Administrative organization and methods for development

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UNITED NATIONS

ECONOMIC AND

SOCIAL COUNCIL

,:

ECONOMIC COMJ4LiSION FOR AFRICA Conference on Urgent Administrative Problems of African Governments, Addis Ababa,

14-27

November

1968

ENGLISH

Original: FRENCH

ADMINISTRATIVE ORGANIZATION AND METHODS FOR DEVELOPMENT

M68-1871

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E/CN.14/UAP/177/Rev • l

ADiUNISTRATJ.VE ORGANIZATION AND METHODS FUR DEVELOPI1ENrY

For" wdr;:ing.pa.:r:ty however oompetent, the administrative organization '"flO. met:10ds for the development of a sooiety would be a subjeot to be

~xami~ed with SOille anxiety, if the whole range of its implioations were i.nvolved. But "hen the topio is approaohed with humility and an open mind

~nd, ^after ·~horough probing by disoussion and exohange of experienoe, and leads tooonorete proposals whioh do not pretend to exhaust the subjeot neither i.n soope nor depth, it is perhaps one of the most exoiting to whioh responsible persons in public life oan devote their attention.

The topio aotually oovers the ultimate goal of publio aotioll and the mothodn of attai~in~' ^it, lJ.'he first working party at this socond conferenco Oel the a('min~.3trativeproblems of Afrioan governments "ill desoribe the

~ltimatc ^{goal of} dev~lopment and the extent to whioh administration is res- ponsiblo for achieving this.sooial finality, While the seoond werking party

>Till be rcoponsi.blo for analysing the methods.

It wculd 00 wroug to regard an examination limited to methods of aotion

':C3 a tao:c af seoond'-rate importanoe. The participants at the Seminar on the ACJ"inistrQb.v:o Problcms of Afrioan states held here from 2 to 11 Ootober :;'962, h,wo alread.v stated that any polioy of development depends partly "on teohnioal, rational, objeotive, administr"ltive, faotors whioh governments D"d ,'ot disrcglrel" (E/CN .14/180/Chap. III, para.2), adding that "problems of 8"'g:mlZc.t:on 9[i administration should be oonsidered along with the substan-

tive aope~te ef plans" (E/CN .14/180/Chap. II, pc.ra. 1).

The cu'Jjeot is thereforo essentially teohnioal though i t has.a few ,::c'1cr::l e:,'rr;cctc.

Thue, administr~tien^is ^a sooial phenomenon, looked at cxtern~lly ^(the l.ud.icrous o..spGctG of ilburcnucra.cy" cnn be o..s illmninnting as pedantic consi- d.ClClt:i.ons) Q.S 'tIGll as intornallJ.', .:md group dynamics sometimes have as much in"l~ence ~s ill1 offioial organizational oh~t.

Fu~tDor, ~dministr~tion^is ~n entity subordinated to the politioal

~~~uotur8.^which detcrmi~cs ^{the final} go~ls of its aotion, but the influenoe of >Thioh c~n also be extended to aspeets whioh, in prinoiple, are purely ad.ministrativco

Or ag~in, the_Ii",.,.l goal of c\dministration is not autonomous, but bound up with .the goneral purposes of the sooioty i t servos. To a.ssign respensibi- lity to an entity for an ultim~te go~l extern~l io itself, implies oertain relationffilips between the entity ~nd its envirpnw@n~.

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Preparod by Mr. Marool Fourre, Mo.itre dos requetes o.t the ConseU d'Etat,

Paris~

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Crudely stated the relationship is one-sided and authoritarian. Such a situation uhich is suited to systems of government that make a sharp distinction between governors and governed (this docs not apply only to despotic systems) is not to be recommended.

In modern societies, (whethor a system of government is liberal or authoritarian) the. relationship between the administration and the society is a two~way .traffic. Consequontly, administration cannot be divorced from its various relations with the social body and their mcdes of expression:

the mutual adoptiqn of ideas by administrating and the administered, the absorption and redistribution of goods, funds or serVices, influence the characteristics of the administratien.

Such diverse elemcnts which throughout history have always had a varied content and still do to a considerable extent today in certain places, have not weakened the need for administratien any more than its unity. Removed from the environment whose ends it serves thrOUgh available human and material resources, administration is a technique very different frem other techniques.

Theso other teehniquesin the usual sense are very special. Their limits and content are fairly well defined, and, for a _sc~son, until some new in- vention comes along, they provide the accepted nostrums. They are tied to sciences. which enjey atGmporary but fairly est"blished s,·.fety until new know- ledge and discoverios.

On the contrary, there is still scme hesitancy in admitting that there eXists a science of administration which can account for the oldest and most universal sccial phenomenon. Occasionally the ingenious attempts at explana- tien border on platitude. They nre eithLr too general and merely reiterate the findings of sociology, " po litol ogy" and law, or else are teo speoialized and then become a set of tcchniques.or even.a bunch of nostrums.

The saving _gr~ce of research in this field lies in the systematization and rationalization of Organization and Methods. The inconspicuous initials

"0 and M" should not cause any dolus ion • Evory human end cavour stems from the doliberate adaptation of a set of means. .Administration is nothing more than organization and methods.

And yet, the phenomenon is not a physical or human entity functioning mechanically tc prcducc goods or scrvices. From thc mechanical arts or the ballet to organization .the difference is the same as between action and orient~

atil!ln:', of action. There is the

rub.

Organization is a mechanism designed to

get things donc rather than do them. Methods are certainly a rat.ionalization of action but of that sort of action which is unaware of its ultimate goal or final destiny. Ccnsequently, methods must be conceived in relation to the external ends they S11bserve.

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This is not without its consequences. There are some administrative organizations and working methods, in other words, some administrations which are almost perfect in themselves but which are not very efficient.

The machinery is perfectly coherent, but there is no contact between it and external society.

However any attempt to equate improvement in administrative functioning to the efficient operation of orgai1ization and methods produces a certain misgiving. Organization and Methods in their modern form are 'of private origin, whereas administration is designed to serve the public. At this level, there is no incompatibility: At one end there is a technical phenomenon designed to cope with methods, at the other an appeal to ultimate goals. Logically the proccss is erroneous which draws conclusions

frcm suoh'a comparison. It assumes that because 0 and M stemmed from the private sector, they look implicitly to profit. But the experience of

large enterprises has shown that 0 and M present an improvement in processes irrespective of the ends they serve. .fuereas alternatively an administration which functions regfU'dlcss of costs,would probably ruin a society rather than make it efficient. The administrator is not only responsible for achieving the political ends envisaged, but is also aecountable'for the means ~ade available to him. In fact, different notions arc not contradic- tory if they enter a reasoning at different levels. Actually, the Teason- 'ing. Which, seeks to link the technique of the use of moans with an ultimate

goal of that utilization and also neglects thc means by appealing to the lofty ends, 'must be rejected because the object is to attain the goal by

using tho means available, and fnilure mny result from negligence in the

p:N:>per 'use of mE-thods. '

Moreover, the participants at the Conference of October 2 to 11 ,1962 laid down the principle whereby "questions of organization structure, coniniunications ••• cannot be looked upon as isolated ministerial problems".

(E/CN.14/180/Chap.II, para.5).

The analysis of the concept o~ efficient administration in its dual

aspect of sUitable organization and appropriate methods considerably facilitates tho study of administration and administrative reform. Those who have to take action daily in 0 and M scrvicos, cnught as' they"are· to soJi\e~extent

in the _~ip of the past and the needs of the moment, take concrete action by reform in methods and do not tuckle organization except indirectly thrOUgh methods. Theoreticnlly , it would be an advantage to tackle the first rnther than the second', 'since administration organizution provides the framework for the play of methods; but it does not follow that methods makcno demand upon organization. It would bcwise to suspend judgement on structures until there hns been eventually some change follOWing an examination of 'methods.

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E/CN.l4/UAP/l77/Rev. 1 Page 4

I. ORGANIZATION

Organization is based on a number of concepts, the effects and methods of coneiliation of whieh could be examined. But first the essential character of organization should be defined, starting from the .&ziomatic obseru~

tion·that"organization implies cleavages and superpositions. The fact that an administration consisting of a single ministry with officials working in a single office is inconceivable, is not meaningless.

Actually, organization is achieved on the basis of a grid of distribu- ted responsibilities, the vertical lines of which represent various types of action, while the horizontal ones denote a combination of different moans and ways. The latter indic~te the complexity of the work of administration, while the former denote tho variod character of the problems.

The different aspects of action are generally regarded as functions or a combinaticn of ways and means.

(ll)A. Analysis of functions in an abstract sense would lead to structura- tion of administration on the basis of a global outline. In fact every administration already has a pattern from the moment it is coneeived, and it is a fortunate circumstance that social life is organized quite independently of the theorist. However, it is useful to characterize functions and arrive at some outlino which can be gradually put into effect.

Certainly the distribution cf ministerial departments is a political matter, but this does not rule out the possibility of distribution and com- position of portfolios on the basis of functional bloos.

Moreover, the existence of a structure sometimes creates a body of

civil servants with their own traditions which have some value and offer a certain amount of guarantees.

Finally, administrations seldom wither away. Thoy change with changing motives for thoir existence.

In conclusion, de facto organization implicitly follows fundamental principles. Indeed, any scheme of organization which does not fit in with the facts, is of doubtful value. However, it will be notod that certain functions are predominant, liko Defence, Foreign Affairs, Justice, the Interior, and Finance, which are the oldost in the experience of states;

as well as Education, Agriculture, Public Works, Public Health or Social Welfare. All these ministerial departments with the exception of Finance

satisfy a single concept in various fields. The last named mobilize means while the other departments are devoted to tho administration of direct servicos.

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(111) 1. , Censeq)lently, it is worthwhile th.-1.t the second working party should r1rst <msure that the fJlllcticns, fcr securing and administering fUnds are

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taken into consideration and appraa:ra-t:e whether they should be indiscriminately associated one with another or with the fUnctions of management •

Since the media consist of men, goods and money, it would not perhaps be idle to state what sheuld be the general administrative organs and, also c9nsider whether the Ministry of Finonce should administer the Civil Service and centralize tho control of office equipment, or whether there should be seme other attachment or a Department of the Civil Service, and, if so, what authority it will have over the officials in relation to the a)lthority, of the Ministries which make )lse of them.

Is 'it advisable that certain staff sho)lld be independently administered 'within the department whore they serve? Is ene a magistrate er a soldier rather than a civil servant? Or again, sho)lld the Lands Depart- ment which looks after real estate, build real estate, acquire or sell it?

And, in any case, is a building a school, a barracks or just a piece of immovabie proPerty? In short, the second working party can establish thE;

differ once between' the essential nature of the fJlllction which derives from the administration of the means and tho specializod uso of those means.

I t can easily, be based on the analysis of acts of management and on

discrimination between those who can be detached from tho context of use;

so far ,as tho civil service is concerned, for instance, training, recruitment, remUneration, posting, use, supervisien and discipline make it possible to secure an adequate division. But the impact of method should net be neglected either and the working ,party will notice that certain modern techniques 'can lead to material centralization which, in certain circums- tances, docs not rule out deconcentrated or decentralized decision-making

(automization of the accoJlllting in the civil serVice).

At this stago, an attempt might be made to determine tho place of 0 and M services in thc structure. Their speciality is of the most general character and is not linked to thc- fiele. of applic:1tion. Placing the ' central 0 and M office une.or personnel ac~inistrationmay arouse the fear that its purpose is to deflate the numerical strength of the staff, and ihis is psychologically a deliCate point. Generally placed under the Ministry of Finance, the'central 0 and.M department may be restricted to cost compression.

The working party may perhaps observe that the implementation of certain administrat'ive mothods (uuit:omizatiioJ:J:" of legal dooumentation) and that 0& M advice"fs, of somo' importance for programme implomentation. In this respect, the ()cntral 0 ,and M department may bo placed under tho head. of Governmont, in direct teuch with the bodies engaged in the preparation of plans or pro- gram'mes. Besides, it must bc aclmittecl that administrative reform is an

indefin1to phcnomenon'ane. th~re are oxamples of ministries for aclministrative

reform. . '

(112) 2. 'rhe other fJlllctions being fJlllotions of management, it WaS observed that administration tend.ed to have recourse to direct management.

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The fact is that it is apparently simpler, safer and more efficient to use global structures which operate directly. However, direct action where public funds are involved is unwieldy for society in general and only produces partial results. It may be appropriate to review the fields which by their very nature lend themselves to such procedures and those which are subjected to them only from habit.

For example, national defence, diplomacy, justice, pOlice, finance, ebviously come under the direct action of the state and cannot be conce- ded or farmed out.

The extension of political responsibility to economic and social functions has usually led to the application of the same technique of intervention. The tendency was probably justified at the outset in the absence of any animation methods. An intormediate solution between taking a given matter in hand or refraining from any action was unknown or impracticable.

Hewever, it has been observed that in the new fields, direct action was possible or desirable even if i-G did not apply uniformly. Theoreti- cally, of course, food preduetion might be nationalized, but it is often clear that direct action in agriculture hardly goes beyond the construc- tion of works (water supplies, drainage). Infectious disease control can more easily be achieved through direct state action centralized and

rendered mobile. It does not n8cessnrily follow that permanent and costly hospital equipment should be a State monopoly.

It is worth making a distinction between the act of administration and its concrete result. It is different from the service rendered:

different from education, health and roads. It is the preparation of executive decisiens and their corpllaries~. It is an attempt to put the administered subjects in a receptive frame ef mind. It is the supervision of the result. However, this is not tho way that the administered subject sees the administration and he is probably right, because the CKUninistra- tion has beceme identified with its own works.

(113) 3. Now, it may perhaps be necessary for the second working party to ask itself whether this tendency is good in all cases. Certain fields would then come UIlder ani~ation an~ not under direct action. The responsible administration would then bo essentially an organ of study, guiding the agencies which provide the _me~ns of action particularly through financial

and technical aid and inf'Jrm"tion, and the eventual direction of loeal counter- parts. A matrix may be envisc.gcd for the provision in ordinates of procedures for action (State monopoly, public establishment, concession, private bodies, free initiative) and in abccissa of fielQs of action (~clministration, agri~ ^Il CUlture, industry, tr£l,de. cultural nctivity, health ••• ). The onus is on the group· to draw from the nature of t:,e tasks th8 eonclusions on the method .. to be used. But here it is worth also linking choice with tho possibilities

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that ean be derived from menns and metheds and it will be ebserved, ameng

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other things, that medern information nnd supervision media make it , possible to achieve a concentration of concept nnd a dcceneentrntion or

even decentralization of action.

There is a partieular instanee where the idea has become general

• that respunsibility for the eompetent administration is net ·a matter ef direet aetion. The reference is te develepment planning. vlliGther the economy is a liberal one or is stimulated by publie struetures, planning eovcrs the economic agents without replacing them.

It is generally aclmitted that the function of planning should be autonomous so far as ministerial departments are eencerned; that its exercise is facilitated by attaehing it te the Hend of Government; and that in practice it is restricted te glebal coneepts, ce-ordinatien ef metheds, and information on implomontation. This creutes a need for constant liaison in the sense of informatien and in the eppesite sense of indieation. On the basis of sueh prineiples, eembinations ef seeteral units and units for

the synthesization ef menns have developed in the central erganization.

Land and city or country planning shows similar characteristics ef general planning as ecenomie plan development.

Between the ceneept ef a pelicy at this level and inter-ministerial eo-ordinatien, the difference lies in the scope of struetures and their permanent qualitios. In the matter of planning, regional developments administrative reform, the range ef ministries, cemmissariats, ministerial delegations, are differentiated mere by the strueture and general purpose than by the intrinsic character ef the tasks devolving upon inter-ministerial eo-ordination·committees.

(12)B. If we suppose neeessary +'0 link the the procedures vary:

werk or werk in mixed

that there is whole through sepnrate >lOrk groups.

a balance betlreen functions, it beeomes a(,equate co-erdincction systems. In this based en mutual infermatien, independent (121) In the field of inter-ministerial relations, co-ordination encounters a number of obstacles: ministerial structures are vertical and hierarchieal and the bridLGs between them must be supervised frem the top; ministerial departmental heads are the only holders of power, since ce-ordinating minis- ters are not heeded QJ'lcl HC:J/~s of Government D.rc too busy. Tho noed to ensure

the suecess of a certain type ef co-ordination is evident: ministerial functions are ef a technieal ch~~eter in general and, fer th~t reasen, inter- dependant where it eemes to policy implementation. Thero is bound to be solidarity between spending departments and departments ef finanee, fer instanee, and in eertain respeets, eaeh ministry is ef a general charaeter when cempared with the different teehniques eaeh of the ethers effers.

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The closest methods of co-ordin~tionare joint working'parties at the level corresponding with'thedeCTee of precision roquired in the work to be c'ene,. Briclgcs enn b,e est::lblished at vnrieus levels. Execssos may arise when could praetically be set up an inter-ministrywhieh would rely upen the two initial structures which now h::lve no more decision-making functions and are justadministr::ltive,props. At this p0int, there is considerable loss of monns nne time.

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(122) Therefore, it is convcnient to reserve,thc joint intormediary levcl groups for occasions nnd levels'wherc ~rroversible choices aromade.' If not, co-ordination at the top, in the inter-ministerial committee, meets with mncompatible situations and is blocked, and thc solution can only be founcl by referring tho:matter lower down the scale, with c,etailed parallel instructions which cluttcr up the discussion at the top to no purpose ~nd ' it is not certain that they will be interpreted the same way by both structures. This also lo:1.cLS to loss of time and means. ' '

The joint werking 'CTOUP also'hasits disadvantngGs, in that, among other thinGS, it interferes with the regular oper~tion of the departments represent ed.

Periodioal meetings o.re more flexiblo but thoir effectiveness depends on pr'Elp::lration oithe meetings Mcl,concretely, on the relations between inc'.ivic',uals.

The ce-orclinating minister.s or rlepo.rtments arc of I ittle 'help fer one' or other of the reasons given above: they either form

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parallel structure which is unwielc'~'::lnd inefficient; cr, more often than not, they romaindeci- sion-making boclies at the top which arc powerless to resolve eontradictions.

The most dTlodcst 'forms, (stC1.nC~i:h0.and Cl.c"!. hoc c'ommittees,~1 ho..ve the, sa.mo

opportunities and risks. '

(123) A genernl factor favourable to co-ordinati~n is thencrmalizo.tion of structures; but it quickly comes up against tho hetoro[Seneous chD,r::l¢ter, Of functions which provided justification for ,struct\lral cleava."ecs.

(124)' I t has afton been observed that co-orclinatibn is a question of mode of- thoueht Me:. netion rather than ef structure. In this respect, 'My [;round for meetihg is gooc, nndco-oper:.tion bct"een tho administro.tive dep=tmcnti3 anclparliDlllelltrrry commissions, units of economic councils, or cotnmissions of planninebodies should not be nOGlected. The very discrepancy of fields of competence of thes~Groupsis a more extended form of acministro.tive co- operation. ,In these' gatherinGS, not only are ^a number of departments to bb found, 'but also ^a 'whole ranee ef services differinG every time.

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Co-crdination is only a me3nS. The seeend working party may structures calculated to facilitate the preparation of global

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<liseuss policy.

(131) Is it neccssary or just useful for a ministry to have a team ofc close collaborators, a Cabinet? If such is the case what should be the actien, methoc:s and espccially the limits ef competence ef this cabinet se far as the divisions arc concerned?

Is it appropriate that a head of Government should have an official General secretariat ane if such is tho c~so the same questions arise arid, in addition, the question of the attached offices.

The solution of the ovorall preblem ,:epenc:s on whc,t is felt to be necessary for the preparation of onlightoned decision.

(132) It is generally recognized th0t the process of dccision-making in- cludes at le~st two sub-units: information and opt~.

The first, best described and most conveniently studied consists in a knowledEe of the environment. In this respect, the administration as a whole and many external croups ~articipate in tho process of decision- making through their own supply of inform0tion.

The obsorvation of facts, the systematic notation of quantitative data have become possible throuGh the general usc of statistics. The storage of recorded information has been facilitated by computers which have profoundly changed the process of decision-making: data are immediately and everywhere available in their entiroty. To this excess the machine also administers a

·'remedy.

What some describe as cybernetics removes contrac:ictions, selects and . brings out the significant clements, in accordance with a pre-established

programme.

(133) Similarly, detailed extrapolation of data is possible and the eonse- quen·eos of 'cecisions or options may be envisai,ed. Not only is it thus

po~sible to intec~ate in the forecast the consequences of planned procedures not yet c~riod into effect, but it is also possible to discover the variable combinations of ~Goquatc means for achievinG the dcsirG~ end.

(134) The secend phase of the decision, however, remains as mysterious as ever at the level ef political decision-making. The scicncc of administration an', the teohnioal m9o.Jls are restricted to limiting the fiel', of intuition and risk: tho infinite diversity of faotors probably makes it possible to onsurc that choices of coner~l policy which would be dictated by mere information will be r8~e.

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Factor tables of rational polioy based on oybernetios oan be envisaged in all fields, in development planning as well as in the more traditional field of eduoation. .

(14) D. After analysis has determined the sphere of oompetenoe of eaoh ministerial department, or of eaoh of the major fields of management, the internal struoture should determinate oentres of deoision; but this is not the only oriterion, and the assessment of the oonsequenoes on the structure of each principle is not the least of the organizer's responsibilities.

(141 ) There are general faotors which do not come under 0 and M and a mere mention of them is all that is neoessary: a country's geographioal

dimensions, its economic and social system, politioal theory, eto.

(142) In the second place, as for the distinction between, overall structures, the differentiation of funotions plS¥s a part in each structure, but a subsidiary part. Thus, when the speoiality has not been retained as a faotor for grouping the administration of men, goods or funds, in a

general administrative body, a management division is established Within in the ministry (or a management bureau in a division) Similarly, if the fUn~ion

of foreign:re'Lej;;,ona-:.h8.s1.not~Va:iileJi(J1ipcnthe technioal' aspects of the department. a body is set up within the technical ministry to, take ohar- ge of foreigner-elations. Such solutions do not necessarily present ,any

major disadvantages if there is oonstant co-ordination with the leading Ministry (Personnel, Foreign Affairs, in the examples given).

(143) The problem peouliar to internal organization of struotures is the problem of levels. Usually, the central administration regards itself as the "brains" and decision-maker, elaborating a dootrine or theory, and taking decisions of prinoiple. I~dPubtfulwhether this,~elf desorip- tion is exact, and if it were, would be recommendable.

The organization of levelS is linked with the neoessity of effeotive fUnotioning, supervised and fairly rapid, and this implies a responsible management whioh is not too heavily laden. The struoture is then determined by a reasonable spread of authority over tho subordinated structures.

The maximun degree of dcmultiplication,probably less than ten subordinated units, depends on fairly steady human capacities. It should be oombined with the minimum derived from the oomplementary aspeots of aotion to be

integrated. At a certain level of complexity the exercise of authority implies a team or "staff" even if it makes the prooess heavy or slows it down.

The speed in decision-making is one of the aims of organization. If it oannot be achieved through simplifying the oircuits, it can justifY

delegati~and even lead to a reform of the hierarohical systeni of oompe- tencies; 'but to avoid any frittering away it would then be neoessary to establish lines of co-ordination at the lower levels. '

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In certain cases, these procedures are not enough to ensure regular and quick functioning. The organizer then comes up against a problem when he wishes to satisfy the political desire of uniting vast units.

According to the nature of the technical facilities available, whatever their perfection, there is a limit to the indefinitely enlarged conception of the function. And 60 it is not unlikely that public health, popula- tion policy, family welfare, the guarantee of risks against disease are aspects linked up with an overall policy. This does not necessitate the creation of a single ministry, since coherent and distinct sub-units stimulated by specialist personnel of different disciplines working according to specific techniques are to exist side by side. At this level structural re-grouping is not absolutely necessary for unity of overall concept.

It simply facilitates it, provided methods of administration are related to the size of the whole. If not, appropriate contacts are more profitable.

Besides,the division of tasks sometimes inevitably derives from the nature of things. Unity of action in complementary sectors stems more from policy than from co-ordinated administration or from intagrated",administration.

(144), Efficient operation depends on another set of factors: the compoei- tion of the organization is determined by, the surnof elements necessary for the procees of study, deliberation and decision.

Certain organizations are relatively simple. An 0 and Munit should have systems analysts, operational specialists and meticulous organizers.

The"range of 'specialists in an accounting centre or a rural extension service is limited.

The difficulty arises with the complex managements units. In general, a description of 'the sub-units to be brought together in a single structure is tantamount to an analysis of the administrative process. Even the

general administration is a combination of technical functions proceeding according to rule, supervision and control, as well as by direct action.

In these missions, it requires to have information, significant establishment of this information, centres of decision, means of implementation and controls. The overlapping of problems, again offers certain options at this level such as centralized planning or the co-ordination of separate decisions; centralization of the administration of means or rendering them available with transfer of competence. This must be coupled with questione of controle; general inter-ministerial inspections or ministerial inspections or even special inspections.

Hesitation is greatest in the case of organs of conception or of policy framing but the solution does not lie in bringing together all the structural elements necessary for achieving the function. It is to be found in the co-ordination and the routing of information. This is the situation facing a central planning organization. Its attachment to the top does not imply that it is a super administration, but gives a clear picture of the political purpose, independence in the assessment of poesibi- lities and of compatibility of interlocking ends, objectivity in choice of means, general information, possible supervision of implementation.

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Generally speaking,' if each minis-terial department were to set ·up

a rational and scientific administration:.' could resuJ. t in costly over-" ' , ' lapping, uBlllless from the standpoint of'information :and exasperating, fore' ^j , the adminst ered.

( . ' ,

,(145) And so a third s0ri',d of factors intervene to limit the tendency' to enlarge st~lctures to' which the desire for unity, and all-round perfection would lead. Here we ^aTe dealing with l~chniques of action.

,':

"

When the administration implements non-ad.'1linis,trative techniques (med.icine, agronomy, rural' engineering••• ) it resorts to specialized pcersonnel 'who are given d'<lfini te missions. The admi~iEitration'does not,' , claim to' direct and supervise the concrete implementatiJon 'of,' the work.

Thus-are created the coherent units which as has already been said, it "

is not necessary to unite in one a~"inistrative st~cture. They may even be left 'out of the adminis'&ration. P.Omi.aistration recesses upward to tackle tasks of 'conception and animation arid supervise results.

'--. . ;

-

^.^','^-.^";,^,

If the administration sometimes finds it advantageous to adopt this ,attitude with regard to public ~echnica~~,it is even more so 'when it has to direct,co-ordinate and supervise'l2:t'ivate initiatives. It

canalao, by pal'ticipating in them, create'~~-l2ublicenterprises; adopting a similar attitude of, inducement to>lard3"them.

It'i", however remarkable' that the technical"mini:'!t;..i~?'responsible

for theti'usteeship of certain sectors or branches of activity, sometimes limit themselves to prohi,bitive regttlations which haVe no shred of indltcement about it. Ensuring labour safElty and supervising technical risks, are their choseil field of action, combined with punctual or general direct ,'aotl'ons 'usuall.;r...colloerne,C: "'ith infrast=dure. On the cOlltrary, the policy

l,6f 'itiducementis usually +.he responsibility of 'the Ministry ofEqonomic ^,I Affairs or ·;,lte COlltraJ. Developllellt organ. ;This situation is 'sometimes natural since indltcement: in a given fie:'.d is'aGhievedthrough,'facilities dependent on'anotiterfield," especially finanoial 'advantages. It.is not '"Y1i:i6essa.rilya d,J.sastrous si1;uat1011 sj,nce co-otdillation 1Jetweenthe sectors

is struc'ht.rall,r Elnsured<,It follows that another 'type, 'Of, co-ord.illation shOui~'be e.Et1l.hJ.ished to prevent technica.l regulationa from contradicting

'eoonomiii·' incen'hves; , . b, ,I,

" , ;.' l' ",'

(15) E. -Field kahches aro 'unequ£.l elCte.!\..j.~ns ?J,cQf<jrg..1!llgJo 'the fUnotions ensured. '''1'he' fUllctiohs enRured. ' The ~c';t~.2 of direct. management leads to the establi.shment of a local ot~ctureandregional relaying organs,and here the problem is to evaluate the correct degree of deconcentratioll.

;" ,r'! .

. .^,.~_._-.-.-._ -

Functioris'6f admillistrativG cOlltrolover technical bodies 'm'!iY.:,

29-

confined to corresponding light units and mobHe inspectioll. ",' :fJ.eld \illitS of' the ,l?t.a..'1itinLinst,.itutio,. are usually designed,:'to repor.

on': evOluti'oIl'

of

phellomena and to advise thO Co-ordina'ting body which rather

'e'r~resents'thegovernmental authority. It still remains difficult to envisage ~ctual control ,in plall implementatioll which is ~ite different

from political control' ill ord.inary _law~ ' "

,

(14)

E/CN.14/UAJ'/117!Rev.l Page 13

Howeyer, pin-point operations or experiments ma¥ justify all-purpose organization teams. Large-scale and long-term operations may justify spe- oific administrations or "mission administrations", established on request , \ and operating with the broadest autonomy.

'. ,

Administrations, whose function is to give incentives and co-ordinate activities, record satisfactory results through external servioes and

through banking or a financial system.

II. Methods

(2) In carrying out its duties, the Administration ma¥ have little interest in assuming the aspect of public power often attributed to it. It has

neither its own ultimate aim nor legitimacy; only the targets of its action are set forth in a polioy which, however, does not transfer to civil servants the metaphysical aura of sovereignty and infallibility.

Consequently, administrative methods are not to become a ritual:

symbols and ceremonies are not to pervert the mind of the administrator:

the severity of the law should not lead to fetishism, functionaliSm should not imply anonymity; the hierarchy does not have to be remote.

The administrator should not, above all, always keep his eyes only on the hierarchy that is to control him; neither should he cast but a

distant glanoe on the .adnd.nis1;<:l:red, while considering them as a homogeneous unit, an objeot of action.

Under such conditions, the governed may cease disliking the administration. Reform of methods is not an easy task. Nobody readilyacoepts that his functional justification should be questioned;' the civil servant in particular; but he more than anyone else feels infallible, for his action is part of the state entity. This speciality isolates him, even from his colleagues belonging to other bodies, and it frequently happens that the esprit de corps engenders clan struggle.

So,Teform in administrative methods and the adoption of modern methods of decision-making, administraticn and control must go hand in hand with a new type of relationship between the administration and the administered.

(21) A. Modernization 'of met.!!2.ds, is based on an accurate assessment of the part of intellectual work actually involved in every administrative

procedure. Elghty per cent of administratives operations are material

oper~tions e~d routine work: copies, transfer of information from one support to the other, caloulations, correspondence, surveys, oheoking up of statements, compilation of records and keeping of statistics.

Furthermore, each individual case is solved according to a general pattern and in practice the methodical comparison of data from individual records with fact and rules determines·deoision-making.

(15)

...

E/cu~14/UAP/I·(7/Rev.l Page 14

·As analysed earlier,. the procedure of :d.mliIm-1I1aking was applicable topoiicy-ma.king or to decisions close to it. On the.c.other hand, in an administrative structUre, analysis makes it possible to distinguish several levels of decision-making~

In the ce.::r';Tal ad:·:::'1L.t;:;~-ation. -d.ec:is:iDn-making ^,natomally se1;s the ^I general rules to be observed so as to attain internal obJectives or per-

form the duties defined as by-products of the objectives set forth by the • policy-making authority. In cybernetics, these axiological decisions

distinguish the "selector".

At the intermediate level, the point is to adapt a general'

rule,

to describe the terms and conditions for its application, to specify the criteria for identifying cases of enforcement of the rule. This is the .transduction level" in cybenetics;

The operative or effector, at the third level, carri.es out ins:t1'ml- tions. His scope ot· .. assessment is. l.imited; it takes pseudo-decision.

(211) 1)At these three levels,' modern methods can bring about total

administrativ~reform.

Decision at .the.adminis',rative as well as the"policy-making level takes place· after a process in Which' the moment of· choice follows an information phase.

(2111) (a) Information is conceived in terms of statistics. Statistics is.in·itself a method indifferent to the techniques supporting it. It .. records individual cases as numerical units. It describes phenomena in

quantitative torms. It ma.,y be based only on samplings, but these are all

" j;he more"significant because they are linked up with previOUS comprehensive oensuses. These descriptive statiscics are the first stage of information.

At this lev81, ste.tishcs may b8 profitably classified and standardized by a single in~tHu·'io~;;j.'L cd.cc;u,:;"" rescurces and with power to ensure the standardization' of t:he da;~e. In particular, the utmost importance should be aoco:cdedto the pO'efJen',ation of the' stati-stical results' after processing.

(2112) (b) 1'llOore~ical stati0.~based on facts indicated by descriptive statisticsl may be used for making foreca!":ts. F\1rtlulr"planning and the consequences of possible cpti-ona is· the second stage of sound deci-sion-

m~king.

In .this field, data pro0essing contributes immense facilities for analysing. Its J:'olEl' has been deal t ~lith above with the analysis of the centres of decision-~aking~

The methods of data proc~ssingremain to b~ analysed. Data proc~ssing

is, gen~rally, a prnp and storage of facts and as such, it has become

an

essential tool in economic a~d social statistics.

(16)

, I

t •

I

, .

,

E/cN.

14/UAP

/1 nlR

ev.1 Page 15

(2113) (c) Moreover, information required for decision-making is concerned at once with the competency of the decision-maker compared with the situation which is described to him and with the means whioh he can lawfully utilize in a given situation. In this field, legal data processing, although little known and less advanced than the similar branches operating in economic and social matters, also offers considerable possibilities. Group II might find it worthwhile to explore the fields in which these new methods in legal data processing could be used: general information definition of authority and responsibilities, identification of inoonsistencies in legislation, regulations and jurisprudenoe.

From the moment when electronic or punched cards storages are connec- ted to computers, automatic device is no longer confined to storage of information and to automatic selection of significant units. The line between data processing and automatic gestion is thus easily crossed over.

Beyond, the techniques evolved are ascribable to cybernetics. This scientific discipline of recognition, analysis, comparison of factual and theo- retical data, operates roughly on a human pattern: storage, reading, research, inquiries, responses. It therefore corresponds to the procedure of decision-making. Group II might usefully analyse some examples of overall programming that m~ constitute the basis for decision-making policies, economic and social planning, recruitment policy for the civil service;

or, further, the application of economic theories through fiscal and budgetary methods which, in practice, is made possible by data processing.

In pin-point operations, programming is less complicated and does not necessarily require the use of computers. Rural development work can provide a concrete example in the formulation of a standard dashboard.

(212) 2. In current administrative acts, automation still provides more easily the methods for taking decisions but they are decisions which actually are pure applications, pseudo-decisions - and the automatic device can

be extended to comprehensive programmed management.

(2121) It is therefore of prime necessity first of all to formulate for each administration a chart marking out its potentialities, in relation to which its attitude is one of permanent or temporary abstention

and the situations justifying an automatic or post-selection operation. Cases of abstention mainly due to an organization's competency and limits, and cases of automatic action because of applicable regulations, are the most appropriate fields for programmed administration.

On this basis of distinction between various types of abstention and aotion, there is need to prepare a standard administrative chart.

(2122) This task is a necessary prerequisite for programmed administration, but it is generally useful and it is the duty of the organization and methods offices to carry it out. A departmental head could not be too in- terested in the methods used by organization and methods analysts, for

their approach m~ disclose problems regarding operations of his administrative department: texts or customs,practical channels, allocation of duties, and reconstitution of logical channels.

(17)

. , ...

E/CN.14/UAP/t77!Rev.l Page 16

Suoh a researoh is. the essential prop of a well oonoeived set of , , rules and Qroup II might oonsider it· worthwhiJe to formulate the oontents ' J

.•01' work regulations regarding the operat~on Of· the servioe. ,

.(2123) Similarly, organization and methods aotiviti.eeare a neoessary prerequ;i.siteO for the..analysis of. oosts and'produotivity ofa servioe. It is most desirable for administrat~rsto assess improvements that ma¥ be

e~eoted ~rom methods of linear organization, planning, .substitution

ot

.,;'diagrams fori,ntep'lotu!j.). acts and·generally acceleration ofprooeduree>

by means of various teohnioal devices.

(2124) Apart from these applioatj,onE! which do not neoessitate the use of eleotroni.c teohniques, organ;i,z.ation and methods. aotivi ties make it possi.ble ._,to replace operations performed by oivil servants by automation. Group II . ,mEW take. examples such as the-eys't:.,iii of idiimtifioation of persons. e.g.-, li·pursuit of delinqu"ntsi tne eatabli,shment of pens,i,Qns; the issuance of oar

lioeno"s•. , Other mOre Qomplioated applioations.may be analYl1ed. Thus, on . th,e· bat;is of meohaJ;lized storage inventories,. it ma,y bepo$sible,toes.tablish

a: ..procedure for·an automatic decision-making, where the exit of any

'. article from. the stllre varie.s thes.tock and eventually determines the volUl1le ofcontraot ..or-the plaoing of an OrdElr. of deliverY !j.ooording to a standing .~ontraot•.J .The same holds true ,in respeot of the oonsumption of credits

in r.elation to aooounts supply willnill budgetary·limits•. Generally. data prooessing effers oonsiderable prospeots in aooounting.

(22) ,B. Control of aocounting and improved produotivity in publio services haveb.eOOl)l8 a major oonoern of the present age. It could· no·te be .otherwise,.

having regard to the magnitude of the taxes levied by the government in mOl3t oountries.

(221) The first step was to know.,t,he oost of State.i'!l.l'J:!W1l£!nfl, and the QlaBsi- fication of spending acoording tomajorfunctions in th\) budget papers are politically significant but have no value for administrative oontrol.

(222) .

'The:~~plicatio';

^of

an~l;ti~al,

i3.ccounting to

administ~ations

^is;

complicated;. Tneorganization cnartdepiots but:part of the functions;

-furthermore, ·Iilince. ad,minil3trativo.:functions are base.d on· sooial act·ivities :.rather. tnanspeciti,o .produQtion"oost .analysis embo.dies under each heading

the result of opeJ;'ations unrelated to. tne speoi.alized function. To take

an

example, the oost trusteesnipover underage youtn and of control of mi- ning enterprises offer a comparison without interest; but it is useful to know·tnecost of mai,l services in eacn o£.tnese,administrative servioes.

Consequently, tne preparation of analytioal accounts is tied up witn

0' •. 'tne analysis of administrative ..procedure as understood by specialists of

·OandM.

(22~) ,Tne standards of oost· an~productivitymust cover fr~tions of administrative work wnose size ~dcontentare sufficiently limited so that the oonclusion of tne ·oalculatipnma¥ be applioable irrespective of tne·

functional content of tne work.

(18)

.~

c. .

E/CN.14/UAP/111IRev.l Page 11

Bearing in mind a few,preoautions, it is possible to draw useful oonolusions from standardi::z:edadniiniBtration bucjgets prepared for looal

authorities i f a relatively refined allalysis or aooountable posts is adopted.

(23) C. Another important element in administrative oost is real estate.

There are systems inwhioh amortization is inoluded in the assessment of administrative costs. ' Improved use of building is tiedup'with analysis of the tasks and the'procedures,'analysis :i:n which organization and methods offices are engaged.

After becoming 1j.ware of the natUre and scope of operational improvements effected t~ough reliance on methods analysts, it is no longer possible to reduce their techniques to re!lloving some items of furniture and to shifting some partitions in a buil&ing.

It is on the contrary useful to associate the organization and methods office with the activities of 'architects and bUilding speoialists whether for the re-organization and maintenanoe activities constantly in prooess in public buildings or in planning new buildings.

Generally, ,the polioies adopted and the praotioal advioe in this matter 'are less'likely. to: meet the opposition from. civil servants than

are methods. At times,it'ls, howetTer, delioate to re-question the spatial relations

YJ:1iIch

give ooncrete 'form' to the p'roximity ot'power: 'Not all heads of seryioes 9:::-e willing::to joiil physioally their bureaux rather than their ministers. There are ,noble floors and pitiable'levels. Too utilitazoian a conception in '0,18'c:.iG'~.~ib:.lhon of areas usually shortens the distanoes

leadi~g to, the Direotor's 'office

The administration does not wish to be a glass-house where even the Governed ~~y move freely. Civil servants must, then, be oonvinoed, that the implied hostility sometimes displ~ed by administrative servioes to-

w~xds their visitors is not, no matter what might be thought about it, a factor for good administration.

III. PUBLIC RELATIONS

(3) Reform in administrative methods is often a~oompaniedby new types of relationships with the public. Besides, the methods are interrelated teohnioally whether they cover oonception, deoision or reoeption of persons whose inquiries Qay be answered as quickly as possible and to whom doouments may be given on the spot.

(31) 1) Forms and document? should be olearly worded for the uninitiated and this is all the more easy beoause duly oompleted and signed requests

are no longer the support of the administrative procedure. They are translated for administrative ~;():,'\:, a~lt~natisedor not. As "the transduoer" itself is worked by autc~atic deVice, facility for the governed is no longer counter-

balanced by the leng~h and cost of transoription.

(19)

(32)

2.):"j]~:;ina.iuter.ih~hioh,

th.e ioverneli are reaelvedl/ae ,been 'oonsiaera.- ", bly iinproved'byup-to-date' d,esi~'^USEici ⁱⁿ a9ministr~tivebuildings.·The'" "

rationattiseof

~he'prerilj.\lee:

lly employeElsoan,be . profitably .accompanied . ' , by!l.'t!dt'/U ·'transforRi<itfcin "inthe idea of public buildings. Some have

beoome modern arohiteotural monuments offering a forum for social life,.

both oulturaland OOlllplerOial. ,The .admin;i.l!'tration thus mingles 'with ~v'ery- dayl'if'eand th1siiylnbiosiecorresp(mds to a need., .',;,.:"' ,- '."', .' J/.,_:.-...,. ;'- ' .' ;..: , . ' . : ; . " " " , , ' . .~ "

(33) '3) 'It m'ight

b~ i~teresting

^tor

G~o;"'p

U .toexamine'theposeibility' , :ih

of a ooncrete a9ministrative democraoy.

•

Simi1~l;y ',Il'~ne,;:iU .fl0A]'o!llfl~~a.t:Lop oould, easily be made tess .dul'land unreadable.Wlienap;~apr'9,c'.lse,J.~,of~e::r;lls,tQl'ageoLlegal data fOI'the '.

oivil ,~etva.nt~pubi1'eatiQn::(or.Public muet.bedilltinot~ It. oan bepr,med: . I!lown'fhld preselnted

'ir!oi-e'

adElCluately.

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·'·Xdhtittild,iy;'

~rese~t'j;rendei~'

^liialogue'

b~~~een rep~esentativesOf

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group13',"inperm;l.l1erit ooneu).tation With corporate bodies, are to some e~eilt/

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suooes'!j'j,uh"'" .. . . , .•... .. .. :. . ' . . " " . ^{J ,:} ^{' : . '}>,

Presel!tly, these lI'!l3's.4ave not,done.aw~ with the autooratio'character of administ~ii.t~on.\'lireliwhent,hepO;i.nt ",tiseue,is not to tru'stratebut ' .'

sati~~y '~f?q:u.e, .,i;x" _t,

g,overnelj,•.... :

Beeid~s

.. they ..could not do so beoause suoh'C!l(,Ueg:tlll ~e'thodS:8oJ'e, allleresubst~tuti4n Df oneoffioer for anot~er:^. the :tlepx>es'ent,!itiv,?s qf.the

~rof'eeeion

are beooming rel!l3's: they

p~ic~pa;te

in the:' alimirlistration but the sati,st'action, that 'tlie lowest rank of' the' ' '

govern~d"d~NW$f~(;lill~hi.s

is small, t'9r-deoisions remainimperatiye. .' Clear consoience of' meaningful freedom oannot be regainsd in ·this manner.

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