[[Organisations (definition)]] need to produce results. They can have all the benefits of bureaucracy (Control, Consistency, Co-ordination) without having the particular characteristics of bureaucracy. All organisations should aspire to be bold, creative and daring. There is a [[Hierarchy of work-related capabilities]], and while bureaucracy can create the conditions for this, it is not conducive to it. ## Criticisms of [[Bureaucracy|Bureaucracy]] To summarise, bureaucracy: - Grants excessive credence to the views of precedent-bound leaders - Discourages rebellious thinking - Creates long lags between sense and respond ([[Dynamic Capabilities]]) - Calcifies organisational structures - Blinds silo-dwelling leaders to new opportunities - Sub-optimises trade-offs - Frustrates the rapid redeployment of resources - Discourages risk taking - Politicises decision making - Creates long and tortuous approval pathways - Misaligns power and leadership capability - Caps opportunities for individual contribution - Undermines frontline accountability - Systematically devalues originality ([Location 1161](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07B9HFSHX&location=1161)) See also - [[The Failings of Bureaucracy in a modern workforce]] - [[The cost of Bureaucracy]] - [[Bureaucracy is entrenched because it is familiar, complex, serves a purpose, and helps the powerful]] ## Principles of managerless organisations - All jobs can be upskilled and can take a role in management. ([Location 340](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07B9HFSHX&location=340)) - The employees in these companies create incredible value, and are rewarded appropriately. There is no "meatware" (this is incredibly [[Ubuntu|dehumanising]]). - The goal should be to build a bold, self-renewing organisation. This requires willing, enthusiastic, joyful [[Employee Engagement]]. ([Location 672](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07B9HFSHX&location=672)) - What we need aren’t extraordinary leaders, but organizations that mobilize and monetize the everyday genius of “ordinary” employees. ([Location 903](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07B9HFSHX&location=903)). If we truly believe in [[democracy]] as an organisation - if this is a core value we want to formally reintroduce - then we should look at how we democratise decision making. - Every team member needs to have the information to think and act like an owner. This is what happens at [[Southwest Airlines]] - Don't shape results as a craftsman, but as a gardener- by creating the right environment for the right kind of growth. - ## Examples of post-bureaucratic organisations Distributed ownership in the following companies has demonstrated: 1. Reduces turnover and creates a smarter, more experienced workforce 2. Unlocks reserves of discretionary effort 3. Increases the incentives for innovation 4. Creates more cohesion and camaraderie 5. Strengthens the connection with customers 6. Produces faster, better-informed decisions 7. Leads to a flatter, leaner organization 8. Yields above-average returns - [[Buurtzorg]] - [[Higgs Boson Team]] - [[Southwest Airlines]] - [[General Foods]] - [[Principles of Sociotechnical systems (STS)]] - [[Nucor]] - [[Haier]] - [[Vinci]] - [[Svenska Handelsbanken]] - [[Zappos]] ## Difficulties in implementation of managerless principles - [[Topeka]] - The goal is to carefully dismantle bureaucracy, not simply blow it up. You need a change strategy that is both audacious and prudent. ([Location 1290](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07B9HFSHX&location=1290)) - one of the biggest factors stopping organizations from moving away from bureaucracy is that leaders don’t trust their people. ([View Highlight](https://instapaper.com/read/1502801365/19434620))