
Sign up to save your podcasts
Or


Cyril Northcote Parkinson may have trained as a naval historian, but it was his succinct humorous essay for the Economist magazine in 1955 that was to overshadow much of his career. In it, he laid out his fundamental law of bureaucracy - "work expands to fill the time available" - and he went on to explain how organisations become bloated regardless of the work in hand. It was instantly recognised by subordinates, and made for uncomfortable reading for those near the top of any institutional hierarchy.
Robin Ince explores how the law and its corollaries have taken on a life of their own, and are now being reinterpreted as remote working becomes the new normal for many.
Produced by Adrian Washbourne. First broadcast on Thursday 20 August 2020.
By BBC Radio 45
99 ratings
Cyril Northcote Parkinson may have trained as a naval historian, but it was his succinct humorous essay for the Economist magazine in 1955 that was to overshadow much of his career. In it, he laid out his fundamental law of bureaucracy - "work expands to fill the time available" - and he went on to explain how organisations become bloated regardless of the work in hand. It was instantly recognised by subordinates, and made for uncomfortable reading for those near the top of any institutional hierarchy.
Robin Ince explores how the law and its corollaries have taken on a life of their own, and are now being reinterpreted as remote working becomes the new normal for many.
Produced by Adrian Washbourne. First broadcast on Thursday 20 August 2020.

7,731 Listeners

878 Listeners

1,057 Listeners

5,535 Listeners

1,795 Listeners

1,827 Listeners

1,084 Listeners

1,960 Listeners

485 Listeners

600 Listeners

124 Listeners

4,808 Listeners

415 Listeners

600 Listeners

6,454 Listeners

765 Listeners

333 Listeners

372 Listeners

739 Listeners

81 Listeners

4,176 Listeners

2,369 Listeners

3,220 Listeners

760 Listeners

1,036 Listeners