Bureaucracy: Is This Concept Still Applicable to the Business Organization of the 21st Century

he concept of bureaucracy was initially formulated in the early 1900-ies by the German sociologist Max Weber.

The characteristics of a rational bureaucracy are:

1. A clear division of labor, which leads to the emergence of highly qualified specialists in each position.

2. A hierarchy of levels of management in which each lower level is controlled by the parent and is subordinated to it.

3. The presence of an interconnected system of generalized formal rules and standards to ensure uniformity of implementation of the staff, of their responsibilities and coordination of various tasks.

4. Spirit of formal anonymity with which the officials perform their duties.

5. The implementation of employment in strict accordance with the technical qualification requirements.

6. The security of employees from arbitrary dismissals.

Thus, bureaucratic ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE is characterized by a high degree of division of labor, developed hierarchy control, chain of command, the numerous rules and conduct standards and employment process is requiring for business and professional qualities. Weber called this structure "rational", since it is assumed that decisions taken by the bureaucracy have an objective character.

Bureaucracy is often called classical or traditional organizational structure. Most organizations today are variants of the bureaucracy. Thus, bureaucratic ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE is characterized by a high degree of division of labor, developed hierarchy control, chain of command, the numerous rules and conduct standards and employment process is requiring for business and professional qualities. Weber called this structure "rational", since it is assumed that decisions taken