BUREAUCRATIC MANAGEMENT

Karl Emil Maximilian "Max" Weber

Born:
21 April 1864(1864-04-21)
Erfurt, Prussian Saxony
Died:
14 June 1920(1920-06-14)
(aged 56)
Munich, Bavaria

Nationality:
German
Fields:
Economics, sociology, history,
law, politics, philosophy

German sociologist and political economist

 a historian that wrote about the emergence of
bureaucracy (or bureaucratic management)
from more traditional organizational forms
(like feudalism) and it's rising pre-eminance in
modern society.

bureaucracy is a particular type of

administrative structure developed through
rational-legal authority.
 a formal system of organisation
based on clearly defined hierarchical
levels and roles in order to maintain
efficiency and effectiveness.
 'Bureau', is a French word meaning desk, or by
extension
'Bureaucracy' is rule through a desk or office, that
is, a form of organization built on the preparation
and dispatch of written documents. In contrast to
the commonly held view of bureaucracies, they do
not 'rule' in their own right but are the means by
which a monarchy, aristocracy, democracy, or
other form of authority, rules.
division of labour applied to administration
 bureaucracy resolves some of the shortcomings of
the traditional system
bureaucracy (or bureaucratic management) was a
system of power where leaders exercise control
over others -- a system based on discipline.
the rational-legal form was the most stable of
systems for both superiors and subordinates -- it's
more reliable and clear, allows the subordinate
more independence and discretion. Subordinates
ideally can challenge the decisions of their leaders
by referring to the stated rules
 I. There is the principle of fixed and official
jurisdictional areas
1. The regular activities required for the purposes of
the bureaucratically governed structure are distributed
in a fixed way as official duties.
2. The authority to give the commands required for the
discharge of these duties is distributed in a stable way
and is strictly delimited by rules concerning the
coercive means, physical, sacerdotal, or otherwise,
which may be placed at the disposal of officials.
3. Methodical provision is made for the regular and
continuous fulfilment of these duties and for the
execution of the corresponding rights
 The principles of office hierarchy and levels
of graded authority
The management of the modern office is
based upon written documents ('the files'),
Office management, at least all specialized
office management-- is distinctly modern--
usually presupposes thorough and expert
training.
 When the office is fully developed, official
activity demands the full working capacity of
the official, irrespective of the fact that his
obligatory time in the bureau may be firmly
delimited.
The management of the office follows general
rules, which are more or less stable, more or
less exhaustive, and which can be learned
 doesn't distinguish
between definitions and
propositions in his model.
His list of distinguishing
characteristics are linked
between each other

Parsons (1947) and Udy (1959)

Gouldner (1954) no correlation between
Webers theory will only the bureaucratic attributes
work if the superiors have of the organization and
more knowledge and skill it's rational attributes.

Criticism of Weberian
Bureaucratic Theory
 More recent theorists think that earlier
theorists misread Weber and distorted his
views. Weber was defining a formal rationality
that was not necessarily optimal for efficiency.
He realized that formalization could
degenerate into formalism, and that
bureaucratic forms concentrated power at the
top and could cause an "iron cage" to imprison
the low-level worker in obscurity and
monotonous detail.