Power and Politics

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Chapter 7

• Power and Politics

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Power and Politics

• Power
• A capacity that A has to influence the behaviour
  of B so that B acts in accordance with As wishes
• Dependency Bs relationship to A when A
  possesses something that B requires

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Leadership and Power
Leadership
Power

• Requires goal agreement
• Focuses on downward influence
• Minimizes importance of lateral and upward
  influence
• Leadership research focuses on answers

• Does not require goal acceptance
• Focuses on intimidation
• Maximizes importance of lateral and upward
  influence
• Power focuses on tactics for gaining compliance

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Measuring Bases of Power

• Coercive power
• The person can make things difficult for people,
  and you want to avoid getting him or her angry.
• Power that is based on fear.
• Reward power
• The person is able to give special benefits or
  rewards to people, and you find it advantageous
  to trade favors with him or her.
• Legitimate power
• The person has the right, considering his or her
  position and your job responsibilities, to expect
  you to comply with legitimate requests.

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Measuring Bases of Power

• Expert power
• The person has the experience and knowledge to
  earn your respect, and you defer to his or her
  judgment in some matters.
• Referent power
• You like the person and enjoy doing things for
  him or her.

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Evaluating the Bases of Power

• Coercive power tends to result in negative
  performance responses from individuals, decreases
  satisfaction, increases mistrust, and creates
  fear.
• Legitimate power does not have a negative effect,
  but does not generally stimulate employees to
  improve their attitudes or performance, and it
  does not generally result in increased
  commitment.
• Reward power may improve performance in a variety
  of situations if the rewards are consistent with
  what the individuals want as rewards.
• Expert power relies on trust that all relevant
  information is given out honestly and completely.
  

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Continuum of Responses to Power
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Popularity of Power Tactics From Most to Least
Popular
When Managers Influenced Superiors
When Managers Influenced Subordinates
Reason Coalition Friendliness Bargaining Assertive
ness Higher authority
Reason Assertiveness Friendliness Coalition Bargai
ning Higher authority Sanctions
Most Popular
Least Popular
The dimension of sanctions is omitted in the
scale that measures upward influence.
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Empowerment Giving Power to Employees

• The freedom and the ability of employees to make
  decisions and commitments
• Managers disagree over definition of empowerment
• Empowerment as delegating decision making within
  a set of clear boundaries
• versus
• Empowerment as a process of risk taking and
  personal growth

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Conditions for True Empowerment

• Clear definition of the values and mission of the
  company
• Company must help employees acquire the relevant
  skills
• Employees need to be supported in their decision
  making, and not criticized when they try to do
  something extraordinary
• Employees need to be recognized for their efforts

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Characteristics of Empowered People

• Sense of self-determination
• Employees are free to choose how to do their
  work They are not micromanaged
• Sense of meaning
• Employees feel that their work is important to
  them They care about what they are doing
• Sense of competence
• Employees are confident about their ability to do
  their work well They know they can perform
• Sense of impact
• Employees people believe they can have influence
  on their work unit Others listen to their ideas

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Political Behaviour

• Those activities that influence, or attempt to
  influence, the distribution of advantages and
  disadvantages within the organization.
• Legitimate normal everyday behaviour
• Illegitimate extreme political behaviours that
  violate the implied rules of the game

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Why Do We Get Politics?

• Organizations are made up of groups and
  individuals who have differing values, goals and
  interests
• Resources in organizations are limited
• Performance outcomes are not completely clear and
  objective

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Factors Influencing Political Behaviour
Individual factors

High self-monitors

Internal locus of control

High Mach

Organizational investment

Perceived job alternatives

Expectations of success
Favourable outcomes
Political behaviour


Rewards
Low High
Organizational factors

Averted punishments

Reallocation of resources

Promotion opportunities

Low trust

Role ambiguity

Unclear performance
evaluation system

Zero-sum reward practices

Democratic decision making

High performance pressures

Self-serving senior managers
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What Individual Factors Contribute to Politics?

• High self-monitors
• Internal locus of control
• High mach
• Organizational investment
• Perceived job alternatives
• Expectations of success

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What Organizational Factors Contribute to
Politics?

• Reallocation of rewards
• Promotion opportunities
• Low trust
• Role ambiguity
• Unclear performance evaluation system
• Zero-sum reward practices
• Democratic decision-making
• High performance pressure
• Self-serving senior managers

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Types of Political Activity

• Attacking or blaming others
• Controlling information
• Forming coalitions
• Networking
• Creating obligations
• Managing impressions

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Impression Management

• The process by which individuals attempt to
  control the impression others form of them
• More likely used by high self-monitors than low
  self-monitors
• High self-monitors try to read the situation

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Exhibit 7-8 Impression Management (IM) Techniques

• Conformity
• Agreeing with someone elses opinion in order to
  gain his or her approval.
• Excuses
• Explanations of a predicament-creating event
  aimed at minimizing the apparent severity of the
  predicament.
• Apologies
• Admitting responsibility for an undesirable event
  and simultaneously seeking to get a pardon for
  the action.
• Acclamations
• Explanation of favorable events to maximize the
  desirable implications for oneself.
• Flattery
• Complimenting others about their virtues in an
  effort to make oneself appear perceptive and
  likable.
• Favours
• Doing something nice for someone to gain that
  persons approval.
• Association
• Enhancing or protecting ones image by managing
  information about people and things with which
  one is associated.

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Making Office Politics Work

• Nobody wins unless everybody wins
• Dont just ask for opinionschange them
• Everyone expects to be paid back
• Success can create opposition

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Working With Others Exercise

• Instructions for Role Play
• Working in your group, read the instructions for
  the assignment
• You have 15 minutes to develop a 3 minute role
  play, using the source of power assigned to your
  group
• You MUST stick to the time limit

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Role Play Scenario Pg. 236

• You are the leader of a group that is trying to
  develop a website for a new client. One of your
  group members, who was assigned the task of
  researching and analysing the websites of your
  clients competition, has failed twice to bring
  the analysis to scheduled meetings, even though
  the member knew the assignment was due.
  Consequently, your group is falling behind in
  getting the website developed. As leader of the
  group, you have decided to speak with this team
  member, and use your specific brand of power to
  influence the individuals behaviour.

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Sources of Power

• COERCIVE depends on fear. It is the ability to
  punish or withhold privileges.
• REWARD Based on one's control over things that
  others desire such as vacations, raises,
  promotions and office locations.
• LEGITIMATE person holding power has right to it
  because of position or role. Thus the person has
  a formal right to direct others in certain
  matters and the subordinates have a duty to obey
  those directions.
• EXPERT the perception by others that one has
  superior judgment or knowledge on some topics,
  often specialized in nature. Unlike information
  power, this power base does not involve sharing
  of the facts or reasoning behind a decision.
• REFERENT develops out of subordinates'
  admiration for leader and his/her desire to model
  behaviour and attitudes after that person. The
  person builds feelings of support, liking,
  admiration and respect with subordinates.

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Mean Responses to Type of Influence
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Discussion Questions

• Which kind of influence is most likely to
  immediately result in the desired behaviour?
• Which will have the most long-lasting effects?
• What effect will using a particular base of power
  have on the ongoing relationship?
• Which form of power will others find most
  acceptable? least acceptable?
• In which kinds of situations is each kind of
  power most effective and useful? least effective
  and useful?