Question:

In this question you are expected to make use of what we can learn from Joan Woodwards pioneering and influential research by referring to the pictures above.

a) What is the major relationship that Woodward discovered in her research? Within this broad theme, what different patterns of relationship do you observe in this pictures?

b) What else did Woodward find (not shown in this Table) which led to another major theme in what we now refer to as the contingency theory of organization structure?

Unitproduction One product is produced at a time, or in small amounts e.g., custom products, wine Mass production Large quantities of identical products using highly routinized and often mechanized procedures e.g., assembly line Continuous Process Raw material is fed into one end of the process and flows continuously through the system e.g., oil, beer, sewage, electricity Findings from Woodward's study Unitproduction One product is produced at a time, or in small amounts e.g., custom products, wine Mass production Large quantities of identical products using highly routinized and often mechanized procedures e.g., assembly line Continuous Process Raw material is fed into one end of the process and flows continuously through the system e.g., oil, beer, sewage, electricity Findings from Woodward's study