Overview of Lion Company’s Organizational Structure

Discuss about the Strategic Information System Of Lion Company Australia.

The literature review takes into consideration the Lion Company of Australia in order to evaluate the problems associated with the organization structure of this organization. The report discusses the current organization structure of Lion Company and the different operational issues that may arise due to this improper organizational structure (Claver-Cortés, Pertusa-Ortega and Molina-Azorín 2012). The report gives a detailed overview of the organizational structure of Lion Company. Having a proper organization structure is essential for ensuring easy information flow and easier management of the different operations of the organization. The report provides an overview of the system sales flowchart of the Company in a diagrammatic format. The report further gives and over view of the different control problems associated with the system. The second part of this literature review is based on the development and adoption of different accounting software and its current market size (Domeika 2015). Use of accounting software has considerably increased over the years since it provides an easier way of managing all the financial transactions of an organization. The report further identifies the different leaders in the market and the competitive advantages they have in the marketplace. The report identifies the challenges that the customers of the accounting information software might face and recommends relevant suggestions in mitigating those challenges.

Organization structure of a company gives an overview of the implementation of the different tasks, its allocation, supervision and coordination associated with an organization. It can further be defined as a perspective that enables an individual to have a proper view of the different processes running within an organization. Therefore having an effective operational structure is integral for any business organization (Lunenburg 2012). The organizational efficiency therefore largely depends on its organization structure and therefore it is considered as an important perspective in viewing the effective business operations of an organization.

The organizational structure of an organization is mainly represented in a diagrammatic format, which gives an overview of the internal structure of a particular business. Particularly, the organization structure provides an overview of the specific roles and responsibilities of the employees of an organization. A clear organization structure shows the different roles and responsibilities that relates to one another. It gives an overview of the chain of commands and span of control that is present within an organization. There are some complex problems associated with the organizational structure of Lion Company which arose mainly because of the large size of the company (Lionco.com. 2018). This company operates all over Australia and provides alcoholic and non alcoholic beverages to the customers. The organization structure of Lion Company is somewhat linear and lacks work specialization that results in different operational inefficiencies in the organization as well.

Importance of Proper Organizational Structure for Business Operations

The hierarchy is very simple and therefore it becomes difficult to manage the complex organizational problems. This improper organizational structure can result in operational issues and control problems in the organization. Therefore, it is very essential for Lion to redesign the organizational structure of the organization, keeping in mind the growing business demands of the organization.  

This improper organization structure might result in some serious operational problems in the organization which are discussed in the following section.

The major operational problems that may arise in Lion Company due to an improper organization structure is represented in the following paragraphs-

1. One of the major problems that might creep into the organization due to an inefficient organization structure is poor communication. An improper organizational structure hampers the normal process of communication and the employees do not have a clear idea about whom to report for a particular problem. This might result in the improper flow of the crucial information associated with an organization (Hao, Kasper and Muehlbacher 2012). This is therefore a major operational issue that the organization might face due to the inefficient organization structure.
2. Another major operational problem associated with an improper organization structure is problem with the supply chain management. Communication plays an important role in management of the different operations of the organization including the supply chain.
3. Product management is another operational problem that might occur due to an improper organization structure. Since the employees of Lion have no proper understanding regarding whom to report for any problem with the product management, these operational problems might be encountered (Aslan Stevenson and Hendry 2012).
4. Proper management of the different processes of the organization needs strategic approach. Ineffective strategic management of the organization is mainly the cause of the ineffective organizational structure and therefore, it is one major operational issue that the organization might face due to the poor organization structure (Hall 2012).
5. The human resources of the organization need to be managed as well. The organization structure gives a clear idea about this management process and the employee under whom a particular group of staffs will be reporting to (Hendry 2012). Therefore, an improper organizational structure results in a major operational problem of human resource management.

The above discussed point gives an overview of the different operational issues that Lion Company might face due to its improper organization structure.

Lion Company has different branches spread across the country and therefore, the different operational processes of the organization needs to be well managed. Therefore it is important for the organization to ensure that all the business processes of the organization are integrated so that it can be managed very efficiently from a single place (Shaul and Tauber 2013). Therefore, the system acquisition method recommended for the organization includes implementation of enterprise resources planning system that will integrate all the important business process of the organization (Leon 2014).

Use of enterprise resource planning system helps in automating all the business processes of the organization (Hoch and Dulebohn 2013). All the vital operations of the organization will be managed by a software that can be operated in real time. Therefore it enables an option of real time tracking of all the data related to sales and supply chain. This system if properly implemented will therefore enable a number of benefits to the company (Karim and Arif-Uz-Zaman 2013). The implementation of enterprise resource planning system however requires a proper and planned implementation so that it performs according to the requirements of the organization. Therefore, it is recommended for Lion Company to implement an enterprise resource planning system as the most likely system acquisition method.

Lion Company Australia delivers alcoholic and non alcoholic beverages to the customers across the country. The picture below represents the sales procedure of Lion Company Australia in a flow chart format.

The above flowchart represents the basic diagrammatic representation of sales procedure in Lion Company Australia. This is a normal sales process that is followed in the company. Several modifications can be made in this process in order to make the sales process even more efficient.

Operational Problems Associated with Lion Company’s Organizational Structure

The ineffective organization structure and heavy demand of the goods might result in different operational problems associated with the company. The control problems persisting in Lion Company Australia is represented in the following paragraphs-

1. Along with the increasing demand of the products of Lion Company Australia, it becomes very complex in enforcing internal control in the organization. Internal control is necessary in order to ensure that all the process and operations running within the organization are executed in a controlled environment. Since the organization structure of Lion Company is ineffective as well, there are some major problems associated with the enforcement of internal control in the organization.
2. The process of sales that is followed in Lion Company is quite old and it needs update. Since the process of sales is inefficient, it becomes difficult to detect or control any problem in the process. These problems can result in the severe loss of the company if not handled properly. Therefore, it is another major control problem associated with Lion Company Australia. If there is any problem with the sales procedure of the company, it will lead to customer dissatisfaction that is not at all good from a business perspective. Therefore it is essential to irradiate this control problem from the system.
3. The Lion Company in Australia is a well established company, yet it has some problems associated with the customer relationship management, which is one major internal control problems associated with the organization.

The identified internal problems might result in fraud in the business process of Lion Company if not addressed on time. In order to mitigate these control problems, the organization must ensure that the different operational processes of the organization are redesigned.

Development and Adoption of accounting software packages

Accounting software packages are used by the different business organization in order to ensure that all the financial operation of the organization is automated. The use of accounting software helps in management of the different operations of the organization in a more efficient manner (Mageto 2017). This is the reason, a number of business organization aims at adopting this business processes in their organization. Lion Company makes use of the accounting software as well in order to manage their business operation in an efficient manner.

Example of mostly used accounting software package in Australia is XERO and MYYOB. Majority of the business organizations in Australia use either of these two accounting software for efficient management of the different financial processes of the organization.

The Current Market Size

The use of accounting software has increased to a large extent not only in Australia but also across the globe. This is mainly because of their ease of access and the benefits it provides by managing the different business operation of the organization. Accounting software can be described as accounting software that helps in recording and processing the different accounting transactions of an organization.

With the increasing use of cloud computing in the business organizations, it becomes extremely easier to develop and adopt accounting software packages in an organization.

Therefore, it can be said that the current market share of accounting software packages is high across the globe.

Leaders in the Market

XERO and MYOB are the two mostly adopted accounting software packages across the world (Toth 2012). However, evaluating the use and adoption of these two software, it is found that XERO leads the market.

XERO gets the competitive advantage mainly because of the easier user interface and the simple process of installation. The speed of the operational output of XERO is high as well that reduces the time for processing any request. Furthermore it enables storage of data in cloud.

Gaps, Challenges and Recommendations

Although accounting software packages considerably helps in management of the different financial processes running within the organization, there are certain gaps and challenges associated with the use of accounting software, the most significant one being the security issues in cloud and problem with process of installation and regular updates (Mudge 2013).

It is therefore recommended for the organizations that are making use of the accounting software packages to properly train their employees about the secure use, and installation of the accounting software packages (Mishra et al. 2013).

Conclusion

The literature review, reviews the current organizational structure and the operational issues persisting in the organization. The report further gives an overview of the sales procedure of the company and the different control problems associated with it. In the second part of the report, the accounting software packages and its use are discussed. The current leaders in the market are identified and their competitive advantages are discussed as well. It is found out that XERO is the leader in the market.

References

Aslan, B., Stevenson, M. and Hendry, L.C., 2012. Enterprise resource planning systems: An assessment of applicability to make-to-order companies. Computers in Industry, 63(7), pp.692-705.

Claver-Cortés, E., Pertusa-Ortega, E.M. and Molina-Azorín, J.F., 2012. Characteristics of organizational structure relating to hybrid competitive strategy: Implications for performance. Journal of Business Research, 65(7), pp.993-1002.

Domeika, P., 2015. Creation of the Information system of enterprise fixed asset accounting. Engineering Economics, 60(5).

Hall, J.A., 2012. Accounting information systems. Cengage Learning.

Hao, Q., Kasper, H. and Muehlbacher, J., 2012. How does organizational structure influence performance through learning and innovation in Austria and China. Chinese Management Studies, 6(1), pp.36-52.

Hendry, C., 2012. Human resource management. Routledge.

Hoch, J.E. and Dulebohn, J.H., 2013. Shared leadership in enterprise resource planning and human resource management system implementation. Human Resource Management Review, 23(1), pp.114-125.

Karim, A. and Arif-Uz-Zaman, K., 2013. A methodology for effective implementation of lean strategies and its performance evaluation in manufacturing organizations. Business Process Management Journal, 19(1), pp.169-196.

Leon, A., 2014. Enterprise resource planning. McGraw-Hill Education.

Lionco.com. 2018. Welcome! | Lion. [online] Available at: https://lionco.com/ [Accessed 21 Apr. 2018].

Lunenburg, F.C., 2012. Organizational structure: Mintzberg’s framework. International journal of scholarly, academic, intellectual diversity, 14(1), pp.1-8.

Mageto, J., 2017. Accounting Softwares in Australia. An Overview. GRIN Publishing.

Mishra, A., Mathur, R., Jain, S. and Rathore, J.S., 2013. Cloud computing security. International Journal on Recent and Innovation Trends in Computing and Communication, 1(1), pp.36-39.

Mudge, J.C., 2013. Cloud computing-its development and security. Australian Journal of Telecommunications and the Digital Economy, 1(1).

Shaul, L. and Tauber, D., 2013. Critical success factors in enterprise resource planning systems: Review of the last decade. ACM Computing Surveys (CSUR), 45(4), p.55.

Toth, Z., 2012. The current role of accounting information systems. Theory, Methodology, Practice, 8(1), p.91.