Effects on the functions in the organization
production lines, as opposed to just standard products.
We could say that once a data base is in place, the
derived custom-made products can be produced rapidly
for a low marginal cost. This means that the old notion of
economies of scale is becoming less important for con
ventional production organizations, and may lead them,
for example, to take a fresh look at how fast a standard
map can be produced on demand using new technology
and, consequently, how large a supply of maps needs
economically to be stocked.
It is very interesting to note that at the very same time that
these characteristics are having their effect, economic
conditions are leading governments to attempts at re
ducing their deficits. Unfortunately this is not being done
by creating new wealth but by reducing for example
services and/or raising more revenue for services pro
vided. In surveying and mapping organizations this often
takes place by making them special governmental agen
cies that have a kind of unregulated monopoly, for mar
keting and producing specialized geo-information pro
ducts and services that could technically speaking be
produced competitively in the private sector. In essence
those governments, instead of concentrating on the
definition of a national geo-information infrastructure and
how it is to be put in place as a „public good", enhances
its capacity to do what the private sector can do. Ironically
this is often done by governments that promote the cre
ation of competitive small business.
From this rather superficial sketch, it should be clear that
the three characteristics chosen have major impacts on
our organizations, their functions and how they relate to
other organizations. The introduction and continuous
maintenance of this technology in an existing organi
zation will have similar effects. The point is that these can
be identified in advance provided that a deliberate effort
is made to address the question: what do the integrating,
decentralizing and customizing characteristics of this
technology mean to the content of the functions in the
organization?
Fig. 3 illustrates the functions of a geo-informatics organi
zation and highlights some of the changes that have
taken place since the organization reflected in fig. 1.
Please note that it is not an organization chart but a
diagram of related functions. In small organizations one
or more functions could be carried out by one individual.
In larger organizations each function may require a sub
stantial number of specialists and managers.
Some remarks can be made about the functioning of this
organization. One can see an explicit function of market
ing which identifies product requirements and „directs"
engineering development to create the new product
prototypes or processes to produce these products.
Psychologically that is a big change for people working in
the Engineering Support Function as it clearly affects the
independence of planning and action they had earlier as
expressed in fig. 1. when their sole focus was to make
standard production lines more efficient.
In production management a completely different way of
operating is evolving. Teams of different specialists are
grouped around tasks of fully integrated production of
geo- information products. Their skill is choosing the
appropriate combination of data sources, transformation
technologies, information modelling and visualization to
meet varied and specific client product demands. The
teams can be made up of geographers, statisticians,
surveyors, photogrammetrists, cartographers, computer
scientists, project managers, cost accountants, visualiza
tion specialists, and close contact is maintained at a fairly
low level in the organization with the client either directly
or through marketing/sales.
The executive function is focused largely outward, to
wards relationships with other organizations such as
information suppliers, user groups, financiers or funding
agencies, publishers, etc. There is a focus on the creation
of new, responsive and in all likelihood temporal alliances
for specific projects. These are jointly and sometimes
very creatively funded and not just from the treasury. The
executive function inward is concerned with cost effec
tiveness, responsiveness to culture and values of the
organization, performance measurement of teams of
heterogeneous specialists which is far more complex
than for teams of almost identical technical skills. There
will be a concern for the fairness and realism of cost
effectiveness measures and performance assessment
that the auditors and accountants insist upon. There will
be a different esprit de corps from the brotherhood of
having studied in the same subject or even the same
faculty. It will be based on job satisfaction and client satis
faction achieved through multi-disciplinary, responsive
teams. It is unlikely and also not necessary that the in
dividual who carries out the executive function will have
his or her background exclusively in surveying and
mapping. It is more likely that the individual will represent
a large client group or at least understand larger parts of
the client community. The skill set necessary to succeed
at the executive level today is quite different from that
even only ten or fifteen years ago. The concerns of the
executive will include to understand the characteristics of
his or her geo-information infrastructure and how that
relates to larger ones. The most critical concern of the
executive will be to continually assure the relevance of his
or her mission and mandate and to successfully com
municate this to the political system and the organization.
Other questions are:
how the information technology is being introduced,
maintained and managed;
how effective the new client interfaces are being de
veloped and managed;
how the inter- and intra-institutional relationships are
being managed;
how the organization measures its performance and
its success.
Discussion
This is a complicated task for which there are not many
precedents. Hence it should not be too difficult to divine
that management of our business is not what it used to
be. But what does it mean for photogrammetry and photo
grammetrists?
First of all photogrammetrists, as all specialists, must
become effective in speaking the language of the people
in senior management and executives who have no affi
nity or loyalty to the surveying and mapping profession.
To convince the new type of managers of the validity of
technical proposals, in research or equipment acquisi
tions one must understand the issues that concern the
executive and which were just enumerated. Photogram
metrists must be able to make their point in managers
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