Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is a national authority mandated with the duties to control the civil aviation ("Federal Aviation Administration", 2018). Organizational structure defines how the coordination, supervision, and operations are conducted (Moldovan & Matei, 2016). The paper will examine the organizational structure used in the FAA and give the reason why the structure was chosen. A business process implies the activities and tasks that should be accomplished before a service or product is delivered (Morris & Pinto, 2010). The paper will discuss a high-level business process accomplished by FAA then analyze the Information Technology Systems that facilitates the process. Thereafter, the importance of the Information technology system in the business process will be evaluated. Therefore, the aim of the paper is to analyze the organizational structure, business processes and the use of IT systems in FAA.
1. What does the organization do?
The organization deals with the construction of airports, certification of the aircraft and the personnel in the civil aviation, management of the air traffic, and protects the government aerospace assets. The organization also promotes safety in the airspace and supports national security.
2. What is the structure of this organization? Why do you think it was selected?
Federal Aviation Administration takes the bureaucratic structure which is ideal for public sectors (Kribikova, 2016). The bureaucratic structure was developed by Max Webber and involves clear specification of the duties (Dickson, 2003). Specialization of the roles is a major characteristic of the bureaucratic structure (Jensen, 1983). FAA demonstrates the specialization of functions where the administration is divided into four main units with specified functions (Miles & Snow, 1992). The Airport Department is the first unit which ensures that the aircraft complies with the federal regulations. The Aviation Safety (AVS) deals with the certification of the pilots and ensure that the aircraft meets the required safety standard. The Commercial Space Transportation takes care of the government assets during the various activities in the aviation sector. Air Traffic Organization is mandated to control the airspace traffic. The operating procedures in each of the unit are standard hence a typical bureaucratic structure (Merton, 1957). There are division and delegation of duties in the FAA organization where the workers in each department are assigned with specific roles and responsibilities ("Federal Aviation Administration", 2018).
The structure is characterized by a hierarchy of authority and is governed by a set of rules (Jones, 2013). The chief administrator takes the highest position of authority and is followed by the deputy administrator (Harris & Raviv, 2002). The chief of staff takes the third position in the hierarchy and is in charge of the workforce (Venkatesh & Bala, 2007). The chief operating officer is in charge of all the activities in the four lines of businesses. Each of the four business units is headed by the associate administrators who ensure the smooth running of the activities in their independent units. The staff officers follow the associate administrators and oversee the employment and labor activities in the organization (Kalpič & Bernus, 2006).
FAA selected the bureaucratic structure for effective coordination of the four business units (Ouchi, 1980). Bureaucratic structure makes it easier for the sector to implement the laws and policies that are developed by the senior officials in the government (Fairfield, 2016). FAA is a large organization and complexity can be experienced when the other forms of structure are employed. Therefore, bureaucracy structure was selected because it enhances easy management of the large organization with multiple departments (Thornton, 2004).
3. Discuss one or more high-level processes the organization accomplishes? Which department do you think is the lead for this process?
The aircraft certification is one of the high-level processes accomplished in the organization. The process is dealt with by the Aviation Safety (AVS) department in the firm. The process is divided into four major phases and accomplished by the officials and employees in the AVS department. The first phase of the process involves the formal application of the certificate by the candidates. The application is reviewed for clarity in the information given before proceeding to the next phases. Design assessment is the second phase of the process and the officials in the team ensure that the aircraft meets the safety standards and its operating system comply with the federal regulations. The operating system has to be well designed since safety is the expected outcomes of the department. The certification manager has to ensure that the elements of the aircraft get an approved status before proceeding to the third phase. Phase 3 entails the performance assessment where the officials conduct an internal safety assessment of the operating system of the aircraft. The stage entails auditing of the performance and documentation. The main role of the conformity evaluation is to make sure that the aircraft design complies to the federal requirements and is safe for operations. The FAA team reports the observation from the performance assessment exercise using the Custom Data Collection Tools. The last phase of the process involves the certificate issuance if the aircraft meets the required safety standards. The certificate of compliance is passed to the aircraft owner while the copy is maintained in the department as long as the operator remains active ("Federal Aviation Administration", 2018).
4. Discuss one or more information technology system used to accomplish the processes. Why do they use information technology? Who are the participants that use the identified tool?
Data Warehouse is an information technology system that is used in the process of reporting and data analysis. The subdivisions in the department have to be linked since the phases are dependent on each other. The data warehouse provides a central position for the storage of data from various sources (Davenport & Short, 1990). Data warehouse is used by the FAA official in the application phase, performance assessment unit, design assessment unit, and the administration officials. The information concerning the certification process should be integrated and combined before the issuance of the certificates. Data warehouse is used in the organization for the standardization of data derived from the different phases (Davenport,1993).
Conclusion
The bureaucratic structure applied in FAA helps the organization to easily coordinate the four business units. However, the structure has been criticized as it takes a dictatorial approach and is inflexible in operations. The organization accomplishes the high-level processes including the certification of the aircraft. The aim of the certification process is to ensure that the aircraft is safe to operate. The certification process is divided into various phases that are coordinated with the use of information technology systems. Data warehouse is an example of the IT systems used in the organization to integrate information from various sources. Information technology systems are important organizational tools that coordinate the various activities for the effective delivery of products and services.
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