...organizational structure. Some of the areas that I will investigate are: how formal organizations have evolved over the past century, the differences between formal and informal organizations, what are the current trends in formal organizations, and what are the characteristics needed for formal organizations to evolve. Formal Organizations Over The Past Century: Max Weber developed a typology of organizations from ancient China to modern industrial society, providing the foundation for the sociology of organizations. In particular, Weber was concerned with what he considered to be the most rational form of organization, the bureaucracy, and the authority embedded in it. Weber noted that bureaucracies, prior to industrialization, were large and efficient but were guided by the patrimonial culture and the ruling aristocracy. (In World of Sociology, 2001.) In past centuries formal organizations functioned under what is called conventional bureaucracy. The ideal typical model of Bureaucracy given by Max Weber is the milestone in understanding the functioning of modern government. The Weberian model categorically focuses on two dimensions (i)The Structural, relating to the hierarchical arrangement of positions, legal rational basis of authority, with system of compensation, and(ii)The Behavioral, relating to the merit based selections of officials with the emphasis on training. (Prof. Sharma, 2010.) In past years formal organizations labored hard, yet now with the...
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...Bureaucracy Observed (An Experience-Based Analysis) (An Experience-Based Analysis) Joshua A Ward University of Maryland University College Author’s Note This paper was prepared for MGMT 610 9045 Organizational Theory (2615), taught by Professor Matthews. According to German sociologist, political economist, administrative scholar, and historian Max Weber, bureaucracy is “a particular type of administrative structure developed through rational legal authority.” (Swanson, 2013) His six major principles have formed the foundation for understanding bureaucracy since their inception. They include the idea that a bureaucracy must consist of a formal hierarchical structure, i.e., each level controls the level below it and is controlled by the level above. Organization by functional specialty is key, work must be performed by specialists, and those specialists are organized into units based on the type of work they do of the skills they possess. Bureaucracy is purposely impersonal, with the major idea being that all employees and customers must and should be treated equally, with no organizational decision influenced or based on individual differences. Also, employment in a bureaucracy should be based primarily on technical qualifications, with the most consideration given to a potential employee who is most qualified, once again, without any consideration given to personal preference. From personal experience, the United States military is a prime example of bureaucracy...
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...According to Weber, authority is power accepted as legitimate by those subjected to it. These three forms of authority are said to appear in a "hierarchical development order". States progress from charismatic authority, to traditional authority, and finally reach the state of rational-legal authority which is characteristic of a modern liberal democracy. However in this paper, we will try to agree with Max Weber’s statement that, legal – rational authority is the most rational type of authority, while giving reasons to our argument. In English, the word 'authority' can be used to mean power given by the state (in the form of Members of Parliament, Judges, Police Officers, etc.) or by academic knowledge of an area (someone can be an authority on a subject). The word "Authority" with capital "A”, refers to the governing body upon which such authority (with lower case "a") is vested ( Arendt, 1961: 53). However, authority is often used interchangeably in governments with the term "power". However, their meanings differ. Authority refers to a claim of legitimacy, the justification and right to exercise power (Spencer, 1970: 258). For example, while a mob has the power to punish a criminal, for example by lynching, people who believe in the rule of law consider that only a court of law to have the authority to order capital punishment. Max Weber, in his sociological and philosophical work, identified and distinguished three types of legitimate domination that have sometimes been rendered...
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...administrative techniques and established hierarchies within the company to communicate its policies to employees. This essay will provide a context of the development of bureaucratic control, highlight its key factors and supply some relevant examples of this type of control at Victoria University. Bureaucratic management was first proposed by German sociologist Max Weber (Williams & McWilliams, 2010) as an alternative to the monarchical system of promoting by virtue of birthright. His definition of bureaucracy was to effect control of an organisation through knowledge. As such, the premise of this thought was to promote on merit rather than heredity to ensure maximum output through the utilisation of the most qualified rather than the most connected (in this circumstance, ‘connected’ refers to the relationship one has with those in charge). This idea of fairness versus favouritism would increase overall efficiency towards the realisation of company objectives. This development was a significant deviation from previous practices in supervision, with logical policies replacing traditions. As a result of this organisational model, bureaucracy within companies became a method of creating an efficient environment within large interdisciplinary groups. Decisions, policies and practices are decided at the top management...
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...understand 'class' as an important social phenomenon? Sociology emerged in the nineteenth century as an attempt to understand the transition from traditional to modern society. Many argue that class is no longer important as a social phenomenon as an individual’s identity are based more on status and cultural factors such as lifestyle, values, intelligence, education. Others argue that class is still a central influence on people’s lives, that it affects their life chances. They argue that class inequality exists and that such inequalities are widening rather than narrowing. The major perspectives historically have been Marx and Weber who have provided their views and support for the idea that society is class-conscious. Other theorists, such as Clark and Lipset challenge Marx and Weber theory and believe that class is not an important social phenomenon. The common stratum model of class divides society into a simple hierarchy of working class, middle class and upper class. Class is an important social phenomenon that exists in society and through sociology we are presented with a variety of concepts and theories that contribute and support our understanding of the classes. A class system “refers to a social group, defined in terms of its economic position in a hierarchy of inequality and with material interests that differentiate it from other classes.” (Van Kriken; Habibis; Smith; Hutchins; Martin; Maton, 2014, P.205). The most common being the upper, middle and working class. Marx...
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...MAX WEBER By: JD Mojica Life and career Max Weber was born on April 21, 1864, the eldest of seven children, and grew up in a cultured bourgeois household, ruled by a strong authoritarian father. At University in Heidelberg, Weber studied economics, medieval history and philosophy as well as law. A period of military service brought him under the care of his uncle, Hermann Baumgarten, a historian, and his wife. Both uncle and aunt acted as mentors to Weber, the former as a liberal who treated him as an intellectual peer, the latter as a person who impressed him with her deep sense of social responsibility towards her charitable work. Both offered a stark contrast to Weber's father, who treated his son with patronizing authoritarianism. It was probably during this formative period that Weber developed an aversion to the way people then most often gained positions of power and authority through nepotism and accident of birth - factors he considered were lacking in legitimacy. He started to think of ways to free the individual as much as possible from personal judgments or from judgments which were clouded by emotion or self-interest. After periods as a legal scholar at Heidelberg and then at the University of Berlin, Weber became professor of political economy, first at the University of Freiburg in 1894, and then at the University of Heidelberg in 1897. The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism was first published in 1904, and in 1919, Weber became Professor of Political...
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...opportunities for employers and organizations to provide real meaning, purpose and true personal development for their employees. Maslow saw these issues fifty years ago: the fact that employees have a basic human need and a right to strive for self-actualization, just as much as the corporate directors and owners do. In actuality almost all-individual growth, whether in a hobby, a special talent or interest, or a new experience, produces new skills, attributes, behaviors and wisdom that is directly manageable to any sort of job role. The Hierarchy of Needs theory remains valid today for understanding human motivation, management training, and personal development. Max Weber theory focuses on the ideas of bureaucracy as an efficient method for organizing and prioritizing the everyday tasks of businesses. Max Weber studies in organizations were to know why people comply with influence over them. In Max Weber’s leadership theory, he wrote about three types of leaders, which included...
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... Weber’s name synonymous with bureaucracy Whether we live under most totalitarian despotism or under most liberal democracy, we are governed to considerable extent by some form of Bcy… De Gourney coined the term in 1745… Initially it meant Government by Officials… Marx’s critique of Bcy precedes Weber’s formulation… Bata K Dey views on Bcy… Structural, Behavioural, Purposive aspects Structural-> Value Neutral… Phenomenon associated with any large scale orgn Behavioural-> showing some functional and pathological symptoms Purposive-> Orgn that maximizes efficiency Rise of Bureaucracy Max Weber 1. Creation of Money Economy… System of rewarding Bcrats by land etc tended to turn Bcy feudal and led to its disintegration…. Money Economy permits payment of secure regular salaries 2. Emergence of Capitalist Economy… Created needs that only Bcratic. orgn. Could satisfy… Capitalism requires abd encourages government based on Bcratic. Orgn. Also not only govt. but pvt. Enterprise also started following Bcratic principles to enhance rationality… 3. Trend towards rationality in Western Countries… Protestantism, Devt. Of Science and Technology, Capitalism etc. 4. Democracy… Elimination of traditional rule of nobles and feudal elements and encouraging education and appointment to office on basis of Knowledge 5. Growth in Population… Larger orgn. Tend to assume Bcratic. Forms 6. Govt becam Complex… Like constructing waterways, provision of social services etc. 7. Modern forms of...
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...never been part of the Austrian School with which he was familiar with the teachings of Eugen von Böhm- Bawerk at the University of Vienna. The economist he admired most was undoubtedly Leon Walras , but his analysis goes beyond the neoclassical framework . He was also heavily influenced by the writings of the German sociologist Max Weber. And if he shared some conclusions with Karl Marx, his analysis was very far from Marxist economic designs. Is actually the founder of general economic evolutionism . It is therefore listed in the circle called "heterodox" economists. He believes that the foundation and spring dynamics of the economy are innovation and technical progress. The history of capitalism is a permanent moult. Technology evolves, turns pushing swathes of economic activity to wither and disappear after being dominant. Structural change is prior to quantitative. The purpose of this paper is to talk about the influence of Max Weber on Schumpeter’s thought,with respect to their central visions. Consequently, the connections between Schumpeter and Max Weber in this paper are regarded as being primarily substantive in nature. Max Weber...
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...The pure-types of legitimacy within a power-holder that Max Weber describes in his text, “Politics as a Vocation”, can most definitely be applied to administrative structures like those of a business organization or a company. The most evident form of legitimacy accorded to those in higher positions in this instance is the Rational-legal authority, which as Weber mentions, has come to constitute the concept of hierarchical relations, and can be applied to the administration of an organization. This authority which has a basis in legality, and and inclination for the formality of rules and policies is fully applicable to this corporate entity as the structure enables for an anonymous, definite relation between the dominators and the dominated. Weber puts forth that obedience is determined by fear or hope—fear of the vengeance of the power-holder, and hope for reward. In the business organization, individual players at the bottom of the pyramid definitely demonstrate this attitude in regards to the relation between them and their superiors. A typical worker in the capitalist economy seeks to move upwards, and therefore must do a good job, and adhere to the rules established by their superiors in order to be favored for promotion. This demonstrates the above duality of fear and hopes; fear to get fired, or retrograded, and hope for advancement, higher pay, etc… The superiors (CEO, and board executives) have authority due to the power they exert on said individual players, as their...
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...Esmeralda Schuetze PPAM 6301 Goodsell, Charles T., The Case For Bureaucracy A Public Administration Polemic. Washington, DC: CQ Press, 2004 September 2008 Curriculum Vitae (summary)/ Authors Facebook The Case for Bureaucracy A Public Administration Polemic Charles Goodwin most recently has served as a professor at Center of Public Administration Policy, College of Architecture and has also served as a professor and director at other institutions. He was born in July, 1932 at Kalamazoo, Michigan and is happily married with two grown daughters and currently resides in Virginia. Under his belt he has many publications and has published several books that link to public administration and civic engagement. Some of those books published include the one noted above and The American Statehouse, Public Administration Illuminated and Inspired by the Arts, The Social Meaning of Civic Space, Planning a council Chamber, The Public and Encounter, and others. The most successful publication has been The Case for Bureaucracy as he makes his case that American Bureaucracy is in fact effective and good. He challenges the perception that public administration is not effective and is just wasteful and out of touch and makes a validated defense against those that think the contrary. His work has inspired hope as this piece is different from the norm. It is a great inspiring book that gives...
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...Introduction Max Weber viewed social stratification from three dimensions (Wright, EO): economic class, social status and power (party). According to Weber each of these dimensions had its own stratification: the economic, represented by income and access to goods and services, the social, represented by prestige and honour and the political, represented by power .Unlike Marx Weber paved the way for us to incorporate race and ethnicity dimensions in relation to social stratification. South Africa has always been and still is very much a society divided along racial lines. There has however been a gradual but undeniable shift from a society divided along race under apartheid towards division along economic class post 1994. We can attribute this shift largely to the significant political landscape change but we still need a deeper understanding of the forces driving this shift. This paper will therefore attempt to analyze modern day South African society in relation to Weber’s model of social stratification with the view establish its validity and relevance in a local context. We are presented by opportunity to perhaps explore impact this shift has had economically. In other words what the impact has been on access to products and services, media, health, education and so forth. The dimension of power and politics was very central to Weber’s theory, it is therefore natural that we examine the impact the shift from a lily white government to an ANC led regime. According to Weber status honour...
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...How has Confucianism influenced modern economic development in East Asia? The rise of Asia’s so called “Tiger” economies followed by China, has given rise to the spectrum of a distinctly East Asian economic development model. The pioneering economic success of in particular, Singapore, South Korea and Japan since the 1970’s has highlighted the need to evaluate and distinguish how such economies achieved such successive growth. A variety of possible factors can explain or highlight possibilities for the successive development of East Asia. A particularly unique factor that has to be taken into account is Confucianism. The interplay between culture and development can help explain how in particular Japan and South Korea, which were relatively closed societies, have risen to attain the status of newly industrialized countries. This essay will investigate and evaluate, through the presentation of arguments and examples, the extent to which Confucianism has influenced modern economic development in East Asia. This will be achieved by firstly providing a working definition of Confucianism; then locating its positive impact within a broader debate concerning a distinctly Asian development model; investigating and analyzing the challenges presented by Confucianism in the economic development of East Asia; evaluating both the negative and positive implications of Confucianism in East Asian economies and finally assessing to what extent Confucianism has played a role in the development...
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...COTEMPORARY ORGANISATIONS .......................... 6 6. CONCLUSION ...................................................................................................... 7 REFERENCES ............................................................................................................. 9 Executive Summary The label “Bureaucracy” today is not quite what any organization wants to have written on their flags. Everyone has their own experiences and feelings associated with this term and in most cases it has a negative connotation. A quick view through current media will confirm this. However bureaucracy, as conceived by Max Weber originally, was regarded as progress and something that can improve efficiency and stability within an organization. Organizations can draw upon the pioneering work of Max Weber even today. While displaying certain dysfunctions that are directly linked to strict bureaucracies (for example the tendency to displace goals, the discouragement of innovation and adaptability to change, there are certain aspects of it even the most dynamic and innovative organisations cant escape and even profit from. The concept of bureaucracy can be a useful tool in organizational design, to the flow of communication within the organization and the way organizations document...
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...Weber's contributions to organizational theory. Max Weber (1864-1920), can be classified in the bureaucratic management branch of the classical school. Weber, the son of a prominent Bismarckian era German politician, was raised in Berlin and studied law at the University of Berlin. After assuming an appointment teaching law at the University of Berlin, Weber assumed teaching appointments in economics at the Universities of Freiburg, Heidelberg, Vienna, ending with his death after a bout with pneumonia. Weber's interest in organizations evolves from his view of the institutionalization of power and authority in the modern Western world. He constructed a "rational-legal authority" model of an ideal type bureaucracy. This ideal type rested on a belief in the "legality" of patterns of normative rules and the right of those elevated to authority to issue commands (legal authority). Weber postulated the rules and regulations of a bureaucracy serve to insulate its members against the possibility of personal favoritism. According to Max weber Bureaucratic management approach emphasized the necessity of organizations to operate in rational way instead of following the “arbitrary whims” or irrational motions and intentions of owners and managers. He found different characteristics in bureaucracies that would effectively conduct decision-making, controlling resources, protecting workers and accomplishment of organizational goals. Weber Believes All Bureaucracies Have Certain Characteristics: ...
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