COMPANY ORGANISATION, TYPES OF COMPANIES, JOB DESCRIPTION
● What did you want to be when you
were a child?
● Do you have a dream job? What is
it?
● Would you rather report to someone or
have someone report to you?
● What organisations have you already
worked for?
● What organisation would you like to work
for and why?
● What is the most common organisational
company structure?
● What is the organisational structure in your
company/institution?
● How and why do organisational structures
differ?
● What does the organisational structure of a
company show?
● How would you describe your job and job
responsibilities?
● Where, in the organisational structure,
does your job belong?
COMPANY ORGANISATION
Companies can be made up of three key groups of people - shareholders, who provide the capital and
own the company, the management and the workforce. In large corporations, operations are split into
divisions or departments, which are overseen by a board of
directors.
In a traditional hierarchical company, the board of directors
typically provides strategic direction. The board consists mainly
of non-executive directors who represent the interest of the
shareholders. The board is headed by the Chairperson (UK)/
President (US) and is responsible for policy decisions and
strategies. It will usually appoint a Managing Director (UK)/
Chief Executive Officer (US) who has an overall responsibility
for the running of the business. Senior/ Line managers or
company officers head the various departments within the
company, for example Finance, Legal Affairs, Human
Resource (HR), or Public Relations (PR).
Every organisation has its own organisational structure. An organisational structure is a system that outlines
how certain activities are directed in order to achieve the goals of an organisation. These activities can
include rules, roles, and responsibilities. A successful organisational structure defines each employee's job
and how it fits within the overall system. Put simply, the organisational structure lays out what duties each
person has so the company can meet its objectives. Having an organisational structure in place allows
companies to remain efficient and focused. The organisational structure also determines how information
flows between levels within the company. For example, in a centralised structure, decisions flow from the
top down, while in a decentralised structure, decision-making power is distributed among various levels of
the organisation.
Traditionally, organisations have been structured with centralised leadership and a well-defined chain of
command, with very clear responsibilities for each role, and a clear distinction between subordinates and
superiors. However, there has been a rise in decentralised organisations, as is the case with many
technology startups. This allows companies to remain fast, agile, and adaptable, with almost every
employee receiving a high level of engagement.
Large companies can have over 200 business units and brands that function in sometimes very different
industries and they often operate autonomously. Even in decentralised companies, there are still usually
built-in hierarchies, such as the chief operating officer operating at a higher level than an entry-level
associate. However, teams are empowered to make their own decisions and come to the best conclusion
without necessarily getting "approval" from higher up in the organisation.
TYPES OF COMPANIES
A company is a legal entity formed by an individual or a group of individuals to engage in and run a
business enterprise. There are many different types of companies (UK) / corporations (US), which can be
classified for example according to their size, forms of business, the sector – private or public, or whether
they are profit-making or non-profit-making. Regarding the size, there are three main categories, and they
share some common characteristics irrespective of their field.
The three main types of business size classifications are small and mid-size enterprises (SMEs), and large
enterprises. Small and medium-sized enterprises represent 99% of all businesses in the EU. The definition
of an SME is important for access to finance and EU support programmes targeted specifically at these
enterprises. The main factors determining whether an enterprise is an SME are: staff headcount and either
turnover or balance sheet total. Small enterprises have fewer than 50 employees and the annual turnover
less than 10 million euros. For mid-size enterprises the figures are fewer than 250 employees and the annual
turnover less than 50 million euros. These ceilings apply to the figures for individual firms only. A firm that
is part of a larger group may need to include staff headcount/turnover/balance sheet data from that group
too..
The most common forms of business are sole traders (UK)/ sole proprietorships (US), partnerships, and
corporations. A sole trader is the easiest way of establishing and dismantling a business due to minimal
government regulation. It is run by one business owner who has all the decision-making power in the
company, but also all the liability and who pays personal income tax on profits earned from the business. In
addition, any business-related expenses will come directly out of their personal finances, since personal and
business finances will be intermingled.
A partnership is a formal arrangement in which two or more parties manage and operate a business and
share its profits. There are several types of partnership arrangements, e.g. general partnership, limited
partnership or limited liability partnership. In a general partnership, all partners share liabilities and
profits equally, while in others, partners can have limited liability. Professionals like doctors, architects, and
lawyers often form a limited liability partnership. This arrangement limits partners' personal liability so that,
for example, if one partner is sued for malpractice, the assets of other partners are not at risk. Limited
partnerships are a hybrid of general partnerships and limited liability partnerships. At least one partner must
be a general partner, with full personal liability for the partnership's debts. At least one other is a sleeping
partner (UK)/ silent partner (US) whose liability is limited to the amount invested. This sleeping partner
generally does not participate in the management or day-to-day operation of the partnership.
A corporation is a legal entity that is separate and distinct from its owners. Under the law, corporations
possess many of the same rights and responsibilities as individuals. They are, however, more complex and
costly than most other business structures. An important element of a corporation is limited liability, which
means that its shareholders are not personally responsible for the company's debts. The vast majority of
corporations have a goal of generating profit for their shareholders. However, some corporations, such as
charities, are non-profit-making.
Limited company structures are codified in many nations, though the regulations governing them can differ
widely from one nation to the next. For example, in the United Kingdom, there are two types of limited
liability companies - private limited (Ltd.) and public limited companies (PLC).
Private limited companies are not permitted to offer shares to the public. They are, however, the most
popular structures for a small business. Public limited companies may offer shares to the public to raise
capital. When a company goes public, this is known as flotation or Initial Public Offering (IPO).
When a business wants to increase its market share or geographical reach at a low cost, it may franchise its
product and brand name. A franchise is a joint venture between a franchisor and a franchisee. The
franchisor is the original business. It sells the right to use its name and idea. The franchisee buys this right to
sell the franchisor's goods or services under an existing business model and trademark.
JOB DESCRIPTION – EXAMPLES
A job description is a statement that outlines the specifics of a particular job or position with a company. It
goes into detail about the responsibilities and conditions of the job.
Joe works in advertising and is in charge of creating marketing communication that persuades the target
audience to purchase a product or service. He loves his work as it can be rewarding and stimulating. He
needs to demonstrate originality and creativity as lots of new ideas must be produced. In-depth
understanding of common marketing and advertising best practices is essential as well. No two days are the
same, so Joe needs to be versatile. His work may range from contacting companies for a new advertising
campaign to giving client presentations, so effective communication skills are required. Joe has hands-on
experience with the productive work of the agency. Teamwork is essential in this industry, so strong
rapport among colleagues is highly valued.
Amanda is a researcher and works in research and development (R&D), which involves putting ideas into
practice. She often works with a team of other researchers and committees to plan research objectives and
test parameters. She identifies research methods, variables, data collection techniques and analysis methods.
She interprets the data, produces reports discussing research findings and provides recommendations at the
end of the project. To be successive she must prove exceptional problem-solving and investigative skills.
Her work might be very exciting and the sense of achievement astonishing.
Tom is a sales representative, which can be very stressful as well as demanding. He needs to meet sales
targets every month. However, he enjoys a great amount of flexibility as he organises his working time
himself and does not have to commute to work every day. He is provided with perks such as a company
car, a cell phone and a computer. When he is not seeing clients, he can work from home. He usually works
long hours – about 60 hours a week but he says that advantages outweigh disadvantages. Tom's job is a
commision based. He receives a basic salary and a commision, which depends on how much he sells. Thus,
he is highly motivated to perform well and improve his sales performance.
Lea works as a secretary, also known as a personal assistant (PA) or administrative assistant. She is
responsible for performing administrative tasks in the office. To be successful as a secretary, she must be
able to multitask. Her work includes for example typing, formatting, and editing reports, documents, and
presentations, entering data, maintaining databases, and keeping records. Lea is responsible for answering
phone calls, responding to emails, scheduling appointments, liaising with internal departments and making
travel arrangements. Her duties might also entail organising events and arranging refreshments, if required.
Copying, scanning documents as well as taking notes during meetings are secretarial responsibilities. Lea
must often exhibit excellent interpersonal and organisational skills and work autonomously to provide
customised administrative support.
Listening activity
Listen to part of an episode from the BBC programme 50 Things That Made the Modern Economy by
Tim Harford about Limited Liability Company and complete the gaps with the words you hear.
Nicholas Murray Butler was one of the thinkers of his age. Philosopher, Nobel Peace Prize winner, president
of Columbia University. In 1911, someone asked Butler to name the most important invention of the
industrial era. Steam perhaps? Electricity? No, he said. They would both be reduced to comparative
impotence without something else. Something he called the greatest single discovery of modern times. That
something - the limited liability corporation.
It seems odd to say the corporation was "discovered". But it didn't just appear from nowhere. The word
"incorporate" means take on 1) bodily form - not a physical body, but a legal one. In the law's eyes, a
corporation is something different from the people who own it, or run it, or work for it. And that's a concept
lawmakers had to dream up. Without laws saying that a corporation can do certain things - like 2) own
assets, or 3) enter into contracts - the word would be meaningless.
The legal ingredients that 4) comprise a corporation came together in a form we would recognise in
England, on New Year's Eve, in 1600. Back then, creating a corporation didn't simply involve filing in some
routine forms - you needed a royal charter. And you couldn't 5) incorporate with the general aim of doing
business and making profits - a corporation's charter specifically said what it was allowed to do, and often
also 6) stipulated that nobody else was allowed to do it.
The legal body created that New Year's Eve was 7) charged with handling all of England's shipping trade
east of the Cape of Good Hope. Its 8) shareholders were 218 merchants. Crucially - and unusually - the
charter 9) granted those merchants limited liability for the company's actions. Why was that so important?
Because otherwise, investors were 10) personally liable for everything the business did. If you 11)
partnered in a business that 12) ran up debts it couldn't pay, its 13) debtors could come after you - not just
for the 14) value of your investment, but for everything you owned. That's worth thinking about: whose
business might you be willing to invest in, if you knew that it could lose you your home, and even 15) land
you in prison? Perhaps a close family member's? At a push, a trusted friend's? Someone you knew well
enough and saw often enough to notice if they were behaving 16) suspiciously.
The way we invest today - buying 17) shares in companies whose managers we will never meet - would be
unthinkable. And that would 18) severely limit the amount of capital a business 19) venture could raise.
(based on https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p058qrk3)
Video activity
1. Watch the Ted talk and answer the questions below.
1. What are machines able to do based on machine learning?
They are able to learn from data, mimic part of what humans can do, and (assess credit risk, diagnose
diseases).
2. What was the first task done by machines?
It was assessing credit risks from loan applications.
3. What are the limits of using machines?
Machines are not able to deal with novel situations.
4. What possibly will be done by machines in the future?
Machines will grade essays, conduct audits, read boilerplate from legal contracts, diagnose diseases.
5. Which tasks will not be substituted by machines?
Machines will not be able to deal with different and new litigations, with complex tax structuring,
developing business strategies and creating marketing campaigns.
2. Watch the Ted talk again and complete the summary of the talk.
According to the research from 2013, almost 50 % of jobs will be 1) automated by machines. Machine
learning allows machines to 2) learn from data and 3) mimic part of what humans can do. The Kaggle
company cooperates with a high number of experts to tackle problems for 4) industry and 5) academia.
One of the first tasks machines performed was 6) assessing credit risks from loan applications. With the
right data machines will be able to 7) outperform humans at tasks such as diagnosing diseases. One of the
disadvantages of machines is that they are not able to deal with 8) novel situations, which gives a 9)
fundamental limit on the human tasks that machines will automate. The future of a job depends on how
much the job is 10) reducible to frequent, high-volume tasks or not. In the future the machines will not
only grade essays and diagnose diseases but they will also 11) conduct the audits and read boilerplate from
12) legal contracts. Although lawyers and accountants will be needed for complex 13) tax structuring and
pathbreaking 14) litigation, machines will 15) shrink their ranks. However, it will still be people not
machines who will be creating the 16) copy behind the 17) marketing campaigns and developing business
strategies.
based on
https://www.ted.com/talks/anthony_goldbloom_the_jobs_we_ll_lose_to_machines_and_the_ones_we_won_t/transcript?referrer=
playlist-what_happens_when_the_robots_take_our_jobs&autoplay=true
Glossary
Revision time:
Wordwall set – Company organisation – Drag and drop words into the spaces where they belong
Wordwall set – Types of companies - Match the expressions with their definitions
Wordwall set - Legal entities- Drag and drop each item into its correct group
Wordwall set - Job description - synonyms – Tap the matching answer to eliminate it. Repeat until all answers are
gone.
Wordwall set - Miscellaneous – Moles appear one at a time. Hit only the correct ones to win.
Quizlet set - Companies and Jobs - Practise vocabulary on flashcards – translate from Czech to English
Sources:
1. Intelligent Business - coursebook, Louise Pile, Longman, 2005
2. https://www.investopedia.com/terms/o/organizational-structure.asp, accessed by 15 January
3. https://www.indeed.com - accessed 15 January, 24 January, 26 January 2023
4. Business Vocabulary in Use. CUP. 2006
picture:
https://www.dreamstime.com/stock-images-corporate-structure-org-chart-representing-typical-corporation-power-authority-
flowing-shareholders-image32795104
Useful websites:
https://www.investopedia.com
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/
Business Proficiency
Definitions:
Company organisation
Adaptable - able or willing to change in order to suit different conditions
Agile - able to deal with new situations or changes quickly and successfully
Appoint – to choose someone officially for a job, responsibility
Approval – official permission
Associate - an associate is a person who has a position in a job or type of work that is just below the top position
Autonomously - independent and having the power to make your own decisions
Board of directors - the governing body of a company, elected by shareholders
Built-in - included, made, or designed as part of something
Centralised structure - where business decisions are made at the top of the business or in a head office and
distributed down the chain of command
Chain of command – a system in an organisation by which instructions are passed from one person to another
Chairperson/ President – a person in charge of a meeting, organisation
Decentralised structure - where a business allows decisions to be made by managers and subordinates further
down the chain
Determine – to decide what will happen
Direct – to tell the people the direction in which they must drive
Division/ department - a part of a company that deals with a particular area
Empower - to give someone official authority or the freedom to do something
Engagement - the act of being involved with something
Finance – the management of money
Head – to be in charge of an organisation, group, etc.
Hierarchical – arranged according to people’s level of importance
Human Resources (HR) – the department within an organisation responsible for managing its employees
Lay out - to explain something clearly, usually in writing
Leadership - the set of characteristics that make a good leader
Legal affairs – the department providing legal counsel to the Board and to its other departments
Line manager – the person who is directly responsible for managing the work of someone else in a company or
business, and who is one level above that person
Management – the group of people responsible for controlling and organising a company
Managing Director/ Chief Executive Officer – a person in charge of a company
Non-executive - someone who has a non-executive position in a company or organisation gives advice but is not
responsible for making decisions or ensuring that decisions are carried out
Objective/ goal - something that you plan to do or achieve
Operate - to (cause to) work, be in action or have an effect
Outline – to give the main facts about something
Policy - a set of ideas or a plan of what to do in particular situations that has been agreed by a business
organisation, a government
Public Relations (PR) – refers to managing how others see and feel about a company
Responsibility - a duty to take care of something
Role - the position or purpose that someone or something has in a situation, organisation, society, or relationship
Rule – an accepted instruction that states the way things should be done
Senior Managers – managers at the highest level of a company or organisation responsible for strategizing the
department's direction and planning their department's goals
Shareholder - any person, company, or institution that owns shares in a company’s stock
Subordinate - a person with a lower or less important position
Superior - a person higher in rank or social position than others
Unit - a group of people working together, especially for a particular purpose
Workforce – the group of people who work in a company
Types of companies
Assets - something valuable belonging to a person or organisation that can be used for the payment of debts
Balance sheet - a statement of the assets, liabilities, and capital of a business or other organisation at a particular
point in time
Charity - an organisation whose purpose is to give money, food, or help to those who need it
Classify - to divide things or people into groups according to their type
Corporation - a large company or group of companies authorised to act as a single entity and recognized as such in
law
Costly - expensive
Dismantle - to get rid of a system or organisation, usually over a period of time
Distinct - clearly noticeable; that certainly exists
Enterprise - a business or company
Establish - to start a company or organisation that will continue for a long time
Flotation/ initial public offering - an occasion when a company's shares are sold to the public for the first time
Franchise - an arrangement in which a company sells another business the right to sell its products or services in
return for payment
Franchisee - a business that has bought the right to sell the products and services of another company
Franchisor/ franchiser - a person or a company that sells the right to open stores and sell products or services
using its brand, expertise, and intellectual property
General partnership - a business made up of two or more partners, each obligated for the business's debts,
liabilities, and assets
Headcount - a total number of people employed in a particular organisation
Income tax - a tax imposed on individuals or entities (taxpayers) in respect of the income or profits earned by
them
Intermingle - to become mixed together
Joint venture - a business entity created by two or more parties, generally characterised by shared ownership,
shared returns and risks
Large enterprises - entities that employs a great number of people and has a sizable annual revenue
Legal entity – an individual, company, or organisation that has legal rights and obligations
Liability - the fact that someone is legally responsible for something
Limited liability - the condition by which shareholders are legally responsible for the debts of a company only to
the extent of the nominal value of their shares
Limited partnership - a business entity with at least one general partner, who has unlimited personal liability, and
one limited partner, whose liability is limited to their investment in the company
Limited liability partnership - a partnership in which some or all partners (depending on the jurisdiction) have
limited liabilities
Malpractice - improper, illegal, or negligent professional behaviour
Non-profit organisation - a group organised for purposes other than generating profit
Partnership - a legal arrangement that allows two or more people to share responsibility for a business
Private limited company - a type of company whose shares are not traded on a stock market and may only be sold
if other shareholders agree
Private sector - the part of the national economy that is not under direct state control
Profit organisation - an entity whose primary goal is to earn income
Public limited company - a business that has opened its shares up to the public
Public sector - the part of an economy that is controlled by the state
Regulation - an official rule or the act of controlling something
Silent/ sleeping partner - an investor who becomes a member of a partnership by virtue of capital contribution,
but plays an inactive role in daily operations and management of the business
Small and mid-size enterprises - businesses that maintain revenues, assets or a number of employees below a
certain threshold; each country has its own definition
Sole trader/sole proprietorship - a person who is the exclusive owner of a business, entitled to keep all profits
after tax has been paid but liable for all losses
Turnover - the amount of money that a company gets from sales during a particular period
Job description
Advertising - the business of trying to persuade people to buy products or services
Agency - a business or organisation providing a particular service on behalf of another business, person, or group
Commision - a payment given to someone when they sell something, whcih is directly related to the amount they
sell
Commute - travel some distance between one's home and place of work on a regular basis
Customised - modified to suit a particular individual or task
Demanding - requiring much skill or effort
Demonstrate - give a practical exhibition and explanation of a skill
Duty - a task or action that one is required to perform as part of one's job
Edit - to make changes to a text
Effective - successful in producing a desired or intended result
Entail - involve (something) as a necessary or inevitable part
Exceptional - unusual; not typical
Exhibit - manifest clearly a quality or a type of behaviour
Flexibility - willingness to change or compromise
Format - plan or arrange in a specified form
Hands-on - involving or offering active participation rather than theory
In charge of - in control or with overall responsibility
In-depth - comprehensive and thorough
Interpersonal - relating to relationships or communication between people
Investigative - involving examining facts, events, problems, etc.
Keep records - organise and store all the documents, files, invoices for future reference
Liaise - cooperate on a matter of mutual concern
Long hours - a period of time doing something, especially work, that is longer than is usual
Multitask - deal with more than one task at the same time
Outweigh - to have more influence or importance than something else
Perks - something extra an employee gets in addition to their salary
Personal assistant/ administrative assistant - a person who does office work and works exclusively for one
particular person
Range - vary or extend between specified limits
Rapport - agreement or sympathy between people or groups
Research and development – the department directed towards the innovation, introduction, and improvement of
products and processes
Rewarding - providing satisfaction; gratifying
Sense of achievement - something accomplished, especially by superior ability, special effort, great courage, etc.
Stimulating - encouraging or arousing interest or enthusiasm
Target audience - a particular group at which a product is aimed
Versatile - able to adapt or be adapted to many different functions or activities
Listening and video
Academia – the environment or community concerned with the pursuit of research, education, and scholarship
Accountant - someone who keeps or examine the records of money received, paid and owed by a company or a
person
Assess – evaluate or estimate
Assets - anything that has current or future economic value to a business
Bodily form - present in a physical body
Boilerplate - standardised text, documents, that can be reused in new contexts or applications without significant
changes to the original
Charge - demand (an amount) as a price for a service
Comprise - consist of; be made up of
Conduct - organise and carry out
Contract - a written or spoken agreement, especially one concerning employment, sales, or tenancy, that is
intended to be enforceable by law
Copy - the text of an advertisement
Credit - the ability of a customer to obtain goods or services before payment, based on the trust that payment will
be made in the future
Debtor - a person, country, or organisation that owes money
Expert - a person who is very knowledgeable about or skilful in a particular area
Fundamental - basic, essential
Grant - agree to give or allow (something requested) to
Handle - manage (a situation or problem)
Incorporate - take in or contain (something) as part of a whole; include
Industry - a group of productive enterprises or organisations that produce or supply goods, services, or sources of
income
Land - to arrive in an unpleasant situation or place
Liable - responsible by law
Litigation - the process of taking legal action
Loan - a borrowed sum of money that is expected to be paid back with interest
Mimic - imitate someone or their actions or words
Novel - new and not resembling something formerly known or used
Outperform - to accomplish something in a better or more impressive way than someone else
Rank - give (someone or something) a place within a grading system
Reducible – capable of being simplified
Severely - to an undesirably great or intense degree
Share - one of the equal parts into which a company's capital is divided, entitling the holder to a proportion of the
profits
Shareholder - owner of part of a company
Shrink - become or make smaller in size or amount
Stipulate - demand or specify (a requirement), typically as part of an agreement
Suspiciously - in a way that makes you think someone is guilty of something wrong or illegal
Tackle - to try to deal with something or someone
Tax - a mandatory payment or charge collected by local, state, and national governments to cover the costs of
general government services, goods, and activities
Venture - a business enterprise in which something is risked in the hope of profit