1. Pure line organisation

2. Departmental line organisation

1. Pure line organisation :

In pure line organisation all the persons at a given level perform same type of work. The divisions are solely for the purpose of control and direction.

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Organisation Structure of pure line organisation

2. Departmental line orgnisation :

In departmental line organisation, the whole unit is divided into different departments that are convenient for control purposes. Each departmental worker is under the control of the departmental manager who is responsible to his superior over him. All departmental managers enjoy equal status and work independently, again, even within a department, there may be several sub-departments.

Merits of line organisation

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1. Simplicity: Line organisation is simple to establish and can be understood by the employees.

2. Fixed responsibility: Line organisation helps in fixing authority and responsibility. Hence no person can escape his responsibility.

3. Unity of control: An employee receives orders and instructions from only one superior. It means a subordinate is responsible to only one superior.

4. Prompt decisions: Unification of authority and responsibility facilitates quick and prompt decisions.

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5. Discipline: Single line authority and responsibility ensures strong discipline in the organisation.

6. Flexibility: The adjustments in the organisation can be easily made to suit the changing conditions.

7. Co-ordination: As all activities relating to one department are managed by one individual, there is a possibility for effective co­ordination.

8. Less expensive: It is less expensive as no expenditure on staff personnel is incurred.

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Demerits of line organisation

1. Lack of specialisation : As one person looks after all the work relating to his department, there is no scope for specialisation.

2. Excess work : In this type, an executive is overloaded with work and hence he may not be in a position to direct and control the efforts of his subordinates properly.

3. Scope of favouritism : Since only one executive controls all the activities relating to his department, there is scope for favouritism and corruption.

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4. Limited communication: In this type, there is no communication from subordinates upwards and the workers should follow the orders of superiors, without expressing any opinion about the orders communicated to them.

5. Unity of administration: All the decisions relating to a department are taken by only one executive and hence, the successful functioning of that department depends upon his abilities.

6. Lack of co-operation : Unitary control may result in lack of co­operation and team spirit.