Bureaucratic inertia is the supposed inevitable tendency of

bureaucratic Bureaucracy ( ) is a system of organization where laws or regulatory authority are implemented by civil servants or non-elected officials (most of the time). Historically, a bureaucracy was a government administration managed by departments ...

organizations to perpetuate the established procedures and modes, even if they are counterproductive and/or diametrically opposed to established organizational goals. This unchecked growth may continue independently of the organization's success or failure. Through bureaucratic inertia, organizations tend to take on a life of their own beyond their formal objectives.

References

{{reflist Government Organizational theory Political science Bureaucratic organization