An Empirical Study of Bureaucratic and Post-Bureaucratic Characteristics in 90 Workplaces

Malin Bolin and Annika Härenstam
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Malin Bolin: Umeå University
Annika Härenstam: Göteborg University

Economic and Industrial Democracy, 2008, vol. 29, issue 4, 541-564

Abstract: The aim of the study was to explore bureaucratic and post-bureaucratic characteristics of organizational structure. A further aim was to investigate whether differences were related to types of industries. Eight organizational characteristics were measured, based on interviews with local managers at 90 workplaces in a broad sample of industries in mid-Sweden. The study showed that post-bureaucratic as well as bureaucratic characteristics coexisted in most workplaces. The results are not in accordance with the rhetoric that considers bureaucracy obsolete in contemporary organizations. Significant differences were revealed between industries in seven of the eight characteristics.

Keywords: division of labour; flexibility; management; organization; working arrangements (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2008
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:sae:ecoind:v:29:y:2008:i:4:p:541-564

DOI: 10.1177/0143831X08096228

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