What Is an Organization?
An organization is a consciously coordinated social entity, with a relatively identifiable boundary, that functions on a relatively continuous basis to achieve a common goal or set of goals. That's a mouthful of words, so let us break it down into its more relevant parts.
The words consciously coordinated imply management. Social entity means that the unit is composed of people or groups of people who interact with each other. The interaction patterns that people follow in an organization do not just emerge; rather, they are premeditated. Therefore, because organizations are social entities, the interaction patterns of their members must be balanced and harmonized to minimize redundancy yet ensure that critical tasks are being completed. The result is that our definition assumes explicitly the need for coordinating the interaction patterns of people.
An organization has a relatively identifiable boundary. This boundary can change over time, and it may not always be perfectly clear, but a definable boundary must exist in order to distinguish members from nonmembers. It tends to be achieved by explicit or implicit contracts between members and their organizations. In most employment relationships, there is an implicit contract where work is exchanged for pay. In social' or voluntary organizations, members contribute in return for prestige, social interaction, or the satisfaction of helping others. But every organization has a boundary that differentiates who is and who is not part of that organization.