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Unit11
Structure
11.1 Introduction Objectives 11.2 BasesofPower SelfAssessmentQuestions1 11.3 PowerTactics SelfAssessmentQuestions2 11.4 11.5 11.6 Empowerment SelfAssessmentQuestions3 PowerinGroups:Coalitions SelfAssessmentQuestions4 Politics:PowerinAction SelfAssessmentQuestions5 11.7Summary TerminalQuestions AnswertoSAQsandTQs 11.1 Introduction

PowerAndPolitics

Power isthe ability to make thingshappen in the wayan individual wants,either by selfor by the subordinates.Theessenceofpoweriscontroloverthebehaviorofothers(French&Raven,1962). Managersderivepower from bothorganizational and individual sources. These sources are called position power and personal power, respectively. Power also refers to a capacity that A has to influence the behavior of B, so that B acts in accordance with As wishes. The greater Bs dependence on A, the greater is As power in the relationship. Therefore, power is a function of dependency(Robbins,2003). ContrastingLeadershipandPower
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In an organizational context leadership and power are related to each others. Power is used by leaders as a means to attain group goals. In other words, power is a means of facilitating their achievement of goals and objectives that they have set for themselves in view of organizational requirements.Whataredifferencesbetweenleadershipandpower?Thefirstisintheareaofgoal compatibilitywhichisasfollows: Power does not require goal compatibility, merely dependence whereas leadership, requires somecongruencebetweenthegoalsoftheleaderandthefollowers. Thesecondfactorisrelatedtothedirectionofinfluence:

Whereasleadershipfocusesonthedownwardinfluenceononesfollowers,powerdoesnotminimize the importance of lateral and upward influence patterns. Evidence of the same is gained from insightsintoresearchonpowerthathastendedtoencompassabroaderareaandfocusontactics forgainingcompliance. Learningobjectives: Thelearningobjectivesofthisunitareasfollows: 1. BasesofPower 2. PowerinGroups:Coalitions 3. Politics:PowerinAction 11.2 BasesOfPower Powercanbecategorizedintotwotypes:Formalandinformal A.FormalPower: It is basedon the position ofan individual inanorganization. Formal power is derivedfrom either onesabilitytocoerceorrewardothersorisderivedfromtheformalauthorityvestedintheindividual due to his/ her strategic position in the organizational hierarchy. For example, a manager may threaten to withhold a pay raise, or to transfer, demote, or even recommend the firing of a subordinatewhodoesnotactasdesired.Suchcoercivepoweristheextenttowhichamanagercan denydesiredrewardsoradministerpunishmentstocontrolotherpeople.Theavailabilityofcoercive power also varies across organizations. The presence of unions and organizational policies on

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employee treatment can weaken this power base significantly. Formal power may be categorized intofourtypeswhichareasfollows: 1.CoercivePower: Thecoercivepowerbaseisbeingdependentonfear.Itisbasedontheapplication,orthethreatof application,ofphysicalsanctionssuchastheinflictionofpain,thegenerationoffrustrationthrough restriction of movement, or the controlling by force of basic physiological or safety needs. In an organization one can exercise power over another if they have the power to dismiss, suspend, demoteanotherassumingthatthejobisvaluabletothepersononwhompowerisbeingunleashed. 2.RewardPower: The opposite of coercive power is reward power.Reward power is theextentto which a manager can use extrinsic and intrinsic rewards to control other people. Examples of such rewards include money, promotions, compliments, or enriched jobs. Although all managers have some access to rewards, success in accessing and utilizing rewards to achieve influence varies according to the skillsofthemanager. 3. LegitimatePower: Thethirdbaseofpositionpowerislegitimatepower,orformalauthority.Itstemsfromtheextentto whichamanagercanusesubordinatesinternalizedvaluesorbeliefsthatthebosshasarightof commandtocontroltheirbehavior.Forexample,thebossmayhavetheformalauthoritytoapprove or deny such employee requests as job transfers, equipment purchases, personal time off, or overtime work. Legitimate power represents a special kind of power a manager has because subordinatesbelieveitislegitimateforapersonoccupyingthemanagerialpositiontohavetheright tocommand.Thelackofthisislegitimacywillresultinauthoritynotbeingacceptedbysubordinates. Thusthistypeofpowerhasthefollowingelements:

Itrepresentsthepowerapersonreceivesasaresultofhis/herpositionintheformalhierarchy. Positionsofauthorityincludecoerciveandrewardpowers. Legitimatepower,however,isnotlimitedtothepowertocoerceandreward.Itencompassesthe acceptanceoftheauthorityofapositionbymembersofanorganization.

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4. InformationPower: This type of power is derived from access to and control over information. When people have needed information, others become dependanton them. (Forexample, managers haveaccess to data that subordinatesdonothave). Normally the higher the level, the more information would be accessedbymanagers. B.PersonalPower Personal power resides in the individual and is independent of that individuals position. . Three basesofpersonalpowerareexpertise,rationalpersuasion,andreference. Expertpoweristheabilitytocontrolanotherpersonsbehaviorbyvirtueofpossessingknowledge, experience,or judgment that theother person lacks, but needs. A subordinate obeysa supervisor possessingexpertpowerbecausethebossordinarilyknowsmoreaboutwhatistobedoneorhowit istobedonethandoesthesubordinate.Expertpowerisrelative,notabsolute.Howeverthetable mayturnincasethesubordinatehassuperiorknowledgeorskillsthanhis/herboss.Inthisageof technology driven environments, the second proposition holds true in many occasions where the bossisdependentheavilyonthejuniorsfortechnologicallyorientedsupport. Rationalpersuasionistheabilitytocontrolanothersbehavior,since,throughtheindividualsefforts, the person accepts the desirability of an offered goal and a viable way of achieving it. Rational persuasioninvolvesbothexplainingthedesirabilityofexpectedoutcomesandshowinghowspecific actionswillachievetheseoutcomes. Referentpoweristheabilitytocontrolanothersbehaviorbecausethepersonwantstoidentifywith thepowersource.Inthiscase,asubordinateobeysthebossbecauseheorshewantstobehave, perceive, or believe as the boss does. This obedience may occur, for example, because the subordinatelikesthebosspersonallyandthereforetriestodothingsthewaythebosswantsthem done. In a sense, the subordinate attempts to avoid doing anything that would interfere with the pleasingbosssubordinate relationship. Followership isnotbased on what the subordinate will get forspecificactionsorspecificlevelsofperformance,butonwhattheindividualrepresentsapath towardlucrativefutureprospects.

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CharismaticPowerisanextensionofreferentpowerstemmingfromanindividualspersonalityand interpersonalstyle.Othersfollowbecausetheycanarticulateattractivevisions,takepersonalrisks, demonstratefollowersensitivity,etc. Dependency:TheKeytoPower TheGeneralDependencyEquationisasfollows: The greater Bs dependency on A, the greater the power A has over B. When an individual

possessanythingthatothersrequirebutthatwhichalonetheindividualcontrols,he/shecanmake othersdependentand,therefore,gainpoweroverthem. Dependency,then,isinverselyproportionaltothealternativesourcesofsupply.

Thisisoneofthereasonswhymostorganizationsdevelopmultiplesuppliersratherusingjustone. Italsoexplainswhyindividualsingeneralaspiretofinancialindependence. Threefactorsareresponsiblefordependency.Theyareasfollows:

Importance To create dependency, the thing(s) you control must be perceived as being important. Organizationsactivelyseektoavoiduncertaintyandhence,thoseindividualsorgroupswhocan absorbanorganizationsuncertaintywillbeperceivedascontrollinganimportantresource.

Scarcity

A resource needs to be perceived as scarce to create dependency. For example, lowranking members in an organization who have important knowledge unavailable to highranking members gainpoweroverthehighrankingmembers.Thescarcitydependencyrelationshipisalsoimportantin thepowerofoccupationalcategories.Individualsinoccupationsinwhichthesupplyofpersonnelis low relative to demand can negotiate compensation and benefit packages, which are far more attractivethancanthoseinoccupationswherethereisanabundanceofcandidates.Thusscarcityin supply of certain types of skilled people can give them power to bargain over compensations and otherbenefits.

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Nonsubstitutability

Themorethataresourcehasnoviablesubstitutes,themorepowerthatcontroloverthatresource provides. SelfAssessmentQuestions1 1. Formalpowermaybecategorizedinto___________types. 2. Theoppositeofcoercivepoweris__________power 3. Expertpowerisrelative,not______________.

11.3 PowerTactics

Using position and personal power well to achieve the desired influence over other people is a challenge for most managers. There are many useful ways of exercising relational influence. The mostcommonstrategiesinvolvethefollowing(Kipiniset.Al,1984):

ReasonUseoffactsanddatatomakealogicalorrationalpresentationofideas FriendlinessUseofflattery,creationofgoodwill,actinghumble,andbeingfriendly CoalitionGettingthesupportofotherpeopleintheorganizationtobackuptherequest BargainingUseofnegotiationthroughtheexchangeofbenefitsorfavors AssertivenessUseofadirectandforcefulapproachsuchasdemandingcompliance HigherauthorityGainingthesupportofhigherlevelsintheorganizationtobackuprequests SanctionsUseoforganizationallyderivedrewardsandpunishments

Employeesrelyontheseventacticsvariably.Dependingonthesituationalfactors,individualstend to use the above strategies accordingly to the suitability and the likelihood of the success to be achieved byemploying the same. The managers relative power impacts the selection oftactics in twoways.

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First,managerswhocontrolresourcesthatarevaluedbyothers,orwhoareperceivedtobein positionsofdominance,useagreatervarietyoftacticsthandothosewithlesspower.

Second,managerswithpoweruseassertivenesswithgreaterfrequencythandothosewithless power.

Resistanceleadstomanagersusingmoredirectivestrategies.

The managers objectives for wanting to influence causes them to vary their power tactics. The objectivesmaybeasfollows: Whenseekingbenefitsfromasuperior,theyusefriendliness. Whentheyareinneedtomakesuperiorsacceptnewideas,theyusuallyrelyonreason. Managersusereasontosellideastoemployeesandfriendlinesstoobtainfavors.

Researchevidencealsosupportsthefollowingwithregardtouseoftacticsandthechoiceusedby managerswithregardtopower: Themanagersexpectationofthetargetpersonswillingnesstocomplyisanimportantfactor.When past experience indicates a high probability of success, managers use simple requests to gain compliance.Wheresuccessislesspredictable,managersaremorelikelytouseassertivenessand sanctions to achieve their objectives. The organizations culture also plays an important role in decidingtheuseofpowertactics.Theorganizationalcultureinwhichamanagerworks,willhavea significantbearingon defining which tacticsareconsidered appropriate. The organization itself will influence which subset of power tactics is viewed as acceptable for use by managers. People in different countries tend to prefer different power tactics. For example in US people prefer use of reason in contrasttoChina where coalitionasatactic is preferred.Differencesare consistent with values among countriesreason is consistent with Americans preference for direct confrontation andcoalitionisconsistentwiththeChinesepreferenceforusingindirectapproaches. SelfAssessmentQuestions2 1. Wheresuccessislesspredictable,managersaremorelikelytouse__________andsanctions toachievetheirobjectives

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2. US people prefer use of reason in contrast to China where _____________ as a tactic is preferred 11.4 Empowerment

Empowermentistheprocessbywhichmanagershelpotherstoacquireandusethepowerrequired to make decisions affecting both themselves and their work. Moreover, today, managers in progressiveorganizationsareexpectedtobecompetentatempoweringthepeoplewithwhomthey work.Ratherthanconcentratingpoweronlyathigherlevelsasfoundinthetraditionalpyramidof organizations, this concept views power to be shared by all working in flatter and more collegial structures. The concept of empowerment is part of the decentralized structures which are found in todays corporations. Corporate staff is being cut back layers of management are being eliminated the numberofemployeesisbeingreducedasthevolumeofworkincreases.Thetrendclearlyistowards creating leaner and more responsive organizations which are flexible and capable of taking faster decisions with minimum bottlenecks created out of power struggles, typical of bureaucratic tall structures.Theneedclearlyistowardshavingfewermanagerswhomustsharemorepowerasthey goabouttheirdailytasks.Hence,empowermentisakeyfoundationoftheincreasinglypopularself managingworkteamsandothercreativeworkerinvolvementgroups. Fortheempowermentprocesstosetinandbecomeinstitutionalized,powerintheorganizationwill bechanged.Thefollowingareimportantinthiscontext: ChangingPositionPower:Whenanorganizationattemptstomovepowerdownthehierarchy,itmust alsoaltertheexistingpatternofpositionpower.Changingthispatternraisessomeimportantissues Canempoweredindividualsgiverewardsandsanctionsbasedontaskaccomplishment? Hastheirnewrighttoactbeenlegitimizedwithformalauthority?

ExpandingtheZoneofIndifference: Whenembarkingonanempowermentprogram,management needs to recognize the current zone of indifference and systematically move to expand it. All too often,managementassumesthatitsdirectiveforempowermentwillbefollowedmanagementmay failtoshowpreciselyhowempowermentwillbenefittheindividualsinvolved,however.

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Thusinempowermentthebasicissueswhichshouldbeaddressedare: Trainingpeopleinlowerrankshowtofunctioninthenewempoweredposition.Usingorunleashing power correctly is also an issue and most importantly the authority, responsibility and the accountabilityprocessshouldbeclearlyoutlinedsoasnottoupsetorganizationalpowerequations. Just apportioningpower at lower levels without giving the knowledge ofhow to use it can actually createhavocintheorganizations. SelfAssessmentQuestions3 1. _____________ is the process by which managers help others to acquire and use the power requiredtomakedecisionsaffectingboththemselvesandtheirwork. 2. Whenanorganizationattemptstomovepowerdownthe________,itmustalsoaltertheexisting patternofpositionpower 11.5 PowerInGroups:Coalitions

Individualswholosepowerorareoutofpowerseektoincreasetheirpowerindividually.Iftheyfailto do so, then the alternative is to form a coalitionan informal group bound together by the active pursuitofasingleissue. Thenaturalwaytogaininfluenceistobecomeapowerholderbutthismay bedifficult,risky,costly,orimpossible.

Insuchanevent,effortsaredirectedtowardsformingacoalitionoftwoormoreoutswho,by coming together, can combine their resources to increase rewards for themselves. Successful coalitionshavebeenfoundtocontainfluidmembershipandareabletoformswiftly,achievetheir targetissue,andquicklydisappeardisintegrate.

Thereareacoupleofpredictionsaboutcoalitionformation.Theyareasfollows:

First, coalitions in organizations often seek to maximize their size. Decisionmaking in organizationsdoesnotendjustwithselectionfromamongasetofalternatives,butrequiretobe implemented. The implementation of an commitment to the decision is as important as the

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decision.Itisessentialforcoalitionswithinorganizationstoseekabroadconstituencyandthere maybeexpansionincoalitiontohelpinconsensusbuilding

Another prediction relates to the degree of interdependence within the organization. More coalitionsarelikelybecreatedwherethereisagreatdealoftaskandresourceinterdependence. In contrast, there will be less interdependence among subunits and less coalition formation activitywheresubunitsarelargelyselfcontainedorresourcesareinplenty.

Finally,coalitionformationwillbeinfluencedbytheactualtasksthatworkersperform.Ingeneral, themoreroutinethetaskofagroup,thegreaterthelikelihoodthatcoalitionswillform.

SelfAssessmentQuestions4 1. Successfulcoalitionshavebeenfoundtocontain___________membership. 2. Morecoalitionsarelikelybecreatedwherethereisagreatdealoftaskandresource __________________. 3. Coalitionformationwillbeinfluencedbythe__________tasksthatworkersperform. 11.6 Politics:PowerInAction

Politics is defined as those activities that are not required as part of ones formal role in the organization, but that influence, or attempt to influence, the distribution of advantages and disadvantageswithintheorganization. Organizational politics is the management of influence to obtain ends not sanctioned by the organization or to obtain sanctioned ends through nonsanctioned means and the art of creative compromiseamongcompetinginterests.Theabovedefinitionclearlypointsoutthefollowing: a.Politicalbehaviorfalloutsidetheambitofonesspecifiedjobrequirements. b.Itincludeseffortstoinfluencethegoals,criteria,orprocessesemployed fordecisionmaking. c. It includes a variety of political behaviors such as, withholding vital information from decision makers,whistleblowing,spreadingrumors,leakingconfidentialinformation,etc.

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In this context, it is necessary to make a distinction between legitimate and illegitimate power dimensionswithinorganizationalcontexts. The LegitimateIllegitimate Dimension may be explained in terms of the following (Farrell & Peterson,1988): Legitimatepoliticalbehaviorreferstonormaleverydaypoliticscomplainingtoyoursupervisor, bypassingthechainofcommand,formingcoalitions,etc. Illegitimate political behaviors that violate the implied rules of the game, such as sabotage, whistleblowing,andsymbolicprotests,etc. The vast majority of all organizational political actions are legitimate. The extreme illegitimate formsofpoliticalbehaviorposeaveryrealriskoflossoforganizationalmembershiporextreme sanction. There are two quite different schools of thought found existing in the analysis of literature on organizationalpolitics. ThefirsttraditionbuildsonMachiavellisphilosophyanddefinespoliticsintermsofselfinterestand theuseofnonsanctionedmeans.Inthistradition,organizationalpoliticsmaybeformallydefinedas the management of influence to obtain ends not sanctioned by the organization or to obtain sanctionedends through nonsanctioned influence means. Managers are often considered political whentheyseektheirowngoalsorusemeansthatarenotcurrentlyauthorizedbytheorganizationor that push legal limits. Where there is uncertainty or ambiguity, it is often extremely difficult to tell whetheramanagerisbeingpoliticalinthisselfservingsense(Pfeffer,1981). The second tradition treats politics as a necessary function resulting from differences in the self interests of individuals. Here, organizational politics is viewed as the art of creative compromise among competing interests. Inaheterogeneoussociety, individuals will disagreeas to whose self interests are most valuable and whose concerns should, therefore, be bounded by collective interests.Politics come intoplayas individualsneed todevelop compromises, avoid confrontation, andcoexist together.Thesameholdstrueinorganizations,whereindividualsjoin,work,andstay together because of their selfinterests being served. It is equally important to remember that the

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goals of the organization and the acceptable means are established by organizationally powerful individualsinnegotiationwithothers.Thus,organizationalpoliticsisalsotheuseofpowertodevelop sociallyacceptableendsandmeansthatbalanceindividualandcollectiveinterests. FactorsContributingtoPoliticalBehavior 1. Individualfactors: Researchershave identified certain personality traits,needs, and otherfactorsthatare likely to be relatedtopoliticalbehavior.Theyareasfollows: a. Employees who are high selfmonitors, possess an internal locus of control, and have a high needforpoweraremorelikelytoengageinpoliticalbehavior. b.Thehighselfmonitorismoresensitivetosocialcuesandinallprobabilitybemorelikelytobe skilledinpoliticalbehaviorthanthelowselfmonitor. c.Individualswithaninternallocusofcontrolaremorepronetotakeaproactivestanceandattempt tomanipulatesituationsintheirfavor. d. The Machiavellian personality is comfortable using politics as a means to further his/her self interestanddoesnotseeitasanunethicalaction.. A persons investment in the organization,perceived alternatives, andexpectations of success will influencethetendencytopursueillegitimatemeansofpoliticalaction.Thefollowingalternativesare possibleinthiscontext: a. Themorethatapersonhasinvestedandthemoreapersonhastolose,thelesslikelyhe/sheis touseillegitimatemeans. b. The more alternative job opportunities an individual has, a prominent reputation, or influential contactsoutsidetheorganization,themorelikelyhe/shewillriskillegitimatepoliticalactions. c.Alowexpectationofsuccessinusingillegitimatemeansreducestheprobabilityofitsuse.

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1. Organizationalfactors:

Politicalactivityhasgottodomorewiththeorganizationscharacteristicsthanofindividualdifference variables.Whenanorganizationsresourcesaredeclining,and theexistingpatternofresourcesis changing,asalso whenthereisopportunityforpromotions,politicsismorelikelytocomeintoplay andsurface.Certainimportantfindingsinthisregardare:

Cultures characterized by low trust, role ambiguity, unclear performance evaluation systems, zerosum reward allocation practices, democratic decisionmaking, high pressures for performance,andselfservingseniormanagerswillcreatefertilegroundsforpoliticking.

When organizations downsize to improve efficiency, people may engage in political actions to safeguardtheirexistingstatusquo.

Promotiondecisionshaveconsistentlybeenfoundtobeoneofthemostpoliticalinorganizations. The lesstrust there is within the organization, the higher the level ofpolitical behavior and the morelikelyitwillbeillegitimate.

Roleambiguitymeansthattheprescribedbehaviorsoftheemployeearenotclear.Thegreater theroleambiguity,themoreonemayengageinpoliticalactivitysincethereislittlechanceofit beingvisible..

Makingorganizationslessautocraticbyaskingmanagerstobehavemoredemocraticallyisnot necessarilyembracedbyallindividualmanagers.Internallyifthemanagersbelieveinautocracy theywouldusetherequiredcommittees,conferences,andgroupmeetingsinasuperficialwayas arenasformaneuveringandmanipulating.

Top management may set the climate for politicking by engaging in certain behaviors, thereby giving a signal to people below in the order that is alright to engage in such behavior. When employeesseetopmanagementsuccessfullyengaginginpoliticalbehavior,aclimateiscreated thatsupportspoliticking.

To counter theeffects ofpoliticking and protectoneself in organizational contexts, individuals may usethreestrategies:

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(1)Avoidactionandrisktaking (2)Redirectaccountabilityandresponsibility (3)Defendtheirturf. Avoidance:Avoidanceisquitecommonincontroversialareaswheretheemployeemustriskbeing wrongorwhereactionsmayyieldasanction.Themostcommonreactionistoworktotherules. Thatis,employeesareprotectedwhentheyadherestrictlytoalltherules,policies,andprocedures ordonotallowdeviationsorexceptions. Redirecting Responsibility: Politically sensitive individuals will always protect themselves from accepting blame for the negative consequences of their actions. Again, a variety of wellworn techniques may be used for redirecting responsibility. Passing the buck is a common method employees and managers use. The trick here is to define the task in such a way that it becomes someoneelsesformalresponsibility. DefendingTurf:Defendingturfisatimehonoredtraditioninmostlargeorganizations.Thisresults formthecoalitionalnatureoforganizations.Thatis,theorganizationmaybeseenasacollectionof competing interests held by various departments and groups. As each group tries to increase its influence,itstartstoencroachontheactivitiesofothergroups. Therearecertainotherinterestingfindingsregardingpeoplesresponsestoorganizationalpolitics Research evidence indicates strong points out that perception of organizational politics are negativelyrelatedtojobsatisfaction.Theperceptionofpoliticsresultsinanxietyorstress.Andwhen itgetstoomuchtohandle,employeesleavetheorganizations.Itmaythusbeademotivatingforce and performance may suffer as a result. The effect of politics is moderated by the knowledge the individualhasofthedecisionmakingsystemandhis/herpoliticalskills.Inthisregardthefollowing observationshavebeenmade:

Highpoliticalskillsindividualsoftenhaveimprovedperformance.

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Low political skills individuals often respond with defensive behaviorsreactive and protective behaviorstoavoidaction,change,orblame.

Reactiontoorganizationalpoliticsisalsoinfluencedbyculture.Incountriesthataremoreunstable politically,workerswilltoleratehigherlevelsofpolitickingthanmorepoliticallystablecounties SelfAssessmentQuestions5

1. Organizational politics is viewed as the art of creative _____________ among competing interests 2. Employeeswhoare___________selfmonitors,possessaninternallocusofcontrol 3. The______________personalityiscomfortableusingpoliticsasameanstofurtherhis/herself interestanddoesnotseeitasanunethicalaction.. 11.7 Summary Power isthe ability to make thingshappen in the wayan individual wants,either by selfor by the subordinates.Theessenceofpoweriscontroloverthebehaviorofothers(French&Raven,1962). Managersderivepower from bothorganizational and individual sources. These sources are called positionpowerandpersonalpower,respectively.Inanorganizationalcontextleadershipandpower are related to each others. Power is used by leaders as a means to attain group goals. In other words,powerisameansoffacilitatingtheirachievementofgoalsandobjectivesthattheyhaveset for themselves in view of organizational requirements. Power can be categorized into two types: Formal and informal. Formal Power: is based on the position of an individual in an organization. Formal power is derivedfromeither ones ability to coerceor reward others or is derivedfrom the formal authority vested in the individual due to his/ her strategic position in the organizational hierarchy. Formal power may be categorized into four types: Coercive Power, Reward Power, LegitimatePower,InformationPower.Personalpowerresidesintheindividualandisindependentof that individuals position. . Three bases of personal power are expertise, rational persuasion, and reference.Usingpositionandpersonalpowerwelltoachievethedesiredinfluenceoverotherpeople isachallengeformostmanagers.Therearemanyusefulwaysofexercisingrelationalinfluence.The mostcommonstrategiesinvolve:Reason,Friendliness,Coalition,Bargaining,Assertiveness,Higher authority, and Sanctions. Empowerment is the process by which managers help others to acquire
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andusethepowerrequiredtomakedecisionsaffectingboththemselvesandtheirwork.Moreover, today, managers in progressive organizations are expected to be competent at empowering the peoplewithwhomtheywork.Ratherthanconcentratingpoweronlyathigherlevelsasfoundinthe traditionalpyramidoforganizations,thisconceptviewspowertobesharedbyallworkinginflatter andmorecollegialstructures.Individualswholosepowerorareoutofpowerseektoincreasetheir powerindividually.Iftheyfailtodosothenthealternativeistoformacoalitionaninformalgroup bound together by the active pursuit of a single issue. The natural way to gain influence is to become a power holder but this may be difficult, risky, costly, or impossible. Politics is defined as those activities that are not required as part of ones formal role in the organization, but that influence, or attempt to influence, the distribution of advantages and disadvantages within the organization.Organizationalpoliticsisthemanagementofinfluencetoobtainendsnotsanctionedby theorganizationortoobtainsanctionedendsthroughnonsanctionedmeansandtheartofcreative compromiseamongcompetinginterests. Terminalquestions 1. Contrastleadershipandpower. 2. Describevarioustypesofformalandinformalpower. 3. Whatdoyoumeanbyorganizationalpolitics?ExplaintheLegitimateIllegitimatedimensionin organizationalpolitics. AnswerstoSelfAssessmentQuestions SelfAssessmentQuestions1 1.Four 2.Reward 3.Absolute SelfAssessmentQuestions2 1.Assertiveness 2.Coalition

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SelfAssessmentQuestions3 1.Empowerment 2.Hierarchy SelfAssessmentQuestions4 1.Fluid 2.Interdependence 3.Actual SelfAssessmentQuestions5 1.Compromise 2.High 3.Machiavellian AnswerstoTerminalQuestions 1.Refersection11.1 2.Refersection11.2 3. Refersection11.6

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