Developed in the early 1980s by David A. Nadler and Michael L. Tushman, the Congruence model looks into four different critical elements within an organizational landscape that aid in greater performance by achieving goal congruence.
The four components of the Congruence Model
1. The People
The individuals that put effort to get all the tasks done are probably one of the most valuable assets within an organization. This element encapsulates everyone getting some work done; whether he is a production line assistant or a marketing manager. You will need to identify all the people involved, assess their skills, knowledge and experience, and then explore their career expectations and compensation goals.
2. The Tasks
What workflows are happening within your organizations? What type of tasks and processes are performed daily, weekly, monthly and yearly? What approach is currently being used to maximize the efficiency and effectiveness of these tasks? These are just some examples of questions that need to be asked in order to gain a deeper understanding of the tasks that underpin the performance of your business.
3. The Structure
Next, you need to look into the organizational structure and assess all the systems and processes that fall within that. Is your organization shaped with flat or a hierarchical organizational structure? In order to answer this question, you will need to examine the levels of management between staff level employees and top management. Also, make sure that you consider the level of standardization or adaptation within your organization when it comes to different procedures, policies, and processes.
4. The Culture
Another critical element of the model emerges from the internal culture of the organization. Here, you will need to consider the company’s mission, vision, beliefs and values that define its purpose. This element is often the hardest to perceive as internal company values encapsulate a variety of ‘hidden’ elements such as its expectations, ethics, employee engagement, learning opportunities, trust and fairness, results orientation and many other factors.
What relationships can be formed between the model’s components?
Having identified the elements that underpin each component, it is thereafter vital to assess how these relate to each other. For instance, think about people and culture. Are people comfortable and happy with the organization’s culture? Are they embracing this culture within their everyday work? Now think about structure and people. Is the current organizational structure working well for its people? Would a flatter or a more hierarchical structure improve the company’s performance?
Achieving and sustaining congruence
If you have identified any incongruence between the components of the model, you will need to think of solutions to address these incompatibilities. Look deeper into the problem and try to analyze how you can make different parts of the organizations compatible. Through making these four factors working effectively together, positive results will soon start to flow and profits will start to pile up.