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The informal organization is the interlocking social structure that governs how people work together in practice. It is the aggregate of, norms, personal and professional connections through which work gets done and relationships are built among people who share a common organizational affiliation or cluster of affiliations. It consists of a dynamic set of personal relationships, social networks, communities of common interest, and emotional sources of motivation. The informal organization evolves, and the complex social dynamics of its members also. Tended effectively, the informal organization complements the more explicit structures, plans, and processes of the formal organization: it can accelerate and enhance responses to unanticipated events, foster innovation, enable people to solve problems that require collaboration across boundaries, and create footpaths showing where the formal organization may someday need to pave a way. == The informal organization and the formal organization == The nature of the informal organization becomes more distinct when its key characteristics are juxtaposed with those of the formal organization. Key characteristics of the informal organization: *evolving constantly *grass roots *dynamic and responsive *excellent at motivation *requires insider knowledge to be seen *treats people as individuals like *flat and fluid *cohered by trust and reciprocity *difficult to pin down *collective decision making *essential for situations that change quickly or are not yet fully understood Key characteristics of the formal organization: *enduring, unless deliberately altered *top-down *missionary *static *excellent at alignment *plain to see *equates “person” with “role” *hierarchical *bound together by codified rules and order *easily understood and explained *critical for dealing with situations that are known and consistent Historically, some have regarded the informal organization as the byproduct of insufficient formal organization—arguing, for example, that “it can hardly be questioned that the ideal situation in the business organization would be one where no informal organization existed.” 〔Mescon, Michael H., “Comments on Organization.” ''The Journal of Educational Sociology'', Vol. 33, No. 1 (September, 1959), pp. 34-36〕 However, the contemporary approach—one suggested as early as 1925 by Mary Parker Follett, the pioneer of community centers and author of influential works on management philosophy—is to integrate the informal organization and the formal organization, recognizing the strengths and limitations of each. Integration, as Follett defined it, means breaking down apparent sources of conflict into their basic elements and then building new solutions that neither allow domination nor require compromise.〔Davis, Albie. Dynamic Conflict Management: The Wisdom of Mary Parker Follett. Conference: “Beyond Mediation: Strategies For Appropriate Early Dispute Resolution In Special Education.” Washington, DC: CADRE (Consortium for Appropriate Dispute Resolution in Special Education), 2002.〕 In other words, integrating the informal organization with the formal organization replaces competition with coherence. At a societal level, the importance of the relationship between formal and informal structures can be seen in the relationship between civil society and state authority. The power of integrating the formal organization and the informal organization can also be seen in many successful businesses. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Informal organization」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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