Public Administration Organizational Structure and Systems

The Macro-System of Public Administration

The first problem that arises when characterizing Public Administration is that organizations are being formed by other organizations. It consists of a multiplicity of entities, which is what separates or differentiates it from several other organizations. Therefore, the term used to refer to Public Administration is not exactly "the organization," but rather a macro-system. This denotes the existence of complex relationships between multiple linked organizations, usually not arranged in a strictly hierarchical manner.

Organizational Hierarchy and Roles

That government is constituted by organizations is obvious; different state organizations are governed by Public Administration. To organize this, the sociology of organization has introduced several concepts. In the case of the Spanish Administration, representing many component organizations, we realize they have vertical and horizontal relations with each other. State Secretariats may occupy the same place as the general level, but the status of the person is not the same. It is important to distinguish between post and rank.

Political Appointments and Administrative Tasks

From the general direction level, we encounter positions of political trust, which are subject to free appointment and dismissal. Different organizational principles are highlighted, such as devolution and decentralization, both of which produce a vertical functional diversification of varying intensity in administrative tasks.

Principles of Deconcentration

The principle of deconcentration results in the creation of organs within the same organization. This can serve several functions:

• Functional Principle: Creating specialized bodies within an organization based on the line of duty.
• Territorial Principle: Locating bodies under a ministry in different parts of a territory to perform functions locally.

Decentralization and Institutional Authorities

The difference between deconcentration and decentralization is that deconcentration always involves creating new bodies under the same organization, whereas decentralization means creating new organizations. These organizations include all institutional authorities, such as:

• Agencies
• Public corporations
• Autonomous entities

When a public company is created, it is not merely a body of the Ministry of Industry, but an organization with its own structure (economic and otherwise). When we discuss decentralization, we refer to creating new organizations operating on a territorial basis, supervised by the central government. Within the territorial scope, this includes administrative policy and the provinces.