Centralisation is a recurrent theme when the organisational structure of contemporaryhigher education institutions is on the agenda. This may be in large part because of theunsolicited effects of decentralised organisational structures. The aim of this study is toexplore how professional support staff at higher education institutions perceive theorganisational structure of support and the rationales for this organising. An analyticalframework based on the dichotomy of centralisation/decentralisation was applied in 18interviews with professional support staff at one Dutch university and one Norwegianuniversity. A common theme in the findings was the consciousness among the professional support staff that there is no one-size-fits-all solution for the organising of efficientand effective support. The issue of centralisation and standardisation was clearly on theagenda, but their focus was on the elements of a well-functioning support structure, notthe specific organisational solution. The study also highlights the objection to the trendtowards centralisation, and that some organisational changes may be too short sighted tobe sustainable. From the perspective of the professional support staff, it can be concludedthat organisational structure is a continuous balancing act based on dialogue between theacademic and support staff.