Power

and
Political Behavior
ntroduction
Power : The ability to influence someone
else. The agent influences the target.
Influence : process of affecting the
thoughts, behavior and feelings of other
person.
Authority : The right to influence other
person.
one of indifference
An employees' zone of indifference the
range in which attempts to influence the
employee are perceived as legitimate and
are acted on without a great deal of
thought.
nterpersonal Power Forms
#eward Power : agents' ability to control rewards
that a target wants.
Coercive Power : force a person to do something
often with threats of punishment.
Legitimate Power : based on position and mutual
agreement.
#eferent Power : based on interpersonal attraction
i.e. target identifies with or wants to be like the agent.
Expert Power : exists when agent has specialized
knowledge or skills that the target needs.
omparative Analysis
Least Effective Power Bases
Legitimate
Reward
oercive
These lead to compliance i.e. employees do
what the managers ask them to.
Most Effective Power Bases
Referent
Expert
These lead to organizational effectiveness
nter-group Power Sources
ControI of CriticaI Resources : when
one group controls an important resource
that another group desires.
Strategic Contingencies : activities that
other group depends on in order to
complete their tasks.
A group is powerful when...
t has the ability to cope with uncertainty
Has high degree of centrality
t is non-substitutable
s the power-related behavior
ethical?
Find answers to the following 3
questions to assess whether
power is used ethically or not :
Utilitarian outcomes : Does the
behavior produce a good
outcome for people both inside
and outside the organization?
ndividual rights : Does the
behavior respect the rights of all
parties?
Distributive Justice : Does the
behavior treat all parties equally
and fairly?
Two Faced Power
Positive
and
Negative
Negative Face/Personal Power
Used for personal gain
People using personal power are called
'power-hungry'
Most interested in their own needs and
interests
Willing to do whatever it takes to get one's
own way
Positive Face/Social Power
Power used to create motivation so as to
accomplish group goals
Focus on need and interests of others
haracteristics of Manager using
Social Power
Belief in authority
system
Preference for work
and discipline
Altruism
Belief in Justice
Political Behavior
in
Organizations
Political behavior Defined
Refers to actions not officially sanctioned
by an organization that are taken to
influence others in order to meet one's
personal goals or the organizational goals
Personal goals : Negative Power outcome
Organizational goals : Positive Power
Outcome
onditions Encouraging Politics
Unclear Goals
Autocratic decision making
Ambiguous lines of authority
Scarce resources
Uncertainty
nfluence Tactics
onsultation
Rational persuasion
nspirational appeals
ngratiation
Upward appeals
oalition tactics
Exchange tactics
Pressure
Upward nfluence
the boss
Lateral
nfluence a
coworker
Downward
nfluence
an employee
f you don't do this , you are fired
!RESSURE
My boss supports this idea
U!RD !!ES
'll take you to lunch if you will
support me on this
EXCHE
All the other supervisors agree
with me
CO%O
can always count on you, so
have another request
R%%O
t makes sense to hire John, he's
is the most experienced
R%O !ERSUSO
Being environmentally conscious
is the right thing
S!R%O !!ES
What do you think we can do to
make our workers less fearful of
the new robots on the production
line?
COSU%%O
What is Political Skill?
A politically skilled individual has the ability
to accurately understand others and use
this knowledge to influence others in order
to meet personal and organizational goals
Dimensions of Political Skill
Social astuteness : Accurate perception and evaluation
of social situations.
nterpersonal influence : refers to a subtle and influential
personal style that is effective in getting things done.
Networking ability : an individual's capacity to develop
and retain diverse and extensive social networks.
Sincerity : refers to an individual's ability to portray
forthrightness and authenticity in all of their dealings
ey to managing Politics
Open ommunication
larify expectations regarding
performance
Participative management
Encouraging cooperation among work
groups
Managing scarce resources
Provide supportive organizational climate
Managing Up : The Boss
Step1 : Try to understand as
much as you can about
your boss.
Step2 : Assess yourself and your
own needs.
Step3 : Work to develop an
effective relationship. Also
work out mutual expectations.
Power Sharing
254072039
sharing power in such a way
that individuals learn to
believe
in their ability to do the job!
eaning - fit between
the work role and the
employee's values
and beliefs
Competence - belief
that one has the
ability to do the job
well
SeIf-determination -
having control over
the way one does
one's work
mpact - belief that
one's job makes a
difference within the
organization
E
2
Empowerment's Dimensions
How leaders can empower
others?
Managers should express confidence in
employees and set high performance
expectations
Managers should create opportunities for
employees to participate in decision
making.
Remove bureaucratic constraints that
stifle autonomy.
Managers should set inspirational or
meaningful goals
Employee Empowerment Grid
Decision-Making Authority over Job ontent
!oint D
Mission DeIining
!oint E
SelI-management
!oint C
!articipatory
Empowerment
!oint A
No Decision
!oint B
Task Setting
mplementation
Follow-up
Alternative
choice
Alternative
Evaluation
Alternative
Development
Problem
dentification
Problem Alternative Alternative Alternative mplementation
dentification Development Evaluation hoice Follow-up
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