Final answer:
Bureaucracies are designed to achieve long-term goals with efficiency and productivity through structured hierarchy and rules, though they are often criticized for being inflexible and slow to change.
Step-by-step explanation:
Bureaucracies are fundamentally structured to achieve long-term objectives through an ideal type of formal organization. Conceptualized by Max Weber in 1922, bureaucracies embody certain features such as a strict hierarchy of authority, clear division of labor, explicit rules, and impersonality. Despite inherent design for increased efficiency and productivity, bureaucracies often receive criticism for being slow and rule-bound, leading to challenges such as difficulty enacting swift change and potentially entrenching existing power structures.
Whether referring to government structures or large corporations, bureaucracies have been created to manage large groups of individuals efficiently, transcending reliance on personal relationships or individual leadership skills. They are structured to facilitate the ordered operation through policies and regulations, with the intention that merit-based hiring leads to a workforce composed of dedicated experts. Nevertheless, the nature of bureaucracies can cause them to be resistant to change and sometimes insufficiently responsive to shifts in political leadership or emerging societal needs.