Organisational Structure and the Wider World of Work in a Commercial Context

Workplace Technology and the Employee Experience

This unit assignment explores the connections between organisational structure and the wider world of work in a commercial context. It highlights the factors and trends, including the digital environment, that impact on business strategy and workforce planning, recognising the influence of culture, employee wellbeing and behaviour in delivering change and organisational performance.
CIPD’s insight
Workplace technology: the employee experience (July 2020)
Our research looks at technology adoption and use at work, in addition to the people profession’s role in supporting organisations and their workforce.
The COVID-19 pandemic has thrown a spotlight on technology as an enabler of work with many organisations turning to its use for flexible and remote working. However, these circumstances have also revealed other issues such as productivity, work–life balance, workforce engagement and wellbeing which must all be considered when new technology use is introduced in the workplace.
Taken together with the broader theme of increasing digitisation and technical advancement,
organisations and people professionals need to understand how workplace technology is impacting their workforce if they are to drive and support the best outcomes for their people and business.
How artificial intelligence (AI), robots and automation are shaping the world of work, the ethical considerations and the role of people professionals. Much has been said about the potential impact of AI, robots and automation on jobs and the future of work. A common view is that many jobs are at risk of being taken over by machines, potentially leading to large-scale job losses. Our research shows that while there are risks, there are at least as many opportunities to increase the number and quality of jobs. No doubt these technologies will change the nature of work as we know it. This change needs a proper people strategy led by people professionals.
This factsheet describes some of the technologies that are having an impact on the world of work.
It looks at the ethical implications of using these technologies in the workplace and considers the role of people professionals in shaping the future of work for humans. Explores the benefits of workforce planning, the activities involved and the stages of the workforce planning process.
Workforce planning is a core business process which aligns changing organisation needs with people strategy. It can be the most effective activity an organisation can engage in. It doesn’t need to be complicated and can be adjusted to suit the size and maturity of any organisation. It can provide market and industry intelligence to help organisations focus on a range of challenges and  issues and prepare for initiatives to support longer term business goals.
This factsheet examines the concept of workforce planning. It distinguishes between strategic and operational workforce planning, 'hard' and 'soft' workforce planning, which work together to generate and analyse information before planning actions. It also explores the stages of the workforce planning process and highlights key issues and action points for implementation. You are a member of the People Practice team for a company, BMC that has recently purchased a large contemporary city centre licenced food premises in Manchester adding to its growing portfolio of acquisitions in Leeds, London, Nottingham and Glasgow. You have been asked to assist in preparingthe managers for their forthcoming Strategic Management Planning meeting onimplementing the new  business strategy, by providing them with a presentation and a written report.
Currently the company operates a strict centralised policy to all its premises but during the COVID19 lockdown the CEO considers that the previous business strategy needs addressing and is open to new ideas and approaches to improve the business once trading resumes.
The CEO of BMC is also fully aware that the focus of the business has all too often neglected the people side of the business and is conscious that BMC has a legacy of high staff turnover and low employee satisfaction. Previously, response to this has not been high on the company’s agenda and the CEO is keen for the management team to appreciate the connections between organisational structure, strategy and the wider business environment and gain an understanding of organisational culture, behaviour and how people practices support the achievement of business goals and objectives.
Preparation for the Tasks:
Refer to the indicative content in the unit to guide and support your evidence.
Pay attention to how your evidence is presented, remember you are working in the People Practice Team for this task.
Ensure that the evidence generated for this assessment remains your own work. As your report is being prepared for a formal senior management meeting, it should be written in formal business report format and style.
Your report is to be provided to BMC’s forthcoming Strategic Management Planning meeting here the main priority is to discuss implementing the new business strategy. The team is made
up of mainly operational managers who have limited knowledge and understanding of the connections between organisational structure, strategy, and the wider business environment so the CEO has asked that your report should include an understanding of the connections between organisational structure, strategy, and the business operating environment.
The report must therefore include:
An evaluation of the advantages and disadvantages of two different types of organisational structures in different types of organisations, the range of products, services and customers associated with each, and how they link to organisational purpose. (AC 1.1)
An analysis of the way in which organisational strategy should be linked to products, services, customers and revenue (AC 1.2)
An analysis of the current and ongoing impact on organisations of the range of external factors and trends. (AC 1.3)
An assessment of two current issues and causes that identify key priorities within

Organisations that will affect product/service delivery, and the impact this may have on people practice and solutions. (AC 1.4 & AC 3.3)
An explanation of the ways in which people practices can impact on organisational systems and structures, and therefore affect the effective employment, management and development of people (AC1.5)
An exploration of the impact that technology has on people, work and working practices, and the current and emerging scale of the use of technology within organisations. (AC 1.6)