4.3 Bureaucracy

The theorist Max Weber believed that the legitimate power of authority is the factor that makes people obey. Among the three basic authority types (charismatic, traditional, and legal-rational), I will focus on the first one, the charismatic.

The best manager I've ever had was certainly a very charismatic woman. She was able to engage the entire team on a very subtle way. She was honest in regarding to our individual/ group goals and deadlines. And even when the projects were not so exciting, it turned out that we faced them as so, because she would show us innovative ways to see conventional things. And whenever she could not convince us, we still engaged on the projects because the team did not want to let her down.

It was a huge loss for this organization when she moved to another company. Her successor was really professional and competent, but we tended to make comparisons with the former leadership. At the same time, I understand that it must be challenging for the upcoming leader to preserve charismatic authority if the team remain convinced that nobody else can keep up the same charismatic level demonstrated by the former leader. Weber claimed that the negative aspect of charismatic authority occurs when the person leaves the organization, and consequently, it is very difficult to preserve it.

Garota de Ipanema