Organizational design can be complex, involving many different levers. But at its roots are a few fundamental formal structures or forms: functional, matrix, and divisional. This case tracks the early history of a (fictitious) start-up company in the software/mobile entertainment industry that rapidly expands and needs to consider the pros and cons of these various archetypes of formal structure.
It would help if you assumed that you are hired to provide your advice on what the company should do. Using the information in your reading of the chapters to date, you should carefully craft an argument for the structure that you believe the company should undertake for the long term. The company recognizes that you are also an expert in organizational design.
Consider the questions below and prepare a response to Matt that addresses these questions:

1. How has the history of the organization impacted the current organizational structure?
2. What are the situations in which it might make more sense for the company to choose a particular organizational structure?
3. Would you rather work in a functional or divisional organization? Why?
4. If you worked for this organization, would you be more or less interested in continuing your employment if they chose a matrix structure? As an employee, how would you prepare yourself to work effectively in a matrix structure?
5. You may want to brainstorm a list of methods for integrating interdependent work units? What are the pros and cons of the approach you select?

Written Business Case Reports using this outline:
• Introduction
• What You Think the Real Problem Is
• Your Analysis
• Your Recommendations
• Conclusion
Case Study:

         

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In 2006, two students with technical university training won a mobile game development competition. It had never been so easy to use computer code to make so many people happy, so why not start a company to do so? Following a series of investments, their company was renamed Wildfire Entertainment, with its base in Amsterdam. Its focus was to offer consumers unique and novel stories via its games. By 2009, Wildfire Entertainment had developed over 50 games, but none of them really took off. It was also working on animated (short) films and learning apps (for pre- schoolers and primary school kids). The company came close to shutting down when the first version of "Squealers", a puzzle game for the iPhone, was released. Squealers became one of the top games in the thriving mobile phone application market (it has since been downloaded over I billion times), with paid downloads accounting for roughly a quarter of total downloads, making it a top-selling game. Wildfire Entertainment had a record-breaking year in 2012. Revenue doubled, with an EBIT margin of 50%, headcount more than doubled, and new offices and a New Business Ventures unit were set up. 2010 €7 Total Revenues (millions) 2012 €150 2011 €80 2013 €160 The Mobile Phone Application Industry In the late 1990s, Nokia had launched the very successful "Snake", an app preinstalled on all mobile devices manufactured by Nokia, which quickly became one of the most-played video games (over 350 million devices worldwide). This helped propel Nokia to the forefront of the mobile phone industry. Since then, smartphones had become more like computers than phones, thereby enhancing the capacity of designers to create all sorts of games and video apps that could be readily accessed via most mobile phone devices through increasingly efficient online platforms (App Store, Google Play, etc.). As a result, a flourishing industry grew up. As of 2012, the Apple iOS apps market alone housed over 600,000 smartphone apps, with over 30 billion downloads to date. Similarly, the Android OS market gave access to hundreds of thousands of additional apps, with some 3 million downloads per day from its online platform. It had become a major marketplace, not least for entertaining games. The Early Days Wildfire Entertainment was, like its founders, an informal, exciting place to work. Priding themselves on a blend of free spirit, camaraderie and trust in the workplace, the founders wanted to keep things simple. The core structure was formed of project teams, with several in operation at any point in time. In 2006, two students with technical university training won a mobile game development competition. It had never been so easy to use computer code to make so many people happy, so why not start a company to do so? Following a series of investments, their company was renamed Wildfire Entertainment, with its base in Amsterdam. Its focus was to offer consumers unique and novel stories via its games. By 2009, Wildfire Entertainment had developed over 50 games, but none of them really took off. It was also working on animated (short) films and learning apps (for pre- schoolers and primary school kids). The company came close to shutting down when the first version of "Squealers", a puzzle game for the iPhone, was released. Squealers became one of the top games in the thriving mobile phone application market (it has since been downloaded over I billion times), with paid downloads accounting for roughly a quarter of total downloads, making it a top-selling game. Wildfire Entertainment had a record-breaking year in 2012. Revenue doubled, with an EBIT margin of 50%, headcount more than doubled, and new offices and a New Business Ventures unit were set up. 2010 €7 Total Revenues (millions) 2012 €150 2011 €80 2013 €160 The Mobile Phone Application Industry In the late 1990s, Nokia had launched the very successful "Snake", an app preinstalled on all mobile devices manufactured by Nokia, which quickly became one of the most-played video games (over 350 million devices worldwide). This helped propel Nokia to the forefront of the mobile phone industry. Since then, smartphones had become more like computers than phones, thereby enhancing the capacity of designers to create all sorts of games and video apps that could be readily accessed via most mobile phone devices through increasingly efficient online platforms (App Store, Google Play, etc.). As a result, a flourishing industry grew up. As of 2012, the Apple iOS apps market alone housed over 600,000 smartphone apps, with over 30 billion downloads to date. Similarly, the Android OS market gave access to hundreds of thousands of additional apps, with some 3 million downloads per day from its online platform. It had become a major marketplace, not least for entertaining games. The Early Days Wildfire Entertainment was, like its founders, an informal, exciting place to work. Priding themselves on a blend of free spirit, camaraderie and trust in the workplace, the founders wanted to keep things simple. The core structure was formed of project teams, with several in operation at any point in time.

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This case study involves a softwaremobile entertainment company Wildfire Entertainment exploring its early history and evolution of its organizational structure To craft an appropriate response for th... View the full answer