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Organizational Structure: Zappos Essay

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The Organalizational Structure of Zappos.com Mark Douanglathay MGT230 January 10, 2013 Susan Cannon The Organizational Structure of Zappos.com The organizational structure of Zappos.com is revered as one of Americas’ most innovative corporate cultures. The unique structure of this company has been so successful that they have a department for business-to-business consultations that assist other companies interested in adopting the model into their own organization. From a struggling start-up business to a $1.2 billion merger with Amazon.com, the company has remained true to its value of “delivering WOW through service” not only to its customers but also to its employees as well. Although there are hierarchical levels, there is a …show more content…

In 2008, Apple released an e-mail synchronization program called MobileMe on the iPhone that was supposed to rival that of BlackBerries e-mail program. Unfortunately, the debut of MobileMe was a flop. A very disappointed Steve Jobs summoned the MobileMe team, proceeded to berate for half an hour, and then appointed a new executive to run the group on the spot (Lashinsky, 2011). To the masses of devoted Apple product users, working at Apples’ campus would be geek heaven. However, according to Lashinsky (2011), “Apple also is a brutal and unforgiving place, where accountability is strictly enforced, decisions are swift, and communication is articulated clearly from the top.” Organizational structure is not always so cut and dry. These days, more and more organizations are looking to flatten their hierarchy to pursue a collaborative environment. Google’s organizational structure, like Zappos, is flat with low levels of management. Google encourages employees to take initiative without needing approval from multiple levels of managers. To inspire the spirit of innovation in its employees, Google came up with the 70-20-10 rule. Frenz (2013) states, “They have the freedom to spend 70 percent of their time on current assignments, 20 percent on related projects of their choosing, and 10 percent on new projects in any area they desire.” Employees have the freedom to set their own goals and change

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