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Formal Organization

Formal Organization. Basics. Prior to Capitalism & Modern State: . 1. Who built the pyramids? Large scale organizational effort 2. Traditional Societies rely on kinship connections-also small business 3. Amish-example of a community based organizational effort

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Formal Organization

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  1. Formal Organization Basics

  2. Prior to Capitalism & Modern State: • 1. Who built the pyramids? Large scale organizational effort • 2. Traditional Societies rely on kinship connections-also small business • 3. Amish-example of a community based organizational effort • 4. Mafia-Organized Crime

  3. Since 19th Century: Formal Organizations • Government—Government Agencies. The Civil Service. “Bureaus” • Economic—corporations, business enterprise • Civil Society—political parties, labor unions, churches, the PTA, environmental action groups, etc.

  4. Types of Formal Organizations • 1. Voluntary—not paid. For leisure, a political or religious purpose, self-help • 2. Coercive—against the will of lower participants (prisons, mental hospital, military [when drafted]) • 3. Utilitarian—to accomplish everyday tasks=universities, corporations, labor unions, government bureaus

  5. Differences: • 1. Problems of loyalty of participants • 2. Control of inmates, or lower participants • 3. Involvement is not entirely voluntary nor compulsory • Issue: different internal dynamics of each

  6. Type 2 (Coercive) • Erving Goffman: Total Institutions and the mortification of self. Transformation of self within the institution • (Involuntary confinement—mental hospitals, jails, prisons, ships, boot camp, concentration camps, boarding school)

  7. Max Weber: • Formal Organization=Bureaucracy

  8. Bureaucracy is an Ideal type • 1. A formal “division of labor” (duties, responsibilities clearly defined in writing (job description), an organizational chart • 2. Offices and positions organized in a hierarchy of authority in a pyramid (a chain of command)

  9. Bureaucracy continued: • 3. General, abstract Rules and Regulations define duties and relationships of offices and personnel (remain the same regardless of change in personnel) • 4. Positions filled on basis of technical competence (based on education, training or experience)

  10. Bureaucracy (continued) • 5. Incumbents do not “own” their offices, cannot use for personal ends. Supplied with tools required to perform their work. • 6. Career employment, with promotion based on seniority or merit or both. Tenure makes less susceptible to outside pressures. • 7. Permanent files:decisions, procedures etc

  11. Weber: bureaucracy=efficiency • Weber becomes a functionalist • Weber thought that socialism would mean more bureaucracy • More bureaucracy=less individual freedom • Modern society requires bureaucracy (higher standard of living, services available to all citizens, etc)

  12. Criticisms of Weber: • 1. Rule following may be inefficient (lower level employees often need to take the initiative, violate rules) • 2. Loyalty and morale affects productivity—related to “informal organization”

  13. Problems/Issues with Formal Organization, Bureaucracy • 1. Oligarchy—Roberto Michels the Iron Law of Oligarchy in labor unions, political parties • (exception= the ITU International Typographical Union)

  14. Problems/Issues continued • 2. Overstaffing (usually at top) • Parkinson’s Law= “work expands so as to fill the time available for its completion” • 3. Trained incapacity. Develop “tunnel vision”

  15. The “Realities” of Bureaucracies: • 1. Individuals bring their problems to work, have outside obligations • 2. Rules interfere with rapid change • 3. Designed for “average case” • 4. Formal system needs more: development of informal system

  16. Perspectives on Bureaucracy • Conflict: organizational goals reflect priorities of those in top positions • Reward structure mirror’s class structure of larger society (e.g., managers, executives pay)

  17. Symbolic Interactionist • Participants are active. Example of hospital as “negotiated order”, can change daily in complex situation • Welfare agency: cases assigned according to client needs, employee capability

  18. Critical Synthesis • 1. World is “loosely coupled”, thus, “goals” more like “loose constraints” • 2. Jobs to pay off political debts • 3. People need income, are there for job security • 4. Managers are upward bound • 5. Some organizations as “pension plan”

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