Unilever's Team-Based Organizational Structure: A Case Study in Product Innovation and Effectiveness

[Contemporary Organisational Structure/Designs and Effectiveness]
2018

Table of Contents
Introduction...........................................................................................................................................2
About the Company...............................................................................................................................3
Analysis of the organisational structure at Unilever..............................................................................3
Diagrammatic representation of the structure at Unilever.....................................................................5
Advantages and disadvantages of this structure to Unilever..................................................................6
Suggestions............................................................................................................................................8
Conclusion.............................................................................................................................................9
References.............................................................................................................................................9
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Introduction
Team structure organization, as against the traditional organizational structures that had a
fixed line of authority, chain of command that would flow down to the employees at the front
end/on-field, with changing needs, the routine activities of an organization are now being
divided within specific teams, resultant of which, the ‘organizational structure of team’ was
born. A team based organizational structure is a form, that divides employees on the basis of
the same employment level into groups/teams that perform specific tasks, thus, this structure
is a type of a hybrid structure that combines the less hierarchial structure of a lateral structure
with the efforts of the team.
Looking at the positive implications of team based organizational structure; a study done by
Deloitte says that, 38% of the companies and 24% of large organizations have instead
adopted dynamic networks of teams rather than that of traditional functional structures.
An article by New York Times, with regards to Google’s knowledge search to build the best
team, pointed out a research says, people tend to innovate quicker, achieve better results and
enjoy higher job satisfaction when working in teams (Bevacqua, 2018).
However, the success of this structure depends on various factors like that of, work
methodology, its design, the context and composition of the team and at the same time, the
support provided by the manager (Richa, 2014).
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About the Company
The organization that has been selected as an example of team based organizational structure
is Unilever and below is the analysis of how Unilever has adopted this type of organizational
structure:
A British-Dutch company, Unilever is jointly headquartered in Rotterdam, Netherlands and
London, United Kingdom. The product portfolio of Unilever comprises a wide range of
cleaning agents, beverages, food, and personal care products. According to the revenue
figures of 2012, it is the world’s largest consumer goods company. The company operates in
around 190 countries and was founded 88 years ago, in the year of 1930 (Unilever, 2018).
One of the critical success factors behind Unilever’s continuous product innovation is its
organizational structure. This organizational structure is the one that ensures that enough
support is provided for product innovation in the organization’s diversified global business.
The end consumer has always been the focus of Unilever, due to which, it not only adapts to
changes in the global market but, equally also, to consumer goods industry.
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