Rational instrument or symbolic signal?
- This article examines the reorganization of formal coordination structures in the Directorate-General for Fisheries and Maritime Affairs of the European Commission. While rational approaches in organization theory emphasize functional efficiency as an explanation for organizational design and coordination structures, the findings of this study indicate that the reorganization was not driven primarily for reasons of efficiency and to increase the coordination capacity of the organization. The study demonstrates that, even in a highly technical policy area such as fisheries management in the European Union, the (re-)design of formal organizational structures does not follow primarily a technical-instrumental rationale. Instead, the formal coordination structures have also been adapted to live up to changing expectations in the institutional environment, to modern management concepts in marine governance, and to ensure the legitimacy of the organization. However, although the empirical findings of this study substantiate the theoreticalThis article examines the reorganization of formal coordination structures in the Directorate-General for Fisheries and Maritime Affairs of the European Commission. While rational approaches in organization theory emphasize functional efficiency as an explanation for organizational design and coordination structures, the findings of this study indicate that the reorganization was not driven primarily for reasons of efficiency and to increase the coordination capacity of the organization. The study demonstrates that, even in a highly technical policy area such as fisheries management in the European Union, the (re-)design of formal organizational structures does not follow primarily a technical-instrumental rationale. Instead, the formal coordination structures have also been adapted to live up to changing expectations in the institutional environment, to modern management concepts in marine governance, and to ensure the legitimacy of the organization. However, although the empirical findings of this study substantiate the theoretical assumptions of an institutional perspective, institutional explanations alone are insufficient to comprehensively understand why organizational structures are reorganized and changed.…
Author details: | Bertolt WenzelGND |
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DOI: | https://doi.org/10.1177/0952076716683764 |
ISSN: | 0952-0767 |
ISSN: | 1749-4192 |
Title of parent work (English): | Public Policy and Administration |
Subtitle (English): | Explaining coordination structures in the Directorate-General for Fisheries and Maritime Affairs of the European Commission |
Publisher: | Sage Publ. |
Place of publishing: | London |
Publication type: | Article |
Language: | English |
Date of first publication: | 2018/04/01 |
Publication year: | 2018 |
Release date: | 2021/12/17 |
Tag: | Coordination structures; European Commission; fisheries policy; marine governance; organization theory; organizational reform |
Volume: | 33 |
Issue: | 2 |
Number of pages: | 21 |
First page: | 149 |
Last Page: | 169 |
Funding institution: | German Research Foundation (DFG)German Research Foundation (DFG) |
Organizational units: | Wirtschafts- und Sozialwissenschaftliche Fakultät / Sozialwissenschaften / Fachgruppe Politik- & Verwaltungswissenschaft |
DDC classification: | 3 Sozialwissenschaften / 32 Politikwissenschaft / 320 Politikwissenschaft |