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Discuss the utility of Max Weber's theory of bureaucracy
Discuss the utility of Max Weber's theory of bureaucracy
Discuss the utility of Max Weber's theory of bureaucracy
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Bureaucracy is a legal rational organization. Max Weber is known as the father of bureaucratic management. He has given this theory and tried to explain how it works. For this reason, he gave some principles and those are:
1. Impersonal order
2. Rules
3. Sphere of competence
4. Hierarchy
5. Personal and public ends
6. Written documents
So this elements are the basic characteristics of bureaucracy; we can say that Weber’s ‘ideal type’ construct of bureaucracy the most striking and thought provoking idea is his belief that impersonal order should orient the action bureaucrats both in the issuance of commands to subordinates and their obedience to them. In Rules we can easily imagin about rationality of bureaucracy. Spare of competence is
(2) a condition in which informal controls effect a consistent modification of formal goals.
So Seznick has tried to give a theory by criticizing bureaucratic management of Max Weber.
Gouldner: Gouldner researched on Weber’s ‘ideal type of Bureaucracy’ and provide clues to some unanswerable questions. Gouldner [1954:216-17] distinguishes 3 sub-classes of bureaucracy each with its peculiar traits: 1.Mock bureaucracy 2.Repesentative bureaucracy 3.Punishment bureaucracy
In Mock bureaucracy rules and regulation imposed by third party. Here use of power is made properly because of the control of third party. In representative Bureaucracy is both superior and subordinate accept and support the rule as they confer to their value. About representative bureaucracy Clegg and Dunkerley [1980:161]
The hall mark of the structure is not punishment but a continual process of socialization to reduce the potential for deviant behavior.’
In punishment bureaucracy rules and regulation are taken to punish opponent class. For this types of things bureaucracy can’t be perform performed properly.
Bennis: Bennisis another critic of Weber’s bureaucratic management. He has tried to make his criticism from two aspects. Those are: 1. Reciprcity 2. Adoptability
Receprocity: In this theory Bennis wanted to say that when the amount of client is few then bureaucracy and provide better performance and on the other hand when the amount of client is very high then bureaucracy cannot perform well. On that time people do not get good service from organization. That is why Benniscriticized ideal type of
This book also elaborates on the study of rulemaking by giving examples through cases, studies, loads of government documentation and interviews with policy makers. Following the information and chapters is really easy. The book is illustrated with clear tables, charts, and figures. Each chapter is clearly defined and tables/figures are clearly marked after the table of contents.
Often, when the discussion of American bureaucracy is broached in conversation, those holding these conversations often think of the many men and women who operate behind the scenes within the government. This same cross section of Americans is looked upon as the real power within the federal government and unlike the other branches of government, has little to no oversight. A search of EBSCO resulted in the following definition, an organization “structure with a rigid hierarchy of personnel, regulated by set rules and procedures” (Bureaucracy, 2007). Max Weber believed that a bureaucracy was technically the most efficient form of organization, one structured around official functions that are bound by rules, each function having its own specified competence (2007). This wide ranging group of Americans has operated within the gaps, behind the scenes, all under the three core branches of government: the legislative, executive, and judicial branches. The division of government into three branches and separate powers gives each branch both exclusive powers and some additional power...
In return, bureaucracy effects legislature by reaping benefits for them, and bureaucracy effects interest groups by performing friendly regulations and favors for them. Lastly, interest groups effect legislature by providing them with voter support, and interest groups effect bureaucracy by lobbying for them and providing them with jobs. In the example of racial profiling of the woman of Jewish and Arab descent, members from interest groups such as, The Economist, questioned both legislature and bureaucracy for the racial profiling against this innocent woman. They questioned members of the bureaucracy, for the flight attendants who started the initial suspicion and the federal agents who jerked her off of her flight and through her in a cell were both part of the bureaucracy. The Economist questioned the legislature for funding such abuse.
Max Weber, German sociologist, social theorist, and economist, explicated the theory of bureaucracy in which he details the monocratic bureaucracy “as an ideal form that maximized rationality” (Bolman & Deal, 2008, p. 48). He provided his most complete exposition of theory in his 1922 tome Economy and Society (Casey, 2004). This classic form of bureaucracy is characterized by the following (a) well-defined official functions; (b) specialization of function; (c) clearly defined hierarchy of offices; (d) rules governing performance, which require training to administer; (e) impersonal treatment of clients, in that all are treated equally; (f) merit as the basis of promotion or appointment; (g) compensation based on rank; (h) separation of personal and company assets and interests; (i) discipline and control of daily work; (j) files and record keeping for decisions, acts, and rules (Bolman & Deal, 2008; O’Connor, 2011). There are numerous shorthand versions of Weber’s theory including Harmon and Mayer (1986) in Organization Theory for Public Administration and Heady (2001) in Public Administration: A Comparative Perspective (O’Connor, 2011).
Modern Bureaucracy in the United States serves to administer, gather information, conduct investigations, regulate, and license. Once set up, a bureaucracy is inherently conservative. The reason the bureaucracy was initiated may not continue to exist as a need in the future. The need or reason may change with a change in the times and the culture needs. A bureaucracy tends to make decisions that protect it and further it’s own existence, possibly apart from the wishes of the populace. It may not consistently reflect what might be optimal in terms of the needs and wants of the people. Local governments employ most of the United States civil servants. The 14 cabinet departments in the U.S. are run day-to-day by career civil servants, which have a great deal of discretionary authority.
This essay will discuss the mainstream and critical perspectives of bureaucracy and post-bureaucracy. It will begin by examining the characteristics of bureaucracy and then compare the mainstream and the critical views. Post-bureaucracy will then be discussed using the same structure.
Pinchot, Gifford, and Elizabeth Pinchot. The End of Bureaucracy & the Rise of the Intelligent Organization. San Francisco: Berrett, 1993: 180.
Weber believed that bureaucracy created stable, and predictable actions and outcomes because it allowed organizations to work in a rational manner, like a machine, and helped account for the fact that humans had only limited intelligence. Though Weber discussed the perfect model of an organization, bureaucracy allows for even imperfect organizations to function in a more reliable and predictable way because it’s structure controls how individuals behave.
Weber’s uses his theory of Bureaucracy to point out that it is what society is becoming and how it creates social older in society. This theory is
Humans act on subjective meaning and world views of humans determine their behavior. Each individual’s behavior slowly becomes patterned and regulated. Each individual’s actions altogether create a collective institution for society. The iron cage, therefore, is an unintended result of the growing rationalist thinking in western capitalist societies. Weber uses the iron cage metaphor to explain social order and society. As society developed, rationalist and efficient thinking rose and this resulted in the growth of bureaucracies. A bureaucracy is designed as the most dominant form of social organization based on efficiency, rationalism, and control. In a bureaucracy, there is a set of rules which favors rational principles directed towards a goal. The bureaucracy gave rise to the iron cage which is a metaphor for people in western capitalist societies who are trapped within a dogma of efficiency and practicality. This type of thinking limits individual human freedom and potential because they way the institution is built, it doesn’t allow humans to have a...
Similarly in Weber’s bureaucratic approach, organizations are divided into different echelons with each varying in its degrees of influence. Each unit being commanded by the one above it, a system that promotes stability and has a predictable line of communication. Both approaches of management rely heavily on regulated control. Whether governing task scientifically of people authoritatively. A solid form of control is mus...
Traditional public administration is traced back to the works of scholars like Max Weber, Woodrow Wilson and Fredrick Taylor. This form of administration was mostly influenced by Max Weber with his bureaucratic model and theory. Max Weber was a well-known sociologist born in Germany in the year 1864. He came up with his bureaucratic model as a way to try to improve management in organizations. ‘Weber emphasized on top-down control in the form of monocratic hierarchy that is a system of control in which policy is set at the top and carried out through a series of offices, whereby every manager and employee are to report to one person in top management and held accountable by that manager’ (Pfiffner, 2004, p. 1).
According to Sapru R.K. (2008) p370-371 the traditional ideal of public administration which inclined to be firm and bureaucratic was based on processes instead of outcomes and on setting procedures to follow instead of focusing on results. This paradigm can be regarded as an administration under formal control of the political control, constructed on a firmly ranked model of bureaucracy, run by permanent and neutral public servants, driven only by public concern. In emerging nations the administration was true bureaucracy meaning government by officers. In this perspective Smith (1996) p235-6 perceived that“the bureaucracy controls and manages the means of production through the government. It increases chances for bureaucratic careers by the creation of public figures,demanding public managers, marketing boards.
A German sociologist Max Weber was the first person who describe about the term bureaucracy. Bureaucracy is a means to create efficient institution staffed with trained experts who work permanently, whose jurisdiction is prearranged by laws and regulations, and whose responsibility comprises of applying plain broad rules to specific circumstances (Weber, 1946).
Bureaucracy is an organizational design based on the concept of standardization. “It is characterized by highly routine operating tasks achieved through specialization, very formalized rules and regulations, tasks that are grouped into functional departments, centralized authority, narrow spans of control, and decision making that follows the chain of command” (Judge & Robbins, 2007, p.