Over the years we have seen organisation design exercises that start with pulling out org charts and discussing how the work could be reallocated to the individuals on them, often according to their own preferences or aptitudes. Guess what? That doesn’t work.

Org charts are not the place to start when it comes to thinking about org design options; they simply don’t tell us enough.

Most organisations have them, and they have their uses: they can show employee names, job titles, direct & indirect reporting lines, as well as company divisions and functions. 

However, they tell us nothing about some of the really important things we need to know to do effective org design: what work is done where; which functions interact with each other, for what and how; who makes which decisions; where is the power?

They also change constantly, are rarely up-to-date, and usually really only illustrate the hierarchy of the organisation.

When we do org design, we put the org charts aside. Instead, we draw an org model – a visual representation of how work gets done to deliver the organisation’s value proposition. It shows how work is grouped into organisational units, how information flows between units and the corresponding relationships. It helps to explain the purpose, accountabilities and KPIs behind each of the business units. And unlike an org chart, it only changes with the organisation’s strategy.

So, when you start your org design, put the org charts away. Think about the work. Draw a model. Work out what needs to be done to achieve the change you’re trying to achieve. And, at the end, when you’ve populated it with people, guess what? You can draw an org chart!