POWER AND INFLUENCE

Laurise R. Martinez
WHAT IS POWER?
 POWER
➢ can be defined as a manager's ability to influence others.
➢ Influence is what managers have when they use power in such a
way that it results in some behavioral response in others.
➢ Power is the ability to make things happen, overcoming potential
resistance in order to achieve desired results. The person, group or
team seeks to influence thoughts, attitudes, behaviors of another
individual, group or team.
➢ Power may be used positively or negatively.
The abuse of greatness is when it disjoins remorse from power.

WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE
 BACKGROUND
• In 1959, social psychologists John R. P. French and Bertram Raven
identified five bases of power:
1. Legitimate.
2. Reward.
3. Expert.
4. Referent.
5. Coercive.
And, six years later, (1965) added an extra power base:
6. Informational
 2 TYPES OF POWER BASED ON
POWER SOURCES
1. Positional Power Sources
- is a result of a manager's position within the organization.
➢Legitimate Power
➢Reward Power
➢Coercive Power
➢Informational Power
2. Personal Power Sources
- is independent from the position a manager holds in an organization and
rests solely in the individual.
➢Referent Power
➢Expert Power
 POSITIONAL POWER SOURCES
1. Legitimate power
- stems from the manager's position in the organization and the
authority that lies in that position.
- employees believe that the manager has the authority to direct
their actions, and they willingly comply with those requests.
2. Reward power
- is the extent to which a manager can use rewards to influence
others.
- Managers have power to reward subordinates for their actions
when those behaviors meet or exceed performance expectations.
 POSITIONAL POWER SOURCES
3. Coercive power
- is the opposite of reward power.
- it is used by managers to punish subordinates for
not meeting performance expectations or to deter
subordinates from making decisions that will negatively
affect the organization.

- Disadvantage: can lead to a high degree of resistance

and deliberate disobedience in subordinates who resent
the use of coercive power by managers to influence their
behavior.
 POSITIONAL POWER SOURCES
4. Informational Power

- Having control over information that others need or want puts

you in a powerful position.
- “potent form of power”
- The power derives not from the information itself but from
having access to it, and from being in a position to share,
withhold, manipulate, distort, or conceal it.
 PERSONAL POWER SOURCES
1. Referent Power
- is the result of subordinate respect and adoration for the
manager and is seen when an employee seeks to identify
with the manager with whom they admire.
- is commonly seen in charismatic leaders who are able to
invoke a passion for followership due to the leader's
magnetic personality.
- Subordinates are willing to follow their manager's
requests simply because of the manner in which they
deal with and treat subordinates.

Advantages
• Bureaucratic obstacles are
reduced through good working
relationships and effective
collaboration.
• A great referent leader can
inspire workers to be committed
to their job.
• Consistently modeling the
desired behavior can lead to
decreased counterproductive
behavior.
REFERENT POWER
Disadvantages
• The more organizational layers below
the leader the harder it will be for their
referent power to reach the bottom of
the organization.
• It takes time to develop trust, so
referent power doesn’t work well where
there is high employee turnover.
• Referent power is also not appropriate
for crisis situations, for example, a
failing business unit that must be
turned around as soon as possible, and
there isn’t the time needed to build the
trust that referent power needs.
 PERSONAL POWER SOURCES
2. Expert Power
- Allows a manager to influence the behaviors of subordinates through
their special knowledge, experience or skills relating to work the
subordinates must perform.
- power comes from the subordinate’s belief that their manager or
leader possesses expert skills or knowledge that they do not
themselves possess.
- Expert power does not require positional power.
 HOW CAN YOU USE AND DEVELOP
EXPERT POWER AS A LEADER?
1. Use it to offer guidance and support to your team and to motivate them.
2. Use it to gain respect for your position, skills and knowledge from your peers, those
above you in the organization, from your team, from customers, suppliers and those
with whom you interact.
3. Develop expertise, both knowledge and skills, that are required for your position and
future positions. Keep yourself informed of new developments in your area.
4. Maintain your credibility by participating in discussions that you are well informed
on. Beware of trying to give the impression that you are an expert in all areas. You
are not. Use the appropriate expertise from your team and other departments or
functions.
5. Be open to discuss concerns that your team or others may have. By listening to their
concerns you can use your expertise to allay them. Thus creating credibility and
respect. This is a very important skill in leading change and managing resistance.
6. Acknowledge the expertise that is in your team. You do not need to have more
expertise than them in every area.
Anyone is capable of holding power and influencing others:
you don't need to have an important job title or a big office.
But if you recognize the different forms of power, you can avoid being influenced
by those who use the less positive ones – and you can focus on developing expert
and referent power for yourself. This will help you to become an influential
and effective leader.
 REFERENCES
➢ Anonymous (2018) Personal Power: Referent and Expert Power Retrieved from:
https://study.com/academy
➢ Expert Program Management (2017) Referent Power in the Workplace Retrieved from:
https://expertprogrammanagement.com
➢ Newton, R. (2016) Three Ways To Increase Your Personal Power At Work Retrieved from:
https://www.forbes.com
➢ Ormond, D. (2011) Leadership and Development: Power and Influence Retrieved from:
http://www.leadership-development-tips.com/
➢ Petress, K. (n.d.) Power: Definition, Typology, Description, Examples, and Implications
Retrieved from: http://uthscsa.edu
➢ Raven, B.H. (1992) The Bases of Power: Origins and Recent Developments: A
Presentation in Honor of John R. P. French on the Occasion of His Receiving the Kurt
Lewin Award Retrieved from: https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED351648.pdf
Questions?