POWER AND INFLUENCE

1
POWER AND INFLUENCE

• Using authority and persuasion ethically and
  effectively

2
Difference between power and influence (Keiths
definition)

• Both involve a capacity to change the behavior of
  another individual, to get them to do something
  that they would not otherwise do. However
• Power gt Behavior gt attitudes
• Influence gt Attitudes gt behavior
• POWER requires that the target perceives the user
  has something they want (?)

3
Power and Leadership

• Book argues that power does not require goal
  congruence leadership does
• Can we explain leadership as simply a function of
  power and influence?

4
French Ravens Bases of Power

• Coercive powermightright the stick
• Reward power the carrot, or promise
• Legitimate powerauthority via title or hierarchy
• Expert powerperception that you possess a skill
  set or knowledge others dont
• Referent poweridentifiability/likeability

5
Is dependency important?

• The extent to which you control something
  perceived as rare gives you power.
• What youre selling must be seen as important.
• When in doubt, make these traits, skills, or
  resources salient.
• If you dont have anything scarce, change your
  audience, or make them believe what you have is
  scarce.

6
Coalitions

• Gathering others within a group for when your
  individual power base is low.
• Effective coalitions seek to actually MINIMIZE
  their size to just-useful.
• When units are self-contained and resouces/tasks
  arent interdependent, coalitions dont form.
• Consider your independent power before joining.
  Ex grad student union

7
Sexual Harassment

• Unwelcome sexual advances, verbal, or physical
  conduct that feels threatening to the recipient.
• Quid-pro-quo harrassment
• Hostile work environment
• Can come from co-workers as well as supervisors

8
Political Power/ Bx

• Attempting to influence distribution of resources
  within the organization through informal channels
• Pfeffer argues that this is not especially a bad
  thing
• Those with power may exercise it benevolently

9
Predictors of political bx

• High Need for power
• High tolerance for risk taking
• Unclear appraisal processes
• Zero-sum reward systems
• Vague job descriptions
• Culture
• Democratic management

10
Impression Management

• Attempting to control the impressions others have
  of you
• High self-monitoring
• Flattering
• Favors
• Excuses and over justifying
• Positive self-description
• This is only effective if we are not aware it is
  being used on us otherwise, opposite effect

11
Can power, politics and IM be ethical?

• YES!
• If bx is not (exclusively) self-interested
• If bx does not interfere with org goals
• If the involved parties are treated equitably and
  not harmed (non zero-sum times only)

12
Techniques of Social Influence

• Foot-in-the door
• Reciprocal concessions
• Arousing emotion for quick action
• Cognitive dissonancemake them a hypocrite
• The youre like-me approach
• Consensus among peers
• Scarcity/limited time to act

13
Routes to persuasion

• Centralbuild your arguments on logic.
  Appropriate when reasoning will be clear,
  understood, and easily acceptable.
• Peripheralthe other 100 of the time. Induce
  others to make decisions based on irrelevant
  information, cognitive structures, emotional
  arousal, or out of a desire for behavioral
  consistency.