PROJECT MANAGEMENT

Matrix Organizational Structure – A

Quick Guide
by Jason Westland  |  May 3, 2018

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It’s recommended to have an organizational structure in place

to accurately define the activities in a project. Projects have many
activities, from task allocation to budgeting and everything in-between.
Therefore, that organizational structure shouldn’t be rigid, but efficient,
flexible and possibly innovative.

Every organization is structured in some way, and that structure is

determined by the organization’s objectives. The way you structure an
organization is going to offer a standard for operating procedures and
routines. It will also determine who participates in what, and what project
tools are best for the job at hand.

Matrix organizational structure is often used in project management

because it speaks to both the product of the project and the function of the
management producing it. Let’s take a closer look at this type of
organizational structure to determine its pros and cons in project
101 management.
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 What Is Matrix Organizational Structure?
The matrix organizational structure is a combination of two or more types of
organizational structures. The matrix organization is the structure uniting
these other organizational structures to give them balance. Usually, there
are two chains of command, where project team members have two bosses
or managers.

Often, one manager handles functional activities and the other is a more
traditional project manager. These roles are fluid and not fixed, as the
balance of power between these two kinds of managers isn’t
organizationally defined.

It will employ the best of both structures and management styles to

strengthen strengths, and make up for weaknesses. This way, if an
organization is working on producing two products or services at the same
time, they can organize both and use that duality to their advantage through
the matrix organizational structure.

Origins of the Matrix Organizational

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 applications and required the ability to process great amounts of data in an
efficient manner. An organizational structure was needed to respond quickly
to interdisciplinary needs, without upsetting the functional organizational
structures already in place.

Matrix organizational structures were first developed in the aerospace

industry in the U.S. as projects grew in complexity during the mid-century.
Until that point, they had been using a single hierarchical organization, which
was fine when there was only one very large project.

However, with more and more projects having a variety of sizes and
complexities, there was a need for expanding beyond one discipline. So, as
time went on, the use of one discipline to structure a project become
increasingly rare. But there remained a need for a single source of
information and responsibility for each project. Therefore, instead of
creating many autonomous projects, a matrix of projects was developed.

Pros and Cons of a Matrix Organizational

Structure
A matrix organizational structure is not a one-size-fits-all solution. There are
advantages and disadvantages that need to be understood to know if it’s the
right one for the organization.

Pros
One of the biggest pros of using a matrix organizational structure is that it
allows the sharing of highly skilled resources between functional units and
projects. Communications are open, which helps knowledge move
throughout the organization with less obstruction. Because the matrix
organizational structure fosters better communications, it makes the
normal boundaries between groups more porous, which allows for more
collaboration and an integrated, more dynamic organization.
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This structure can serve as a great boon for employees who are looking to
 aspects of various projects. It puts them in an environment that facilitates
learning and gives them an opportunity to grow professionally.

Plus, the functional departments have highly skilled people, and those
people are available to help the project team if needed. This creates a pool
of valuable resources that can be dipped into and provides more flexibility to
resolve issues without having to source new resources.

Furthermore, efficiencies are enhanced, and teams remain loyal because the
structure provides a more stable environment where job security is
strengthened. People work harder and have more buy-in to projects when
they feel the rug isn’t going to get pulled out from under them.

Cons
There can be some confusion when a team member is subject to two
managers. That can also create unnecessary conflict. This is especially true
if both managers have equal authority.

Then there is the functional manager and project manager. There can be
some sparks flying between these two managers in terms of what they
believe to be the authority in the organization. That confusion can show up
with team members, too, if their roles and responsibilities aren’t clearly
defined. And that confusion can lead to conflict if resources are hard to
come by and competing managers are fighting for them.

There are a lot of managers in a matrix organizational structure, which is not

to everyone’s liking. And there can be a financial downside to that too.
Having more people in managerial positions is going to have an impact on
the organization’s bottom line.

Team members can feel the strain of working in a matrix organizational

structure, in that their workload can be heavy. Often, they’re tasked with their
101 regular assignments and then additional work, which can lead to burnout or
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some tasks being ignored.
 Finally, there’s the overall expense of the matrix organizational structure.
This goes beyond having multiple managers but also the added expense of
keeping on resources that might not be used all the time.

Not that some of these disadvantages can’t be overcome. They just require
being cognizant of the stress points and working more cooperatively
towards relieving them.

Why Use a Matrix Organizational

Structure?
The matrix organizational structure is an answer to the problem of
managing large and complex projects. When working on a large project, a
highly hierarchical structure can be an obstacle in the path of moving that
process forward successfully.

Instead of trying to find a workaround to a situation that might not have a

viable solution, a matrix organization structure provides a new system that
can more properly address the complexities of large projects.

The problem of having the function and skills fragmented in an organization

makes it more difficult to handle large projects successfully. It’s harder with
this type of top-down organizational structure to have a holistic view. The
perspective at the top is distorted, while a matrix organizational structure
can see a problem from a closer standpoint and have varied approaches of
solving it.

The matrix organizational structure is more catholic in that it acts as if there

is not a single best way to organize a project. It sees alternatives rather than
one established way forward.

When dealing with projects of immense size and complexity, a matrix

organizational structure can give you an advantage, but only if you and your
101 team are equipped with powerful tools. ProjectManager.com is a cloud-based
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software that is built to manage projects of all sizes and levels of complexity.