Life in a Matrix

At Global Integration we have just completed a flash movie introduction to what we think are the main issues in matrix management - managing people in large, complex, virtual and matrixed organizations.
You can either

Press the play button underneath the image below - this will play the show within  this blog page
Or for a bigger full screen […]

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Right at the very top of organizations the matrix structure may have relatively little impact – after all everyone still works for you! This can lead to senior mangers underestimating the degree of difficulty their colleagues face in matrix management and in making the matrix organization structure work in practice.
The role of senior matrix leaders is, however, […]

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In our first post on the subject of power and influence in matrix management we looked at what sources of power were open to us, and what were the consequences and limitations of using different types of power (coercive, normative and presence power) in matrix management.
Other sources of power to influence without traditional authority in […]

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Take a look at Gill Corkindale’s second article on “Surviving the matrix” at the Harvard Business Publishing website. In it she addresses some of the key challenges of managing and working in a matrix organization structure.
She captures the breadth and depth of the challenges of matrix management. Worth a look.

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I was reminded by the great comment left by my mum on the podcast below about an example that often comes up on our skills for the matrix training about a very common form of matrix management - the matrix of mum and dad.

In a family, if the kids come to Dad and ask […]

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Influence without authority is a core skill in matrix management - see previous post. Understanding your ability to influence in a matrix organization structure depends in part on understanding what sources of power you have and how to apply them.

First we have to realise which of these types of power we have access to to […]

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I have a Google alert which tells me about any new mentions of the words “matrix management” or “matrix organization” and I have noticed a steady increase in the number of jobs asking for matrix management skills. Here is one that arrived last week
 “Experience managing, providing direction, and facilitating in a matrix management environment and […]

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As part of our Speed Lead “save a day a week” program we are focusing with some of our clients on specific reductions in meetings, conference calls and emails - for many people in matrix and other complex companies (and some simpler ones) this consumes 40-50% of their time and they tell us that over […]

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As we have seen in previous posts on managing multiple bosses, one of the most fundamental skills of matrix management is the ability to manage “upwards” to reconcile and trade off between competing priorities from different matrix managers.
The ability to challenge people who are hierarchically more senior than you differs between cultures and this can cause […]

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In the previous post we looked at how matrix organization structures were introduced to increase flexibility in the way we access resources and get people to work together. 
In order to get increased flexibility we give up some of the clarity and certainty that came from single unified reporting relationships. It is important to realize that this […]

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