Definition of the Bureaucracy and its Main Functions
Bureaucracy is a considerable part of contemporary democratic society. Most organizations should be regulated by specific services to maintain uniformity because of their complexity. The term bureaucracy implies a complex, multilayered system and a group of nonelected officials who perform series of social policies and programs which provide an organization’s efficiency (Gilad & Alon-Barkat, 2018). The two main functions of bureaucracy are implementation and administration (Gilad & Alon-Barkat, 2018). Bureaucrats work with the government’s policies, adapting them to citizens’ daily lives and ensuring their performance. The other function is maintaining the existing systems by providing necessary operations such as issuing licenses, collecting fees, and others (Gilad & Alon-Barkat, 2018). The existence of bureaucracy is essential for the effectiveness of a democratic society.
The Bureaucrats in the United States
The bureaucrats of civil servants are the individuals who occupy vital roles in every area of government or another organization, maintaining a bureaucratic system. In the United States, the bureaucrats are part of the hierarchic system. Heads of fifteen cabinet departments in the U.S. government are the high-level civil servants called secretaries, followed by many undersecretaries (Gilad & Alon-Barkat, 2018). Individual cabinet departments are comprised of many levels of bureaucracy and the bureaucrats, respectively. They consist of essential staff, smaller offices, and bureaus (Gilad & Alon-Barkat, 2018). The civil servants serve the government and its citizens on each level of the bureaucracy system.
The Influence of the Bureaucracy on My Daily Life
I frequently notice that the bureaucracy is present in most common and familiar actions. Its instances in my daily life are presented but not limited to mail delivery, the education system, car driving, the insurance system, etc. It is difficult to imagine contemporary life without bureaucrats’ work. The bureaucracy is required for government and other organizations’ efficiency due to implementation and administration functions.
Reference
Gilad, S., & Alon‐Barkat, S. (2018). Enhancing democracy via bureaucracy: Senior managers’ social identities and motivation for policy change. Governance, 31(2), 359-380. Web.