Q.'Sweets and More' is one of India's most popular brand for snacks and sweets. It offers a wide range of sweets, namkeens, cookies and frozen foods. Its organisational structure comprises of separate business units in each of the above categories. Each of these units have a manager responsible for performance, having authority over the unit. Moreover, each of these units is multi-functional as within each unit, different functions like production, marketing, finance, etc. are performed. Though this kind of organisational structure leads to increased cost because of duplication of activities across products, but it provides a proper basis for performance measurement as revenues and costs related to each of these business units can be easily identified.
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Start your 14-day free trial to unlock the full solution →The organisational structure described is a Divisional Structure, where the company is split into semi-autonomous business units based on product lines (sweets, namkeens, cookies, frozen foods), each with its own functional departments.
The case of 'Sweets and More' gives us a clear picture of a company that has grown beyond a simple, single-product operation. When a business offers a wide range of distinct products — here, sweets, namkeens, cookies, and frozen foods — it often finds that a purely functional structure (where everyone reports to a central production, marketing, or finance head) becomes too slow and unwieldy. The need for speed, focus, and accountability for each product line pushes the firm toward a Divisional Structure.
In this setup, the organisation is divided into separate, self-contained units or divisions. Each division — say, the Sweets Division or the Frozen Foods Division — operates almost like a mini-company within the larger company. As the case states, each unit has its own manager with full authority over that unit's performance, and each unit contains its own functional specialists (production, marketing, finance, etc.) dedicated solely to that product line. This is the hallmark of a divisional structure: duplication of functions across divisions, which the case correctly notes increases costs, but which also provides immense clarity for measuring the profitability and success of each product category.
The case explicitly mentions "separate business units" and "each of these units is multi-functional." This is the textbook definition of a Divisional Structure, as opposed to a Functional Structure where departments (like a single marketing department) serve all products.
- Identify the organisational structure of 'Sweets and More'. The organisational structure is a Divisional Structure (specifically, a product-based divisional structure).
- State three advantages and two disadvantages of the organisational structure identified in (a) above which are not discussed in the above case. The case has already mentioned two key points: the advantage of easy performance measurement (identifying revenues and costs per unit) and the disadvantage of increased cost due to duplication of activities. We must now state other advantages and disadvantages that are standard in the NCERT curriculum but are not mentioned in the given paragraph. Three Advantages (not discussed in the case):
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Product Specialisation and Faster Decision-Making: Because each division focuses entirely on one product line (e.g., only on namkeens), the manager and team become experts in that specific market, its competitors, and its customer preferences. Decisions about product changes, pricing, or promotions can be made quickly within the division, without waiting for approval from a distant central head office. This makes the company more responsive and agile.
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Facilitates Expansion and Growth: A divisional structure makes it much easier for a company to add new product lines. If 'Sweets and More' wants to launch a new line of beverages, it can simply create a new Beverages Division with its own manager and team. This does not disrupt the existing operations of the Sweets or Cookies divisions. The structure is inherently scalable.
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Development of Managerial Talent: Each divisional manager is responsible for the overall performance of their unit — including profit, costs, marketing, and production. This gives them a holistic, general management experience. It acts as a training ground for future top-level executives who must understand the entire business, not just one function like finance or production.
Two Disadvantages (not discussed in the case): …
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