An interesting post on Regblog reminding us of an excellent book that analyses the limits and failings of bureaucracy. Such insights are useful for regulators, who always depend on administrative agencies to collect information to support policies.
Senior American academic Donald F. Kettl reminds us of James Q. Wilson's 1989 classic, Bureaucracy which explores the reasons behind bureaucratic failures. "Wilson explains that different administrators, at different levels of the bureaucracy, have different perspectives, roles, and incentives. Too often, these roles fail to mesh, problems fall through the cracks—and, as a result, programs can fail, sometimes catastrophically.
He identifies three different levels of bureaucrats. "Operators" work the front lines, performing the most basic of an agency's work. They define the agency's culture by what they do, how they do it, and how they pass along the accepted modes of business. "Managers" are the critical shock absorbers between the front lines of operation and the often-turbulent political environment. Finally, "executives" guard the organization's turf, seek to preserve its autonomy, build political support, and struggle to secure the resources needed to do the agency's work."
Senior American academic Donald F. Kettl reminds us of James Q. Wilson's 1989 classic, Bureaucracy which explores the reasons behind bureaucratic failures. "Wilson explains that different administrators, at different levels of the bureaucracy, have different perspectives, roles, and incentives. Too often, these roles fail to mesh, problems fall through the cracks—and, as a result, programs can fail, sometimes catastrophically.
He identifies three different levels of bureaucrats. "Operators" work the front lines, performing the most basic of an agency's work. They define the agency's culture by what they do, how they do it, and how they pass along the accepted modes of business. "Managers" are the critical shock absorbers between the front lines of operation and the often-turbulent political environment. Finally, "executives" guard the organization's turf, seek to preserve its autonomy, build political support, and struggle to secure the resources needed to do the agency's work."
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