The Role of Power and Politics in Organizations - Coursework Example

The Role of Power and Politics in Organizations Name: Course Professor’s name University name City, State Date of submission The Concept of Power in the Workplace Organizations comprises of both informal and formal rules which specifically help coordinate the actions posed by different people (Tost, Gino & Larrick, 2013). In that case, organizations have to devise ways of making sure those individuals who have different understandings, particular interests and from diverse backgrounds abide by such rules. This is where the concept of power comes to play. Power entails the aspect which embodies the processes, dispositions and mechanisms that try to make sure those individuals in an organizational setting play by the rules entailing the game. It can also be said to be the ability to have influence towards people’s behaviour and thus manipulating them to perform deeds they wouldn’t have done willingly. Thus, power plays a significant role in the management practice of organizations (Tost et al., 2013). Power emanates as a central issue in organizations since it makes employees and parties affiliated to the organization engage in deeds or deliberations they wouldn’t have normally did (Tost et al., 2013). In this respect, power has central bases in organizations which include expertise, information, prestige and stature, credibility, money control, rewards and sanctions, resource control and the ability to access high-level management (Tost et al., 2013). In organizations, power is effective in its least form of legitimation. That is, creation of legitimacy eases the process through which power is instituted in any particular organizational setting. Legitimacy is enhanced through symbolism where symbols reflect the goals and objectives of the organization. Uncertainty also acts as a power base rather than a constraint (Tost et al., 2013). The impact derived from power relies on whether managers use negative or positive power in influencing their juniors in the organization. In this respect, there is the positive and the negative classes of power (Wiltermuth & Flynn, 2013). The positive class entails encouraging employees to be productive and thus devolving power of decision-making. It also entails rewards related to performance and the encouragement of free expression of employee concerns. On the other hand, negative power entails issuance threats as a form of motivation to employees. The latter involves threats related to job loss, punishments and favouritism for selected few employees. Exercise of negative power results in many drawbacks for the organization (Wiltermuth & Flynn, 2013). The Concept of Politics in the Workplace Politics is the process and/or aspect of power mobilization (Sinnicks, 2014). Politics plays a crucial role in the workplace including the governance of decision making process and the process of employee interaction. It influences directly the people accessing power including the general organizational culture of the workplace including the workplace productivity (Sinnicks, 2014). The workplace resembles a political field where systems of politics engage in whenever there are systems of expertise, ideology and authority to be contested in varied political games. Political games are common in the workplace and occur commonly in various forms (Sinnicks, 2014). First, there are the insurgency games where lower-status employees are against the dominant elites (Sinnicks, 2014). The expertise games entail strategic contingency. Budgeting games entail securing an organization’s resources. Others include strategic candidate, rival camps, empire-building, sponsorship, live versus staff, whistle-blowing, alliance building, lording, and young Turks games. In all these games played in the workplace, the parties seek to use legitimate power to politicize actions that are politically beneficial to them (Sinnicks, 2014). In the workplace, politics are usual and sometimes serve to bring certain functions to order (Gandz & Murray, 2008). Such orderly functions may include the midwife to crucial workplace change, refreshment source, instrument of death or even bringing the realignment need. Politics may emerge as four different forms in the workplace (political arena). These include the following. First, there is confrontation which entails confined, intense and unstable conflict such as in a merger or a takeover (Gandz & Murray, 2008). Secondly, the shaky alliances which entail stable professional organizations being subjected to public accountability. Thirdly, there are the politicized organizations that characterize relatively stable regulatory or public sector bodies. Lastly, there are the complex political fields in the workplace characterized by major faults and doctrinal divisions (Gandz & Murray, 2008). Like power, the impact derived from politics relies on whether managers apply negative or positive politics in the process of influencing their subordinates in the workplace. In workplaces where the political structure is complex and entangled, work productivity declines (Gandz & Murray, 2008). The latter emanates since employees find it hard to find answers due to unclear command chains and policies. Such a political climate encourages employees to participate in unethical behaviour such as workplace dishonesty and loss of integrity. However, developing a positive political climate facilitates high workplace productivity since employees spend less time enquiring for answers and thus engage in quality work. Unethical behaviour such as dishonesty, favouritism and others is discouraged in a positive political climate in the workplace (Gandz & Murray, 2008). How a Manager could Work to Acquire Power Managers ultimately need power in order to make things rum smoothly, effectively and efficiently in the workplace (Clegg, 2010). Power influences the employees or subordinates to actually perform the functions and roles the manager wants done. Thus, power has behavioural response to people in the workplace. Managers require using power effectively in order to influence the employees to perform functions, procedures and processes according to the organizational goals and wishes. However, there are various ways in which a manager could work in order to acquire power. It may either be through the organization (positional power) and through personal means such as through legitimacy, reward and coerciveness (Clegg, 2010). The manager could work to acquire power through position given by the organization (Clegg, 2010). Such power emanating from a position awarded by the organization leads to positional power. Through the exercise of position, a manager may acquire power. The first way involves use of legitimacy. In this aspect, the legitimate power emanates from the very position that a manager has in the organization including the authority vested in such a managerial position. The juniors acknowledge this legitimate power in the belief that it emanates from being in positions of leadership in such an organization (Clegg, 2010). Thus, the employees willingly accept that such authority has to command their actions and thus forming the basis of legitimate power. Such a power is seen when an employee requests permission for an off-day from such a manager. A manager can also use rewards as a way of working towards acquiring power (Bacharach & Lawler, 2008). In this respect, a manager uses reward power in rewarding employees whose behaviours either meet or even exceed the set performance expectations. Thus a manager could use things like bonuses, pay increases, increased autonomy and responsibility, promotions, recognition, increased leaves, praise and so forth. For example, a manager could give an employee a thousand dollar bonus check and circulate emails to every employee for such recognition. Such behaviour may earn the manager power in the organization. The manager could also use coerciveness to obtain power (Bacharach & Lawler, 2008). Through the use of coercive power, a manager may put sanctions to those employees that do not meet the organization’s performance expectations. Such actions aid in deterring other employees in not making decisions that may have negative impacts to the organization. Coercive actions that the manager may apply in such a case includes firing, demotion, criticizing and reprimand, lowering salary scale, blocking pay increases and so forth. Such sanctions earns the manager coercive power and helps in controlling the actions and the behaviour of employees in an organization (Bacharach & Lawler, 2008). How a Manager could Work to become Politically Active There are several ways in which a manager could work to become politically active. Politics is in itself a form of power and effective for managers in influencing the behaviour of their juniors and employees in the workplace (Clegg, 2010). However, the manager must employ political strategies, tactics and skills in the process of engaging in active workplace politics. A manager should employ use of political strategies in order to increase their own power base and therefore be able to have the ability to affect decision results. Such may involve the use of the following. The first strategy entails the executive succession which entails formulating ways of ensuring that he/she progresses to the executive positions one’s the is an eminent vacancy (Clegg, 2010). Through succession of the executives, the manager gains higher positional power which could help in influencing political decisions of the workplace. Other strategies include the use of budget strategies, performance appraisals, decisions involving pay increases, organizational design and redesign and so forth (Clegg, 2010). The manager may also employ the use of political tactics (Clegg, 2010). The latter entails using political techniques which may be part of political plans or strategies. The manager may employ a single or a combination of tactics within a given political strategy with an aim of becoming politically active. Such tactics may include the following. First, there is the use of building coalitions. Such coalitions entail mobilizing groups of people in the workplace to subscribing to your political strategies within the organization (Clegg, 2010). Such coalitions later act as political bases enabling the manager to become politically active. The manager may also use impression management which is crucial towards influencing other employee’s opinions towards him/her. A good and desirable impression towards the subordinates makes it easier for the manager to influence the behaviour of the employees through political means (Clegg, 2010). The use of consultation and/or outside expert may also work towards helping the manager become politically active (Pfeffer, 2002). A manager may seek professional and more experienced advice on how to strategise in political matters related to the workplace. Consultation may also help the manager evade deviant errors which could otherwise ruin his/her own overall impression to employees of the organization. Becoming involved during decision making processes of various organizational agendas could also propel the manager into political activity (Pfeffer, 2002). By influencing the organization’s decisions, the manager gains grounds in political bases of the organization which adds up when working a way to become politically active. The latter emanates from the fact that decisions have the aspect of power and politics embedded in them. The application of rationality/ logical arguments is also an effective tool of influencing decisions. A manager could couple rationality and ingratiation to influence goodwill in other people and thus influencing their behaviour. Other political tactics include inspirational appeals, exchanging of benefits, assertiveness and upward appeal (Pfeffer, 2002). The Impact of Power and Politics in Organizations Both power and politics could have both negative and positive impacts in organizations. They can both be motivators in ways that are orientated towards positivism or negativity (Nasurdin, Hazlina Ahmad & Arwani, 2014). Power in an organization entails the aspect of persuading other people to do what you want done, when you want it done and in a manner or way that is in your liking. The latter creates influence which then brings out the aspect of leadership and authority over other groups and/or individuals. In organizations, the influence and power struggle forms the basis for politics through the creation of competing groups. The politics brought about by competing groups in an organization could either be used in cunning and deceitful purposes or for the purposes of positive motivation (Nasurdin et al., 2014). Politics in an organization could lead to cunning and deceitful actions when various groups compete for the same resources (Nasurdin et al., 2014). Such resources may include space allocations, departmental budgets, salary adjustments, project responsibilities and so forth. This king of politics creates negativity since the gained resources for one competing group occurs as a result of deprivation of another competing group. However, politics may also serve to be a positive motivator when groups work together for a common purpose. The executives of a company may decide to increase benefits for their employees as a form of gaining their support and allegiance. In this case, such politics benefits both parties and acts as a motivator (Nasurdin et al., 2014). Power can also have positive impacts when exercised in a positive manner. Such kind of power seeks to encourage the employee’s productivity through positive motivation (Vashdi, Vigoda-Gadot & Shlomi, 2013). Such may include appointing employees who perform beyond expectations to supervise others and creation of incentives for other hardworking employees. Such positive power creates confidence among the employees and makes them become more productive. On the other hand, negative power in an organization serves to decrease motivation among the employees and thus reducing overall productivity. Such may be caused by issuance of threats and favouritism in an organization (Vashdi et al., 2013). Ethical Implications of Power and Politics in an Organization Power and politics are about influencing people in an organization to act in behaviour desirable to the person exercising the power and politics. However, the exercise of such power and politics creates ethical implications for the organization. Some of the ethical implications arising may include cases of sexual harassment, questionable gift giving and conflict of interest (Glanz, 2010). Sexual harassment occurs due to power abuse by senior employees and power imbalance between men and women in organizations. Questionable gift giving entails using the position of power and the influence of politics in an organization to award gifts to certain people without exercising ethical guidelines. The conflict of interest entails using power and politics for one’s own benefit while ignoring the greater needs of other people in an organization (Glanz, 2010). Other ethical implications arising may include the aspects of deception, lying and intimidation (Burnes & By, 2012). Deception entails using the position of power and influence in tricking other parties into unfavourable decisions. It may also entail focusing on personal rather than organizational goals. Lying entails distortion of the truth in favour of one party and thus misleading others. Intimidation entails using power to pressure another person in the organization into unfavourable terms. All these constitute ethical implications resulting from politics and power exercise in an organization (Burnes & By, 2012). References Bacharach, S. B., & Lawler, E. J. (2008). Power and politics in organizations. San Francisco, Jossey-Bass. Burnes, B, & By, R 2012, 'Leadership and Change: The Case for Greater Ethical Clarity', Journal of Business Ethics, 108, 2, pp. 239-252, Clegg, G. J., (2010). Managing Power and Politics in Organizations: Resistance, Empowerment, Ethics. New York- Ainsworth. Gandz, J, & Murray, V 2008, 'The Experience of Workplace Politics', Academy Of Management Journal, 23, 2, pp. 237-251. Glanz, J 2010, 'Justice and Caring: Power, Politics and Ethics in Strategic Leadership', International Studies In Educational Administration (Commonwealth Council for Educational Administration & Management (CCEAM)), 38, 1, pp. 66-86. Nasurdin, a, Hazlina Ahmad, N, & Arwani Razalli, a 2014, 'Politics, Justice, Stress, and Deviant Behaviour in Organizations: An Empirical Analysis', International Journal of Business & Society, 15, 2, pp. 235-254. Pfeffer, J. (2002). Managing with power: politics and influence in organizations. Boston, Mass, Harvard Business School Press. Sinnicks, M 2014, 'Practices, Governance, and Politics: Applying Macintyre’s Ethics to Business', Business Ethics Quarterly, 24, 2, pp. 229-249. Tost, L, Gino, F, & Larrick, R 2013, 'When Power Makes Others Speechless: The Negative Impact Of Leader Power On Team Performance', Academy Of Management Journal, 56, 5, pp. 1465-1486. Vashdi, D, Vigoda-Gadot, E, & Shlomi, D 2013, 'Assessing Performance: The Impact Of Organizational Climates And Politics On Public Schools' Performance', Public Administration, 91, 1, pp. 135-158. Wiltermuth, S, & Flynn, F 2013, 'Power, Moral Clarity, and Punishment in the Workplace', Academy Of Management Journal, 56, 4, pp. 1002-1023. Read More