to tackle one's competitors.The ability to achieve internal harmony,ie gaining absolute control over one's immediate operating environment where the people factor is most prominent is said to be a major contributing factor to Japan 's economic success.
This article  thus looks at the internal organization which is synonymous with internal environment by taking both the western and japans views of organizations.From these views,it is found that basically, organization is all about the people within it,ie..the employees and how they are organized via their creation of structures ,operating systems and procedures ,etc.The formal organization whose purpose and task are embodied in the organization structure clarifies the roles and relationship of each level of hierarchy.The informal organization,on the other hand,emerges from the shared activities,aspirations,and sentiments of other group members as they interact with one another in the social setting created by the forma; organization.Like the formal organization,the informal one also has its hierarchy,leaders,and objectives.It also exerts social control over its members and create its own communication channel called the grapevine which can result in negative consequences for the formal organization,thus warranting management effort to monitor the activities of the informal organization members.Managers tasks should therefore include identifying key informal leaders and cultivating them to further organizational objectives rather than being in opposition.

Coalitions which are alliances of persons within an organization ,thus representing a form of management which cut across formal organizational lines are shown to effect organizational activities  such as strategy determination in an organization whose CEO is weak.In the same way,coalition may be necessary of a strategy for the new incoming CEO who fills key incumbent positions with his followers to ensure access to information and support. In forming coalitions,it is important to thoroughly know the persons whom we are allying with. Salam.