Which of the following statements are true with respect to advantages of functional structure?
A. It leads to product specialization
B. It facilitates expansion and growth
C. It promotes control and coordination within a department
D. It promotes flexibility and initiatives
E. It makes training of the employees easier
Choose the correct answer from the options given below:
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → C and E Only
A. It leads to product specialization — Not an advantage of functional structure (Incorrect). Product specialisation is an advantage of the divisional structure. The functional structure gives occupational specialisation.
B. It facilitates expansion and growth — Not an advantage of functional structure (Incorrect). New divisions can be added easily in a divisional structure. That is where expansion and growth come from.
C. It promotes control and coordination within a department — An advantage of functional structure (Correct). The tasks in a department are similar, so control and coordination within it are easy.
D. It promotes flexibility and initiatives — Not an advantage of functional structure (Incorrect). This is an advantage of the divisional structure, where each division works as an autonomous unit.
E. It makes training of the employees easier — An advantage of functional structure (Correct). The focus is only on a limited range of skills, so training is easier.
NCERT (2026-27 Edition): “Functional structure … Advantages: The functional structure has many advantages to offer. Important among them are as follows:” “(b) It promotes control and coordination within a department because of similarity in the tasks being performed.” “(e) It makes training of employees easier as the focus is only on a limited range of skills.” “Divisional Structure … (a) Product specialisation helps in the development of varied skills in a divisional head and this prepares” “(c) It promotes flexibility and initiative because each division functions as an autonomous unit which leads to faster decision making.” “(d) It facilitates expansion and growth as new divisions can be added without interrupting the existing operations by merely adding another divisional head and staff for the new product line.” |