Max Weber’s organizational theory of the Bureaucracy is one of his most famous works. Many of the characteristics he noted are still applicable today. His aim was to detail what a bureaucracy is, and why they seem to work so well. A bureaucracy can be defined as a body of administrative officials along with the procedures and tasks involved in a particular system of administration. A Bureaucracy is a perfect example of Weber’s concept of Rational Authority, or authority (power given to an individual by their community or society) based on rules, codes, and procedures (See Weber).
Weber detailed the characteristics of a bureaucracy by breaking them down into seven points—Offices are bound by rules and regulations, they have specialized knowledge, there is a hierarchy of authorities, positions have technical qualifications, the staff does not own the office, the office is one of ‘positions,’ and the rules of the office are organized and must be followed by every member of the office regardless of position. In the present day, these seven points make it easy to identify an organization as a bureaucracy. One such organization that follows these rules is a police department.
A police department has a clear jurisdictional area—criminal law enforcement. The goal of any police department in the world is to protect the community they serve by enforcing the law on any individuals who do not obey it. The police will not cook your dinner, fix your roof, or help you get out of debt. Their sole purpose is to keep communities safe. Although there are arguments that the police may not always perform their duties in the ideal way, the role of a police department is quite clear. Police departments’ knowledge is highly specialized; they know how to catch criminals.
In a police department, there is a clear chain of command. The chief or commissioner is usually the highest ranking officer in the department, followed by the deputy chief, commanders, captains lieutenants, sergeants, and finally the detectives and officers. Each of these ranks has full police power (arrest, detain, take a life, etc.), but with the higher ranks comes more administrative responsibility.
Although becoming a police officer is an entry level position, there are still minimum requirements to be hired for the position. Most departments require a basic level of physical fitness (only to get hired though), and the intelligence of a high school graduate. For the higher ranking positions in a police department, more schooling is required in addition to prior experience as a police officer.
Police officers do not own the squad cars (although some departments allow officers to take vehicles home), the badges that they wear, or do they have ownership over the powers bestowed upon them (sometimes these people need to be reminded that they do not own their position) as law enforcement officials.
A police department is divided into several positions; property control officer, evidence technician, investigator, internal affairs agent, and many other positions that create a division of labor that help make a department run efficiently.
Everyone in a police department is subject to the same rules and regulations, although higher ranking officers may be less subject to discipline than their subordinates. If any officer is deemed to break any rules or is seen unfit to continue perform her or his duty, the individual may be declassified to another position it the department or relieved of their duties altogether.
Weber’s characteristics of a bureaucracy showed us that a police department is indeed a body of officials working together to perform a specialized task. The purpose of a police department is to build power, power over those who do not obey laws set forth by society. We must also remember that when we obey the police, we are not obeying the person in a blue shirt; we are obeying a bureaucracy, or a human embodiment of the law.
Weber detailed the characteristics of a bureaucracy by breaking them down into seven points—Offices are bound by rules and regulations, they have specialized knowledge, there is a hierarchy of authorities, positions have technical qualifications, the staff does not own the office, the office is one of ‘positions,’ and the rules of the office are organized and must be followed by every member of the office regardless of position. In the present day, these seven points make it easy to identify an organization as a bureaucracy. One such organization that follows these rules is a police department.
A police department has a clear jurisdictional area—criminal law enforcement. The goal of any police department in the world is to protect the community they serve by enforcing the law on any individuals who do not obey it. The police will not cook your dinner, fix your roof, or help you get out of debt. Their sole purpose is to keep communities safe. Although there are arguments that the police may not always perform their duties in the ideal way, the role of a police department is quite clear. Police departments’ knowledge is highly specialized; they know how to catch criminals.
In a police department, there is a clear chain of command. The chief or commissioner is usually the highest ranking officer in the department, followed by the deputy chief, commanders, captains lieutenants, sergeants, and finally the detectives and officers. Each of these ranks has full police power (arrest, detain, take a life, etc.), but with the higher ranks comes more administrative responsibility.
Although becoming a police officer is an entry level position, there are still minimum requirements to be hired for the position. Most departments require a basic level of physical fitness (only to get hired though), and the intelligence of a high school graduate. For the higher ranking positions in a police department, more schooling is required in addition to prior experience as a police officer.
Police officers do not own the squad cars (although some departments allow officers to take vehicles home), the badges that they wear, or do they have ownership over the powers bestowed upon them (sometimes these people need to be reminded that they do not own their position) as law enforcement officials.
A police department is divided into several positions; property control officer, evidence technician, investigator, internal affairs agent, and many other positions that create a division of labor that help make a department run efficiently.
Everyone in a police department is subject to the same rules and regulations, although higher ranking officers may be less subject to discipline than their subordinates. If any officer is deemed to break any rules or is seen unfit to continue perform her or his duty, the individual may be declassified to another position it the department or relieved of their duties altogether.
Weber’s characteristics of a bureaucracy showed us that a police department is indeed a body of officials working together to perform a specialized task. The purpose of a police department is to build power, power over those who do not obey laws set forth by society. We must also remember that when we obey the police, we are not obeying the person in a blue shirt; we are obeying a bureaucracy, or a human embodiment of the law.