Comparison of an Organization with Skunk Works
Overview
In Milestone Two, you recommended a strategic plan to the organization from the course scenario for the IoT innovation project. Now that senior management of this company has approved your recommendation, your task is to recommend ways the organization can better support innovation. Remember that your perspective is still that of a middle manager for one of the top U.S. producers of luxury and mass-market automobiles and trucks.
In this assignment, you will read a case study and write a report that compares the course scenario organization’s structure and innovation culture with those of Skunk Works. This report may help you identify ways to improve your organizational structure and culture in an effort to better support innovation.
Prompt
Using the information about the company in the Organization Overview document and referring to the Skunk Works case study in this module’s resources, compare the organization from the course scenario with Skunk Works and identify differences in organizational structure and culture related to innovation. Your comparison should include the following points:
Organizational Structure: Compare the organization’s structure with that of the Skunk Works innovation team at Lockheed. Identify the points of similarity and difference and discuss their implications for an organization’s overall ability to innovate.
Shared Vision: Compare the shared vision of the organization and that of the Skunk Works innovation team. Identify the points of similarity and difference and discuss their implications for an organization’s overall ability to innovate.
Creative Climate: Compare the creative climate of the organization and that of the Skunk Works innovation team. Identify the points of similarity and difference and discuss their implications for an organization’s overall ability to innovate.
Effectiveness of Teamwork: Compare the effectiveness of teamwork in the organization and the Skunk Works innovation team. Identify the points of similarity and difference and discuss their implications for an organization’s overall ability to innovate.
What to Submit
Submit a 1- to 3-page Word document with double spacing, 12-point Times New Roman font, and one-inch margins. You are not required to use sources. However, if you choose to use sources, they should be cited in APA format.
Benchmark Study: Skunk Works
Name of the Student
Institution Affiliation
Course Name
Professor’s Name
Date
Benchmark Study: Skunk Works
Introduction
Structure and culture shape an organization's innovation potential. They control information flow, decision-making, and employee collaboration and communication. This comparative analysis will compare a global automaker's organizational structure and culture to Lockheed Martin's Skunk Works innovation team. Skunk Works is known for aerospace innovation, while the selected automaker has a tall matrixed structure. This essay compares these organizations' structure and culture to show how these factors affect their innovation capabilities. This essay compares a global automaker's organizational structure and culture to Lockheed's Skunk Works innovation team. These differences are examined to determine how they affect an organization's innovation. The analyzed company has a tall matrixed structure, while Skunk Works pioneered aerospace.
Organizational Structure
The automaker's complex, tall, matrixed organizational structure has deep hierarchies and many management layers. This complex hierarchy can hinder organizational communication and decision-making. Multiple management levels can slow decision-making because information must pass through several layers before reaching the final decision-makers. Late responses to market changes and customer demands are especially problematic in the fast-paced automotive industry.