Bureaucrats vs Technocrats: Roles, Power, and Organizational Impact

We can distinguish two types of relatively distinct administrative staff: the bureaucrats and technocrats. The basic difference between these two is that technocrats, unlike bureaucrats, are specialists in a particular subject. These two have a different orientation when facing work within the organization.

Bureaucrats: Characteristics and Behavior

The bureaucrat is characterized by legal training, to develop tasks that have to do with the internal rules of operation. This move towards compliance makes their behavior characterized by a lack of spontaneity and initiative. The power of bureaucrats is based on their detailed knowledge of the rules governing the organization. They know all the procedures and the correct ways to carry things forward, even circumventing the rules at certain times, taking control of the wide and lengthy rules that govern the behavior of individuals.

Technocrats: Expertise and Efficiency

The technocrats are typically economists who specialize in a particular area or specific branches of activity. They develop a behavior with much less inertia than the bureaucrat. It is usually preferred as it is believed technocrats are more effective. Ultimately, the behavior of bureaucrats may block the organization.

Bureaucratic Elites and Corporate Roles

In some cases, a more or less elitist bureaucracy has been established, but not always. This depends on the type of staff making up the bureaucracy. When it comes to staff forming bodies of the administration, it is easier to act to defend collective interests, but this is not the position of every administration. There is a correlation between the civil service system, relatively closed bodies, and the fact that the bureaucracy may have a corporate role. For France, Pierre Bourdieu reached conclusions aimed towards a bureaucratic elite. The reason is the kind of selection of senior bodies: elite schools. To access them, one must have studied in major schools or have a career in the education system, meaning it comes from a specific social class.

Selection and Social Background

The question is how staff are selected. To get access to schools, one must pass an entrance exam and have a college education. People who enter (after a training period of 2-3 years) show certain recurring patterns: certain races have been studied in some universities, and they have studied in the same school. Socially, most are from one particular layer. There is also another characteristic: they not only hold positions of responsibility in the state but also form part of the blocks of political parties.

The Power of Experts

Lasswell believes in giving power to experts because while politicians are a bit mercenary characters, they are incompatible with the rest to make effective decisions. The politician is petty, and bureaucrats are those who can make decisions efficiently. They are able to influence decision-making in several ways: the information used as a basis for decision-making lies with the bureaucrats, not politicians. The role of the administration, apart from making checks on various issues, is to collect information, process, and analyze it, meaning that the data is processed by them.

Bureaucratic Maximization

The type of behavior that characterizes maximizing bureaucrats is incremental (William Niskanen). The ultimate objective of the bureaucrat is to increase their budget each following year, etc., which ensures that their post does not disappear; it is vital.