I have been thinking a lot about Bureaucracy since completing my Leading and Managing People course for my graduate program, and transitioned to studying innovation within organizations. Something that stands out to me about these two is that organizations tend to over-rely on structure as a means of ensuring that employees remain on task and unable to color outside the lines.
Max Weber is one of the most prominent historical figures to call this out, because he was seeing how society was being turned into one big bureaucratic system towards the beginning of the 20th century. It was true that organizations — both governmental and private — were becoming more effective at managing people, but he argued it depersonalized much of the work that people were doing; nobles and leaders weren’t nearly as special if they were unable to accomplish anything without the help of a professionalized group of administrators to help enact the management of any given system, no matter how special their traits were.
That is largely the function of a bureaucracy-centric organization: turn work into a set of tasks that can be standardized and executed in a formulaic way. It’s highly efficient in the sense that it removes guesswork from some of the rote tasks that are common in businesses like manufacturing facilities or governments, but as anyone who has worked in higher education, medicine, or education know, bureaucracy can also remove much of the joy that comes from exerting one’s own agency within the larger organization.
Individuality and authenticity are traits that are admired when leaders start an organization or movement that disrupts the status quo, but once established, many seek to drive out any innovative problem solving by creating highly standardized processes for every facet of their organization. It’s easier to put guardrails around the employee behavior than it is to create a hybrid system where bureaucracy is used to lay the groundwork for compliance and the rest is dedicated to winning their hearts and minds, but it also means that new ideas and processes can’t be designed without the highest executive authority behind it.
Of course, when this level of power within an organization is required to respond to any changes in a complex economic system, there’s a risk that one’s business will end up obsolete before leaders realize what’s happened. New ideas, disruptive forces, and creativity don’t conform to standardized methods, and there isn’t really a way to set up bureaucratic channels to allow for that without giving up some of the control that such a system is designed to enforce.
Which begs a question that’s relevant both in leadership and life: how much control are you willing to surrender to serendipity so you can get ahead?
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A Feel Good Place
A French Bakery In an Old School Building
Having lived in Philadelphia for most of my life, I have marveled at the way that it’s changed in the past decade or so. I have seen it gain greater recognition for its food scene, the development of artist programs, and an explosion of investment in the aspects of city life that make it worth living — even if it’s still got some work to do in all of those areas.
One thing that I have become increasingly interested in over that period is the ecosystem created within the Bok Building, a former school that was converted into a maker space with shops of all shapes and sizes where South Philadelphia residents can come and peruse their wears. And one of those shops is an award-winning French bakery called Machine Shop.
I heard about it through word of mouth, and once my wife and I had a chance to try some of their baked goods, we discovered the rave reviews to be fully justified. It also prompted me to look into the business further, which gave me some interesting context for why it works so well at delighting its customers.
Something Read
INTERIOR CHINATOWN BY CHARLES YU
Willis Wu wants to be an actor, specifically fantasizing about the role every boy in Chinatown wants: Kung Fu Guy. Wu eventually gets his chance at becoming Kung Fu Guy when he earns a spot on a television crime show, but soon realizes that it’s not quite what he thought it would be. Soon he’s on a journey to reconnect with the part of himself he lost while pursuing a role that seems more like a bit character than the protagonist of his own story.
For Casual Readers: The book will likely appeal to anyone who enjoys experimental works that deal heavily with explorations of identity, creativity, and authenticity. It’s also something that would appeal to anyone who is soon to a be a dad or has an interest in better understanding what that feels like.
For Writers: The book offers a great template for writers that are trying to explore the changes in identity a person undergoes throughout their life, which can help inform stories that deal with multiple generations. It also offers insight into stereotypes, which can be informative for writers working with characters from marginalized communities. Lastly, Yu brings a unique sense of humor that aids with keeping the reader engaged.
What Comes Next
Enjoyed this issue? Here’s what you can expect from the next newsletter:
What stories have to do with safe spaces
A Philadelphia coffee roaster that went from a relative unknown to a powerhouse in the community
A review of a book that appeared alongside Christopher Priest’s The Prestige on a recommendation list
As always, while this project may be a space where I share some of the things I have been thinking of, I also want to make sure it delivers value for you. So if you have feedback on what you would like to see, let me know and your recommendation may make it into the next issue.
