fact, that he sits at the apex of an "inverted pyra- 

 mid," that the vast bulk of decisions and actions 

 are beyond his influence, much less his control. 



Among the prominent structural properties of the 

 system is the segregation of activities by level in 

 the respective hierarchies. Although there are ex- 

 ceptions to the general pattern, the focus of plan- 

 ning and managerial responsibility is centered at 

 three levels: (1) all-union or national; (2) branch 

 or ministry, Academy, or republic; and (3) performer 

 organization (research, design, educational, and pro- 

 duction establishment) . When a republic organization 

 or element of local industry is involved, a fourth 

 or fifth level of planning responsibility may be in- 

 terjected accordingly, but in general the three enu- 

 merated levels designate the three types of relevant 

 plans. For example, while republic councils of min- 

 isters are subordinate to the USSR Council of Min- 

 isters, their plans have similar orientation and for- 

 mat. There is similar correspondence in the branch 

 plans at the union and republic levels of a union- 

 republic ministry, although the superior-subordinate 

 relationship is clear, with plans at the subordinate 

 levels incorporating directives of the superior lev- 

 el. 



There is a clear intent to delineate organization- 

 ally line (or administrative) and staff (or function- 

 al) activities at each of the three levels. Certain 

 organs, such as the ministries, are responsible ad- 

 ministratively for all activities of a subset of eco- 

 nomic and technical establishments, usually in a par- 

 ticular industry. Other organs, such as the state 

 committees, are responsible for at least the formu- 

 lation and monitoring of a functionally oriented set 

 of policies for all Soviet establishments. The dis- 

 tinction is carried through to the branch and per- 

 former organization levels as well. Within the min- 

 istry and performer organizations, certain adminis- 

 trations, departments, or individuals are responsible 

 for overall performance of the organization as a 

 whole or for particular subdivisions, whereas plan- 

 ning, finance, supply, and other departments manage 



77 



