Who is allowed to do what, and why?

With Daniel Walder, the sixth generation is now at the helm of the company. However, the change in leadership has not only brought changes in personnel. The young management generation also brings a breath of fresh air to the parental company in terms of structures and processes. The biggest change was implemented in the area of logistics, as Daniel Walder reports. Warehousing and logistics have been converted to scanner operation and so-called "wild storage". Shoes are no longer stored according to article numbers, but according to free storage capacity. "In this way, we create much more efficiency than before and can use the free capacity for other services for our stores," says Daniel Walder. For the employees, of course, this also means a change: tasks are redistributed and redefined.

"We consider the transfer of more responsibility to our staff to be an important and necessary measure to challenge and encourage our people even more. It gives them more scope and competencies," explains Daniel Walder.

More responsibility to employees

There are further changes in the Walder company hierarchy. Responsibility will be distributed among several heads. This is intended to relieve Daniel Walder in particular as Managing Director. This is because he also performs the function of sales manager. "We consider the transfer of more responsibility to our staff to be an important and necessary measure to challenge and encourage our people even more. This gives them more scope and competencies," explains Daniel Walder. A personnel development concept has been drawn up. Every year, ten employees can apply to benefit from the company's own development pool. The selected individuals receive special training and support for one year. Vacant management positions can thus be filled by people from the company's own ranks from the development pool without having to rely on external personnel. Whenever possible, experts from within the company are used to lead the internal courses.

Interface problems as a daily challenge

According to Peter Haller, trustee and organizer in Magden AG, the main significance of organizational structures in a company lies in the optimization of workflows and processes within a company. Today, he says, these structures and processes are often linked to technical parameters - in contrast to the past. "Organizational structures usually have the task of solving interface problems between the various departments and technical facilities," says Peter Haller. The aim here, he says, is to make processes as efficient and transparent as possible. Precisely defined processes and structures further ensure an optimal flow of information within the company. And, among other things, they also allow the effectiveness of the internal control system to be checked - for example, as part of the regular audit of the annual financial statements by the statutory auditors. In particular, the interfaces between different areas of the company are regarded as a constant challenge that must be solved anew every day.

"Flat hierarchies prevail within the teams and projects. Responsibility is distributed among several heads, as is the scope of tasks." - Peter Haller, Treuhand AG

Flat hierarchies, focused areas of responsibility

Because in many companies, including SMEs, work is now increasingly team- and project-based, hierarchical structures and precisely defined responsibilities have become less important, notes Peter Haller. "Flat hierarchies prevail within teams and projects. Responsibility is distributed among several heads, as is the area of responsibility." The larger a company, however, the more indispensable the need for internal regulation. In addition, the individual tasks and work areas of the employees are usually very focused, so that the interface issue has less of an impact than it used to. "Ten or more years ago, employees usually took on more diverse tasks. In order to clarify the interfaces and responsibilities, it was not possible without detailed organizational planning. Today, such rules are no longer needed to the same extent because the work is less generalized," explains Peter Haller. Nevertheless, it is worth clarifying certain boundaries and areas of responsibility in order to prevent misunderstandings and duplications.

A question of values and corporate culture

In owner-managed companies, the need for structure is less great because the company patrons have a stronger influence on the design of the organization than in large companies. According to Peter Haller, what is needed there is more factual and work-related structures through the formation of departments or teams that are assigned to specific projects. For this purpose, he says, a function diagram for important company areas and job descriptions for individual employees are sufficient. "Different structures and processes are needed depending on a company's size, industry, services and products," says Peter Haller. The structures a company sets up and maintains are always linked to the company's philosophy and values. This involves questions such as: Who calls the shots in the company? How strongly do we want to integrate employees into the company's processes and strategies? How much responsibility do supervisors give to their employees?

Involve employees

When creating or changing company structures, the organizational consultant recommends involving employees. In this way, their practical experience can be better taken into account and integrated. It also pays to get employees on board when defining strategic goals, he says. "There is no better way to create and implement structures and strategic goals for a company in a practical and successful way." However, he says, this means dissolving overly rigid and steep hierarchies so that supervisors and employees can work at eye level on the company's success. According to Peter Haller, there is a general trend toward flat hierarchies and short decision-making paths. However, this means more work for supervisors: "While bosses are handing over more responsibility to their employees today, they are busier integrating and supervising employees in return." The former control tasks of bosses have thus increasingly developed into accompanying and coaching activities.

Walder shoes http://www.walder.ch/

Peter Haller Trust AG http://www.peterhaller.ch/