Question

Consider the following Scenario: You are the office manager at a large law firm, and several administrative assistants have come to you over the past few weeks to complain about Maria, another administrative assistant in the firm. They tell you that Maria is often late, sometimes takes longer lunches than is allowed, and spends considerable time on personal telephone calls. When you confront Maria, she acknowledges that although she may come in late occasionally or make personal calls, her work is always done on time, and the quality of her work is impeccable. She suggests that this should be the measure used to evaluate her performance, not small infractions.

Use the bureaucratic management system

Answer 1

As per Bureaucratic management theory, 2 elements must be present in the organization:

• The organization must be structured into a hierarchy
• The organization must be governed by clearly defined, rational decision making rules

The office manager must illustrate the hierarchy of the department. This will help in laying the hierarchy to be followed if one needs to complain about an employee at certain job level. The administrative assistants will have clarity about whom to complain in case they want to report against Maria. Moreover the office manager, along with the strategy and HRD of the company, must lay down company policy of performance and conduct. There must be defined rules and policy about taking breaks and spending time during lunch hours. This will help in facilitating the overall functioning of business.