Notes on Decentralization

What Is Meant by Decentralization and What Is Not Meant

Decentralizing is increasing the number of centers of decision-making and the number of initiators of policy; increasing the awareness by individuals of the whole function in which they are involved; and establishing as much face-to-face association with decision-makers as possible. People are directly engaged in the function.

Conversely, centralization is organization with top-down decision-making (on the basis of “upward communication”), departmentalization of the function, chain-of-command or bureaucracy, and maximum standardization of performance and procedure. People are personnel of the organization that performs the function.

Decentralization ...