Business on Cisco - the Changing World of Business

Business on cisco

INTRODUCTION

The Changing World of Business

Globalization of business and the advancement of information technologies have brought enormous change to the world (Dockel 2003). The way business is done, how employees behave and the way managers manage their employees will also change. These had transformed the way organization operate and in turn, led to a change in employees characteristics and needs (Robbins, 2000). And Cisco is one such company that were subjected to this need for change

Cisco after the 2001 crisis, realized that the key to survival in the technology world is to embrace and be adaptable to changes. Cisco CEO John Chambers made major changes in its organization structure and how the business is manage (The Economist 2009). He believe that these changes, and capitalizing on the increasing need of information technology, will allow Cisco the agility to react to market changes and demands, thus ensuring sustainable growth in the company.

Motivation - Key to company success

It is inevitable that companies like Cisco need to adapt to changes in order to remain successful (Vercueil 2001). And we know that without employees, the company will not be able to flourish as their employees perform the most critical roles in the process towards success. The key component in the success of the entire organization is the element of motivation (Lindner J 1998). The changes in Cisco will have to take in to account the impact it has on their employees

In this report, we examine the following Cisco's organizational strategies:

 Matrix Organizational Structure

 Working Groups and Teams

 Replication Rules

 Cheap and Efficient Communication

 Aggressive Stretch Goals

 Cisco Hiring Policy

Applying the principles of motivational theories, we focus on what impact these strategies have on the employees', and offer recommendation for the enhancement of these strategies.

MATRIX ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE

Cisco transforms its organization to its current matrix structure after the crisis in 2001 (The Economist 2001) (Fig.1). This approach, enable the company to increase its levels of productivity and profitability which fostered a greater impact on the effectiveness of the entire organization, specifically its employees.

In