Must Have Tool For Hiring: An Organizational Chart Template
Human anatomy is simply the study of the structure of the human body.
In 1862, an antiquities dealer from Bridgeport, Connecticut named Edwin Smith was living in Egypt and connected with Mustapha Aga, another dealer.
Smith purchased an ancient Egyptian medical papyrus that dates back to the 17th century BC and had taken residence for all of those years in a tomb near Thebes, Egypt.
The Edwin Smith Papyrus as it would become known, is the oldest surviving deep-dive into 48 various cases of trauma to the human body.
The Edwin Smith Papyrus served as an external map to an internal world so others could quickly and systematically build on the prior learning of others. The papyrus is the oldest trauma text in existence and is remarkably cutting edge for its antiquity.
Each of our businesses has a structure, an anatomy.
In the same way science has uncovered eleven primary systems in the human body (i.e. cardiovascular, musculo-skeletal, etc.) it is crucial that we understand and publish the primary systems of our business along with the muscles that allow them to function.
It is time we value the simple business org chart in the way we value a simple anatomy drawing realizing that it brings empowering internal clarity for all of our employees to see the systems and muscles of the body.
To build a simple org chart need not be complex.
First, write out the four systems that are found in every business.
Administration (to include accounting and finance), operations or production, marketing, and then sales.
Each business is supported with these four structures, and each of the four structures will have various muscle sets to help them move.
Second, write out the minimum number of roles within each system that will enable the business to move.
Be very careful to not start writing the names of people in those roles, but instead to have a mindset of role first, people agnostic.
We must be careful to not build the business around certain people (because people may change), but instead to build the business around specific roles that we will then place in the skilled custody of people down the road.
It is rarely a good idea to find a person and then write a role. Instead, ask the business what roles it needs to best operate towards its identified mission.
Third, determine who is responsible for the day to day oversight of the entire body (business), and then who will be responsible for the oversight of each individual system and the roles that make that system work.
Once the roles are complete, only then do we fill the roles with people.
For some, one person may fill multiple roles (i.e. office manager, bookkeeper, etc.), for others, multiple people may fill one role (i.e. superintendent, customer support).
For the basic org chart, focus on the roles first, the people will come later.
Once built you will have created clarity for you, your team, and future team members to come. You will then be able to get on with the business of writing powerful job roles that are aligned with the proper structure of your business and then align the right people with the right role!
