Graeter’s make a variety of products including their famous French Pot ice cream, and over the years, have amassed a number of assets; three factories and 6,200 retail outlets spread over 43 states in the U.S. Departmentalising their business tasks by function, product and location enables the organisation to manage its operations more efficiently. Additionally, Graeter’s use the line-and-staff organisation structure which organises by function has formal patterns of delegation and a high level of centralization. Hence, the CEO is at the top of the chart with all other positions flowing down in order of hierarchy (Pride, Hughes and Kapoor 2015 pp. 188 & 195). Graeter’s are a centralised organisation with top level management responsible for major decisions and implementation of important changes (Pride, Hughes and Kapoor 2015 p. 190). Graeter’s employ consultants at an executive level to assist with strategy, vision and staff training programmes.…show more content… To utilise their assets more efficiently, options to boost productivity and increase profits are considered. The possibilities explored include supplying ice cream to restaurants in other cities and opening shops in Los Angeles and New York. Although larger fast food chains are commonly centralised to maintain control and uniformity, as a business spreads across further distances the need to decentralise its operation to a degree may be beneficial due to the logistics of managing operations from a central
