Define informal organisation. State six points of difference between formal and informal organisations.
Answer – Formal organisation is the deliberately created official structure of duties, authority and relationships. Informal organisation is the network of social and personal relationships that develops spontaneously among people at work.
Basis | Formal | Informal |
Origin | Deliberately created by management. | Develops spontaneously through interaction. |
Purpose | Organisational objectives. | Social satisfaction and shared interests. |
Authority | Comes from the official position. | Comes from personal acceptance and influence. |
Behaviour | Guided by prescribed rules. | Guided by group norms. |
Communication | Follows prescribed channels. | Flows freely through personal contacts. |
Structure | Defined and relatively stable. | Flexible and less clearly defined. |
Leadership | Appointed through formal roles. | Emerges through group acceptance. |