Why Does Your Organization Grow?

Abstract

Organizational theory and research have proposed several models of the processes contributing to, and retarding, organizational growth. Most of these ideas relate to biological analogies which take as a model the living organism and the processes and principles that regulate and describe its growth and development. These same principles and processes are assumed to be equally applicable to a single biological cell, human beings, organizations, and even societies. When applied to organizations, the analogy implies that changes in growth result from forces in the environment outside the boundaries of the organization, or, from pressures developed within it. In understanding organizational growth from this perspective, it is necessary continuously to be aware of the interdependence among the relationships between size and complexity, strategic functional changes in conjunction with these increases, and the structural, climate and behavioral reactions which occur.

Citation

Hunsaker, P.L. (1981), "Why Does Your Organization Grow?", Leadership & Organization Development Journal, Vol. 2 No. 1, pp. 2-7. https://doi.org/10.1108/eb053474