European civil service in (times of) crisis : a political sociology of the changing power of Eurocrats

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"This book, part of the new wave of political sociology in EU studies, examines the dialectics of construction/deconstruction of the European civil service through a succession of empirically grounded case studies. Breaking with the usual representations of ‘Eurocrats’, it sheds light on a hidden aspect of the current European crisis: a crisis of social reproduction which affects the European civil service in a heavy context of management reforms, enlargements, institutional changes and the euro crisis. This in turn has a number of consequences in terms of internal tensions, power, and more broadly, the capacity of EU institutions to create convergence between diverging national and economic interests, and to embody a European future.European Civil Service in (Times of) Crisis will be of interest to students and scholars across a wide range of disciplines, including politics, sociology and public administration, to practitioners working in and with the EU institutions, as well as those wishing to know more about the EU. "-- Read more... Abstract: "This book, part of the new wave of political sociology in EU studies, examines the dialectics of construction/deconstruction of the European civil service through a succession of empirically grounded case studies. Breaking with the usual representations of ‘Eurocrats’, it sheds light on a hidden aspect of the current European crisis: a crisis of social reproduction which affects the European civil service in a heavy context of management reforms, enlargements, institutional changes and the euro crisis. This in turn has a number of consequences in terms of internal tensions, power, and more broadly, the capacity of EU institutions to create convergence between diverging national and economic interests, and to embody a European future.European Civil Service in (Times of) Crisis will be of interest to students and scholars across a wide range of disciplines, including politics, sociology and public administration, to practitioners working in and with the EU institutions, as well as those wishing to know more about the EU. " Front Matter ....Pages i-xiii Introduction: Moving Pictures (Didier Georgakakis)....Pages 1-21 A Contested Identity: Genesis of the Eurocrat Figure – Between Stigma and Affirmation of a Differentiated Supranational Body (Didier Georgakakis)....Pages 23-52 The Making of a Status Group: Reconsidering Socialization to the European Institutions (Didier Georgakakis)....Pages 53-91 Genesis and Structure of European Bureaucratic Capital: Senior European Commission Officials (Didier Georgakakis)....Pages 93-141 Soft Skills Versus Expertise and Knowledge: The Changing Core Competencies of European Civil Servants (Didier Georgakakis)....Pages 143-171 Reforming EU Open Competitions or How the ‘Custodians of Europe’ Now Mimic International Managers (Didier Georgakakis)....Pages 173-209 How Domination Matters: New Internal Struggles and Integrating European-Enlargement Newcomers (Didier Georgakakis)....Pages 211-254 Both the Pilot and a Victim of Austerity? How the European Commission’s Administration Changed under the Economic and Financial Crisis (Didier Georgakakis)....Pages 255-283 Conclusion: Neoliberalized Neoliberalists? The Weakening Sociological Foundations of a Pivot Group and European Political Order (Didier Georgakakis)....Pages 285-301 Back Matter ....Pages 303-329