Bureaucracy, Power, Micropolitics and Negotiated Order in Organisations
Bureaucracy – Max Webber ( 1864 – 1920)
Webber developed the concept of bureaucracy. He viewed it as a formal system of organization and administration to ensure effectiveness and efficiency. He analysed the role of a leaser and examined how/why individuals respond to various forms of authority.
Webber’s Bureaucratic Model
• Rational – Legal
• Classical :
➢ rational because its means are expressly designed to achieve certain goals with maximum efficiency.
➢ Legal because authority is exercised by means of a system of rules and procedures. As the organisation grows there become more rules.
• Traditional:
➢ authority based on customs and practise.
➢ Status is inherited.
➢ Patriarchal attitude. “we obey you because we’ve always obeyed people like you”.
• Charismatic: leader has a special quality that inspires people to perform. Examples are Henry Ford, John F. Kennedy & Jack Welch
Webber’s Ideal Bureaucracy
A bureaucracy should have:
• Division of labour: jobs broken down into simple, routine and well- defined tasks
• Authority hierarchy: positions organized in a hierarchy with a clear chain of command
• Formal selection: people selected for jobs based on technical qualifications
• Formal rules and regulations: system of written rules and standard operating procedures
• Impersonality: uniform application of rules and controls, not according to personalities
• Career Orientation: managers are career professionals, not owners of units they manage
An ideal bureaucracy should have all these characteristics but not all organisations in this present day have all these characteristics
Key points of bureaucracy
• Authority is the power to hold people responsible for their actions
• Positions in the firm should be held based on performance not social contacts
• Position duties are clearly identified. People should know what is
Webber developed the concept of bureaucracy. He viewed it as a formal system of organization and administration to ensure effectiveness and efficiency. He analysed the role of a leaser and examined how/why individuals respond to various forms of authority.
Webber’s Bureaucratic Model
• Rational – Legal
• Classical :
➢ rational because its means are expressly designed to achieve certain goals with maximum efficiency.
➢ Legal because authority is exercised by means of a system of rules and procedures. As the organisation grows there become more rules.
• Traditional:
➢ authority based on customs and practise.
➢ Status is inherited.
➢ Patriarchal attitude. “we obey you because we’ve always obeyed people like you”.
• Charismatic: leader has a special quality that inspires people to perform. Examples are Henry Ford, John F. Kennedy & Jack Welch
Webber’s Ideal Bureaucracy
A bureaucracy should have:
• Division of labour: jobs broken down into simple, routine and well- defined tasks
• Authority hierarchy: positions organized in a hierarchy with a clear chain of command
• Formal selection: people selected for jobs based on technical qualifications
• Formal rules and regulations: system of written rules and standard operating procedures
• Impersonality: uniform application of rules and controls, not according to personalities
• Career Orientation: managers are career professionals, not owners of units they manage
An ideal bureaucracy should have all these characteristics but not all organisations in this present day have all these characteristics
Key points of bureaucracy
• Authority is the power to hold people responsible for their actions
• Positions in the firm should be held based on performance not social contacts
• Position duties are clearly identified. People should know what is