In 2-3 pages answer the following: Do you think that public administrators should be restricted to only laid down rules in the discharge of their duties as espoused by Max Weber or should they have some amount of discretion. Provide the likely benefits and disadvantages of each scenario and use examples to support your argument. (Weber is not specifically address in the readings for this unit; you will have to go back to earlier references to complete this assignment).
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Public Relations: Administrative Discretion
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Administrative Discretion
Weber’s Theory of Bureaucracy and Administrative Discretion
Marx Weber’s ideas about democracy advocated for a system that followed standardized procedures and clear chains of command (Page, 2003). Weber outlined the roles of a public servant in his theory of bureaucracy as that of involving hierarchy of authority, standardized procedures, meticulous record keeping and a set of clearly defined roles. However, the modern perception of bureaucracy is that of laxity, excessive adherence of rules and poor consideration of the needs of the society (Zia & Khan, n.d.). The contemporary views on public administration asserts that Weber’s theory of public administration gives the civil servants little discretion in their exercise of roles, by rendering them as followers of rules as set out in their roles. Therefore, public administrators should not be restricted to laid down rules, but they should have a little freedom to exercise discretion as Weber’s theory has inadequacies, which cannot apply in modern democratic world.
In the American context, there is a growing need for contemporary organizational leadership models such as servant and democratic leadership, which demands a greater discretion among the workers in order to cater for the complexity of the population needs. Consequently, the modern concept of New Public Management has gained momentum in a bit to address the inadequacies of Weber’s theory of bureaucratic public administration (Peters, Erkkila, & Maravic, 2014, p. 65). Although Weber’s theory pointed the need for proper communication of changes in the system of laws in order to ensure clear and unambiguous decision-making, there is no discretion to alter the information, which means the civil servants have no right to express their decisions or ideas. The emphasis on the decision places the civil servant in a position of concentrating on its importance rather than its effects.
However, the modern public administration is facing a number of challenges, which include the increasing complexity in demands for better services, efficiency and service for the population (Zia & Khan, n.d.). Weber’s theory is less effective in the context of the modern economic challenges as the modern civil servant shoulders more responsibility for his/her actions. Providing a little discretion to the civil servant ensures that they factor in the effects of the decisions before their implementation. Unlike Weber’s theory of bureaucracy that reduced the civil servants as the communicators of decision, who had no discretion to alter the decision in whatsoever form regardless of the effects it might have on the population needs. The modern public service stresses on hands-on professional management skills, in order to attain active and a discretionary control of the organizations.
Benefits and Disadvantages of the Two Scenarios The major benefit of giving the civil servants some discretion is to allow them to consider the benefits and effects of their decisions. For example, before communication a certain rule, the administrator can consider the benefits of such a communication to the public before making the decision. The other merit is that policies can be implemented without fear or favoritism. In addition, allowing for discretion ensures that the service delivery takes into account the population needs, eliminating bias, nepotism and employment based on adherence rather than competence and ability to perform the required tasks. However, the major disadvantage of discretion in public administration is that the impleme…………………….
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