weber and gilbreths report.ppt

8/14/2019 WEBER AND GILBRETHS REPORT.ppt

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PRESENTED BY: CONCEPCION R. MENDOZA


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Bureaucratic Management

Max Weber can be classified in the bureaucraticmanagement branch of the classical school. Weber, the son

of a prominent Bismarckian era German politician, wasraised in Berlin and studied law at the University of Berlin.After assuming an appointment teaching law at theUniversity of Berlin, Weber assumed teachingappointments in economics at the Universities of Freiburg,Heidelberg, Vienna, ending with his death after a bout withpneumonia at the University of Munich.

Weber's interest in organizations evolves from his view ofthe institutionalization of power and authority in themodern Western world. He constructed a "rational-legalauthority" model of an ideal type bureaucracy. This idealtype rested on a belief in the "legality" of patterns ofnormative rules and the right of those elevated to authorityto issue commands (legal authority). Weber postulated therules and regulations of a bureaucracy serve to insulate itsmembers against the possibility of personal favoritism.


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Max Weber (1864-1920) Weber believes all bureaucracies have certain

characteristics:

1. A well defined hierarchy. All positions within abureaucracy are structured in a way permitting thehigher positions to supervise and control the lowerpositions. This provides a clear chain of commandfacilitating control and order throughout theorganization.

2. Division of labor and specialization. Allresponsibilities in an organization are rationalized tothe point where each employee will have the necessaryexpertise to master a particular task. This necessitatesgranting each employee the requisite authority tocomplete all such tasks.

3. Rules and regulations. All organizational activitiesshould be rationalized to the point where standardoperating procedures are developed to providecertainty and facilitate coordination.


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4. Impersonal relationships between managers andemployees. Weber believes it is necessary for managers tomaintain an impersonal relationship with the employeesbecause of the need to have a rational decision making

process rather than one influenced by favoritism andpersonal prejudice. This organizational atmosphere wouldalso facilitate rational evaluation of employee outcomeswhere personal prejudice would not be a dominantconsideration.

5. Competence. Competence should be the basis for alldecisions made in hiring, job assignments, andpromotions. This would eliminate personal bias and thesignificance of "knowing someone" in central personneldecisions. This fosters ability and merit as the primarycharacteristics of a bureaucratic organization.

6. Records. Weber feels it is absolutely essential for abureaucracy to maintain complete files regarding all itsactivities. This advances an accurate organizational"memory" where accurate and complete documents will beavailable concerning all bureaucratic actions anddeterminations.


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Weber's bureaucratic principles have been widely adoptedthroughout the world. Yet, there are many critics.

The primary criticism of Weber's theory of bureaucracy is

the overwhelming acceptance of authority as its centraltenet. This inevitably fosters an unrelenting need todevelop additional authority causing the bureaucracy to beunresponsive and lack effectiveness.

The emphasis on impersonality can lead to personal

frustration for its employees while generating red tape toreinforce previously authorized decisions. The bureaucracyis increasingly viewed both by its employees and the publicas a passionless instrument for responding to humanneeds.

The need to divide labor and specialize can foster feelingsof employee alienation and estrangement. As the demandsof society become every more complex, the need increasesfor interpersonal communication and sharing betweenemployees of the resulting organizations.


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Unwittingly, Weber helped to foster an extremelynegative attitude toward the concept ofbureaucracy conjuring up images of a highlyinflexible and inhumane organization oftenworking at cross purposes with the needs of thoseit is supposed to serve.


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Frank (1868-1924) and Lillian (1878-1972) Gilbreth

The Gilbreths were strong advocates of scientificmanagement. Frank Gilbreth made his first managementstudies of bricklayers. After extensive studies ofbricklayers, he was able to reduce the motions inbricklaying from 18 1/2 to 4. This produced an almost 170%increase in the bricklayer's productivity while notincreasing the amount of effort needed.

Gilbreth was interested in developing the one best way ofdoing work. His system later became known as "speedwork" which was achieved by eliminating unnecessarymotions.

Frank, working with his wife, Lillian, subsequently becameheavily involved in time and motion studies isolating 17

basic work motions that they termed therbligs(therblig isGilbreth spelled backwards). Their studies of workincluded the use of a cyclograph, a form of stereoscopicmovie camera, whereby the time and motions of a workercould be carefully studied.


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Lillian Gilbreth published one of the earliestworks on the psychological study of management,The Psychology of Management.She was also the

earliest female pioneer in scientific management. The Gilbreths were immortalized by two of their

children who wrote Cheaper by the Dozenchronicalling life under the scientific

management method of their parents.

weber and gilbreths report.ppt

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