A mechanistic management system is

A mechanistic management system is appropriate to stable conditions. It is characterized by:
1. The specialized differentiation of functional tasks into which the problems and tasks facing the concern as a whole are broken down.
2. The abstract nature of each individual task, which is pursued with techniques and purposes more or less distinct from those of the concern as a whole (i.e., the functionaries tend to pursue the technical improvement of means, rather than the accomplishment of the ends of the concern).
3. The reconciliation, for each level in the hierarchy, of these distinct performances by the immediate superiors, who are also, in turn, responsible for seeing that each is relevant in his own special part of the task.
4. The precise definition of rights and obligations and technical methods attached to each functional role.
5. The translation of rights and obligations and methods into the responsibilities of a functional position.
6. Hierarchic structure of control, authority, and communication.
7. A reinforcement of the hierarchic structure by the location of knowledge of actualities exclusively at the top of the hierarchy, where the final reconciliation of distinct tasks and assessment of relevance is made.
8. A tendency for interaction between members of the concern to be vertical (i.e., between superior and subordinate).
9. A tendency for operations and working behavior to be governed by the instructions and decisions issued by superiors.
10. Insistence on loyalty to the concern and obedience to superiors as a condition of membership.
11. A greater importance and prestige attaching to internal (local) than to general (cosmopolitan) knowledge, experience, and skill.