Max Weber and Bureaucracy

“Side by side with scientific managers studying the person- task mix to increase efficiency,
other researchers were focusing on administrative management, the study of how to create an
organization structure that leads to high efficiency and effectivness.”
Max Weber, German socjologis, was a pioneer of clasical organization therory. To
help German manage groving industrial enterprises at a line when it was starting to became a
world power, Weber developed the principles of bureaucracy.
“Bureaucracy- a formal system of organization and administration designed to ensure
effeciency and effectivness.”
Bureaucracy system of administration is based on five principles:
Principle 1:
“In a bureaucracy, a manater’s formal authorithy derives from the position he or she holds in
the organization.”
Authorithy is the power to hold people accountable for their actions and to make decisions
concering the use of organizational resource. Authorithy gives managers right to direct and
control their subordinate’s behaviour to achibe organizational goals.
Principle 2:
“In a bureaucracy, people should occupy position because of their performance, not because
of their social standing or personal contact.”This principle was not always followed and very
often ignores in these days. Some of the organization ans industries are still effected by sockal
network in which personal contaxt and relations.
Principle 3:
“The extent of each positon’s formal authorithy and task responsibilities, and it’s relationship
to other positions in an organizations, should be cleary specified.”
When the task and authorithy associated with various positions in the organization are cleary
specified, managers and workers know what is expedted form them. Organization can woek
porpery when all employees know their responsibilities.
Principle 4:
“Authorithy can be exercised effectively in an organization when position are arranged
hierarchically, so employees know whom to repor to and reports to them.”
Managers must create hierarchy nad authorithy that make if clear for employees to who might
report whem problems or conflicts arise.
Principle 5:

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“Managers must create a well- defined system of rules, standard operating procedures and
norms so that they can effectively control behaciour within an organization.”
Rule and formal writing instruction that specify action under different sytuation( ex. If
somenthing happened to that, or this are the consequence.).Standard operating procedures
SOP are set of writing instruction about how to performance a certain aspect of task.
Norms are unwritten, informal codes to how people should act in different sytuation. Rules,
SOPs and norms provide behavioural guidelines. Companies such as McDonald’s have rules
and procedures of beaviour for their employees, such as “Always greet the customers with a
smile.”
The specification of positions and use the rules, SPOs and norms make it easier for managers
to controle the work and subordination. The key for managers is to use bureaucratic principles
to benefit rather than harm an organization.

Positive contribution of theory:

-People should occupy position because of their performance not because personal contact
or social standing.
- System of rules and norms might only help with proper behaviour.All employees and
managers know exacly what happened if they brake the rule and what type of action
will be take.
- Hierarchy level- employees need to know to who their can go with the problems
sytuation , to who their should report.
Limitation of the theory:
- To serious treat norm and procedures might start to become main objectives in
organization. In that sytuation managers and employees will be focus on rules and
norms rather that on achiving organization goals.
- Strictly division of laboul might lead to boring sytuation, routine job. This will leade
demotivation between employees and decrease productivness.
In this days a lot of organization will focus on strict division of labour. As we know it migh
de-motivate employees and decrease productivness.
Alsow position occupy in the company thanks to personal contact ,protection or family
conection happened very often.
Managers don’t look on the people performance and ability to hold the position but on the
relationships and conections.