ABSTRACT
Many organisations, in particular those which are medium to large in size and long established, operate through a more or less bureaucratic process. That is to say that they are organised through a hierarchical system of offices or ‘bureaux’ (Weber, 1924) and maintain that organisation through formal reports, documents and record keeping. This is not in itself a bad thing, indeed it is essential to the delivery of a standard product – particularly in service organisations or those operating through a distributed delivery network such as retail chains or banks. Without a standardised approach the customer may easily be confused and the organisation itself become out of control.
