Asch's experiment. Smartest Guys in the Room -- Groupthink

Asch's experiment

Smartest Guys in the Room -- Groupthink

Bureaucracy --- Necessary Evil

Organizations (collectives purposely constructed) that are formal

Ronald “Mc…who”?

Formal Organizations Make up

Social structure

Normative (service, charitable organizations)

Coercive (prisons) Utilitarian (corporations)

Offices, Vertical official functions Authoritarian Structure: a hierarchy of unequal positions Specialized division of labor Everything in writing Structure based on legal-rational

authority

Functions like McDonaldization the

intent is to meet specific goals with the most efficiency, predictability, control through technology, quantity over qauality, calculation

Bureaucracies perpetuate differences in “Life Chances”

"HAMBURGER-IZING THE WORLD"

Weber worried about the over rationalization of society “iron cage”

But he missed some things…

the dysfunctions that come with “Bounded rationality”

Not all organization members are rational.

Alienating (powerless)

Trained incapacity – blind adherence

Red tape Catch 22 Knowledge at the

lower ranks

“Whoa... I think the boss doesn’t like you!”

Leads to Whyte’s “Organization Man” – or bureaucratic personality

a person whose life is controlled by organization “cheerful robots”

Often they have an inability to think outside the box….

Can lead to “trained incapacity”

Bureaucracy dysfunctions….

Goal conflicts: (units conflict with

organizational goals or infighting occurs)

Goal Displacement: (lose sight of original

goals and sometimes those in power start to manipulate the organization “oligarchy”

Parkinson’s Law: work expands to

fill time

Peter Principle: promoted beyond

competence – some excel but many do less than their job description

Leave no trace – oral communication to keep secrets

“What do I need to do to have promotion written all over me”

Today’s Bureaucracies are more diverse that Weber considered but…..

Gendered Organizations persist….

Perpetuates inequalities “visible display” means

more pressure, more stress but does not equal authority

“Glass Ceiling” exists where advancement can be seen but not accessible. Justified by “unique” positions –

Glass escalator – men in traditionally female occupations

Women represent more than half of professional positions in the United States

•Women hold 18 percent of all Fortune 500 board seats and 17 percent of Fortune 100 companies

• Make up less than 4 percent Fortune 500 CEOs at only 18

“Double Pane glass ceiling” for women executives – especially in relation to global companies

Outsourcing – transfer of activities from one organization in exchange for money.

Offshore outsourcing - India, Phillapines call centers

1989 – U.S. spent between $9 – $12 Billion

2008 – U.S. spent $55 billion

Much military spending was outsourced – Blackwater (Xe) and Halliburton (KBR)

Gender and Race

Schwartz argues

“Mommy Tracks” encourage lowered aspirations and satisfaction with less

Leads to decreased advancement

Because men have not been allowed to have “Daddy Tracks”

Today in place but hard for men to access

Feagin argues entry does not equal integration for minorities

Best explained by social networks, lack of mentors

Class differences

Dual Labor Market

Middle and Upper classes more likely to work in industries with higher wages, more job security

Poor and Working classes more likely to work in industries with lower wages, less job security, fewer opportunities to advance

Bureaucracies have an informal side

Day to day interactions Work Cultures arise Subcultures develop when

people try to humanize an impersonal organization.

The informal culture can become exclusionary.

Hawthorne Effect e.g. “Chislers”, “Squealers”,

“Rate Busters”

Traditional views

Assume people are lazy

Informal networks should be controlled e.g., locking doors at chicken plant,

monitoring e-mails, videotaping stockrooms

Human relation views

If you assume traditional view, you’ll get resistance

Informal networks should be nurtured

Let workers determine organizational efficiency – this oils the wheels and provide intrinsic motivation