New Paper: Towards Self-organizing Bureaucracies

Just finished the first version of a paper (still needs refining, so any feedback is more than welcome) :

  • Gershenson, C. (2006). Towards Self-organizing Bureaucracies. (ECCO working paper 2006-03)

    • Abstract: This paper proposes self-organization as a method to improve the efficiency and adaptability of bureaucracies and similar social systems. Bureaucracies are described as networks of agents, where the main design principle is to reduce local "friction" to increase local and global "satisfaction". Following this principle, solutions are proposed for improving communication within bureaucracies, sensing public satisfaction, dynamic modification of hierarchies, and contextualization of procedures. Each of these reduces friction between agents (internal or external), increasing the efficiency of bureaucracies.
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