I can't really provide an objective criticism of "The Fall of the Faculty: The Rise of the All-Administrative University and Why It Matters", since I was already sold on the title. In truth I purchased the book to reinforce and qualify my experiences of university bloat and bureaucracy.
Benjamin Ginsberg, a political science professor at John Hopkins, writes very well. This could easily have been a rambling vent of hot air, but it is in fact a coherent, well researched and lighthearted book. Many of the anecdotes are so depressing that you just have to laugh. While it is North America-centric, the devolution appears to be universal.
The central causes of concern are the rapid decrease in the faculty to administrator ratio, the general increase in bureaucracy (and "deanlets"), and the shift of priorities away from core research and teaching in universities. We hear of presidents using research grant overheads to purchase antique commodes, a proliferation of retreats and networking events to no particular end, and the research office's primary role as university tax collectors. My personal experiences (at various institutes) of the complication of simple tasks and administrative incompetence are trivial in comparison.
The book ends with a chapter on what can be done to remedy the situation. There are few answers and a largely defeatist tone: "But if resistance is futile, it remains essential". I am happy to join the resistance, and if nothing else I now feel more aware* of what lurks beneath the surface.
*Looking at the current vacancies on my university webpage, one new position consists of: "The Recruitment & Staff Engagement Co-ordinator will support and co-ordinate projects and Human Resources activities to ensure that the department positively engages and develops its team to deliver organisational objectives". At a time when academic staff are struggling to find any funding for PhD students to support their research, this sounds like a frivolous investment. Maybe I am just becoming cynical in my middle age?