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Chapter 5 -- Creating Effective Rules through Green Tape (Effective…
Chapter 5 -- Creating Effective Rules
through Green Tape
Effective organizational rules are no small matter
anti-government vitriol
expectation of high performance
under siege politically and economically
operate with razor-thin budgets
How public organizations can design and implement effective organizational rules
when to write a rule
it must be inferred from both the scholarship and common sense → two conditions for
effective rule- writing
significant organizational problems
rules arise in response to problems that have not been adequately addressed by other rules
over time, organizations respond to problems by creating more rules
problems alone are not enough to prompt this manager to write a rule; it is problems that involve multiple people and for which solutions have been attempted
reasonably clear causes
they do need to express a common- sense relationship between rule requirements and objectives
appropriate rule-writing also depends on the clarity of organizational goals and the availability of technical knowledge for problem- solving
rule stakeholders
①solicit the input of people
most affected by the rule
, whether those people are employees, businesses, or citizens
②
close the design- implementation gap
that is created when rule- designers and rulefollowers are two separate groups of people
③third rational: the
potential
for greater compliance from rule- followers
reconceptualizing rule effectiveness
traditional definition: those achieving organizational purposes
the individual and behavioral perspectives of the framework suggest that people are not passive recipients of organization structure; rather, they are active participants in creating the realities around it
rule effectiveness needs to be thought of more broadly
: as
achieving
organizational purposes but also as a vehicle for
eliciting
voluntary cooperation through interactions between the individual and organization
①
organizational purposes
must be front and center in conceptualizing effectivemorganizational rules
②another essential element of rule eff ectiveness is the
voluntary cooperation
of nthose expected to follow
cooperation is easier and more effi cient than coercion
③
interaction
is the final element of the revised conceptualization of effective organizational rules
Green Tape
: attributes of effective rule design and implementation
green tape
is a grounded theory of effective organizational rules based on the lived experiences of public employees and their encounters with rules
five rule attributes
(revealed by the interview data of the Local Government Workplaces Study)
②
rule logic
③
consistent application
consistency is a powerful dimension of the
individual
perspective on organizational rules
rule consistency also informs
rule behavior
from the
organizational
perspective, consistency serves the
rationality function
of rules by rendering behavior predictable and coordinated in the pursuit of organizational goalss
①
rule formalization
(both the process and outcome of putting rules into writing) is expected to increase the technical and social merits of an organizational rule
written rules are more eff ective
triggers in- depth thinking about the design of the rule
legitimacy
are also raw material for enforcers, legitimizing authority, downplaying personal power, giving fair warning, and assigning blame to management for unpopular requirements
④
optimal control
under-control
over-control
⑤
rule understanding
(
why
)
green tape theory also makes a broader point: that effective rules—ones people will follow—possess both
technical
and
social
components
has both advantages and shortcomings
a green tape failure: "five-second rule" (illustrates the interdependent nature of the five green tape attributes)
Red Tape vs. Green Tape
two significant differences
a second distinction lies in the scope of explanations posed
G: is narrower in scope and focused on attributes of rule design and implementation that raise or lower rule effectiveness
R: casts a wide theoretical net to predict bad rules
a primary distinction lies in rule formalization, that is, the written quality of the organization’s rule
G: rule formalization is variable
R: is defined by ineffective written rules
can a rule be both at one time? the answer is yes