I'm the Dauphin in France

Chapter 942 Administrative Reform
Joseph took out a pen and paper, recalled the settings of government departments in various countries in his previous life, and began to plan on paper.

Generally speaking, it is to abolish the "king-minister" system with feudal characteristics and replace it with the "bureaucratic organization" administrative system used by modern countries.

His pen moved quickly across the paper.

[Overview of administrative system reform: The cabinet no longer has ministers. The king appoints a prime minister and a deputy prime minister to manage the daily affairs of the French government. The prime minister is only responsible to the king.]

The core departments of the Cabinet are:
Finance, Foreign Affairs, Industry, Agriculture, Justice, Commerce, Civil Affairs, Police, Transportation, and National Defense, a total of ten major ministries.

[Each ministry has a minister and a vice minister, and has multiple bureaus with specific functions under it. Under the bureaus are divisions, and under the divisions are sections.]

Well, there aren’t actually that many changes to the top-level structure of the cabinet.

Cabinet ministers and ministerial assistants have changed their titles, but they are still responsible for the same things as before.

The addition of a Ministry of Transport is a preparation for the coming train era.

But the government structure under each "ministries" is much more scientific than the current French government agencies.

On the surface, it just looks like many departments are divided and specific officials are appointed, but the details involved are very profound.

【The responsibilities and jurisdiction of all officials are defined by formal administrative documents, even laws.】

【Officials need professional training for the positions they hold.】

【Officials at all levels are employed by the government and must abide by strict discipline. Offices, office supplies, and administrative means cannot be used for personal purposes.】

[Administrative achievements and personal abilities will be the only criteria for promotion (qualifications can be considered to a certain extent).]

【Officials at all levels are paid a fixed salary by the government and will receive a pension after retirement.】

Well, these systems that are commonplace in the 21st century were definitely the most cutting-edge administrative management concepts 80 years before Max Weber was born [Note 1].

For example, in the first article, in France today, the governor of each province can send a commissioner to manage a certain aspect of work.

If things go wrong, someone will be blamed because there is no specific position to be held accountable for any job.

But things will be different in the future.

Job responsibilities are formally documented, and whoever holds the position is responsible for it. You also need to undergo professional training before you can take up the position.

The governor cannot replace his own people with power at will.

Another example is the rule that “all officials are employed by the government and are not allowed to use public property for personal purposes.”

In France today, a large number of officials are actually just the "personal entourage" of senior officials, and the government does not even have a list of them.

This makes it very easy for officials to solidify their power - if you replace me, it is equivalent to replacing a large number of officials, and the administration will immediately be paralyzed.

At the same time, the offices of many officials are actually their own villas.

As for issues like promotion and salary, they are the same as the previous one. For example, if a governor has his own personal employees, he is naturally responsible for promotion and salary. This is absolutely unimaginable in the government of the 21st century.

Although it may seem that the government paying salaries to all officials will significantly increase the fiscal burden, it will make officials loyal only to the government.

The improved efficiency and reduced corruption and waste can easily make up for the salary.

Of course, such a big change will certainly be a very cumbersome process and will encounter a lot of resistance.

Joseph estimated that if they started now, they could get the entire administrative system in order within one to one and a half years, which would be very fast.

As for the resistance from the bureaucracy - if you regulate the scope of his authority, restrict his appointment of private persons, and prohibit him from using public resources for personal gain, he will definitely strongly oppose it. Joseph has full confidence that he can solve it.

First of all, after the government departments are refined, there will be many more professional positions, thereby increasing the number of government employees.

This new group of people will definitely firmly support administrative reform and fight against the old bureaucracy.

Secondly, even in the old bureaucratic system, middle and low-level officials actually like this kind of life with clear responsibilities and guaranteed salaries.

In the past, they received a meager salary as a "reward" from their superiors, and they had to deliberately embezzle money in order to meet their living expenses.

Under the "frenzied" crackdown by the Justice Investigation Bureau led by Mara, the risk of corruption is getting bigger and bigger. The middle and low-level officials are eager to increase their salaries directly so that they don't have to worry about corruption anymore.

Finally, and very importantly, France had just won a huge victory in a foreign war, and its domestic development momentum was also quite good, which made the royal family's prestige at its peak.

Which blind official would dare to make such a move at this time?
If administrative measures can’t control you, there is still the judicial system waiting.

You are in a high position of power, and you are not afraid of the judicial system?

Believe it or not, with just one word from the Crown Prince, the army will rush to deal with you.

In short, given the current situation in France, as long as Joseph wants to, there is basically no domestic reform that cannot be implemented.

If he really carries out reforms by feeling his way forward, perhaps after a wrong attempt, opposition will arise in the country.

But he is a cheater, referring to the ready-made experience of later generations to ensure that he takes the most correct path.

There are only two types of reform results: "good" and "extremely good".

This made his reform process smoother and his public support higher and higher.

As for whether other countries will come to "copy homework" after France completes its administrative system reform, Joseph does not care either.

First of all, if you want to copy, you must have the ability to copy.

Don't think that the old French bureaucrats can't make waves. Your Austrian, Russian and Prussian bureaucrats will cooperate in the same way.

Look at the reforms of Joseph II a few years ago. They were not as strong as those of France, but they almost messed up Austria. Leopold II was so scared that he abolished his reforms as soon as he came to power.

Then, even if other countries can really copy it, France will not lose out.

Because France will make it back in terms of national soft power.

All countries know that France is the "teacher" of government institutional reform, and everyone else is copying it, which shows how awesome France is.

Moreover, as a "student", after copying the homework, you will inevitably develop a sense of admiration for France.

Don't underestimate soft power, it can attract more investment and talent for France than other countries.

And these two things are the most important things in the Industrial Revolution!

At three o'clock in the afternoon, when Joseph was writing furiously, he heard Emmanuel knocking on the door and saying:

"Your Highness, I am sorry to interrupt you, but you will be meeting with His Royal Highness the Prince Regent of Denmark in twenty minutes."

【Note 1】Max Weber: German sociologist, politician and economist. He is considered one of the three founders of sociology along with Karl Marx and Emile Durkheim.

The national government hierarchical management system that is common in modern society is the theory he proposed in the early 20th century.

(End of this chapter)