Guidelines on Building and Using Power

1. Guidelines on Building and Using Power Source: Yukl (1998)

2. Legitimate Power: How to Increase and Maintain Power • Gain more formal authority • Use symbols of authority • Get people to acknowledge authority • Exercise authority regularly • Follower proper channels in giving orders • Back up authority with reward and coercive power

3. Legitimate Power: How to Use Power Effectively • Make polite, clear requests • Explain the reasons for a request • Don’t exceed your scope of authority • Verify authority if necessary • Be sensitive to target concerns • Follow up to verify compliance • Insist on compliance if appropriate

4. Reward Power:How to Increase and Maintain Power • Discover what people need and want • Gain more control over rewards • Ensure people you know control rewards • Don’t promise more than you can deliver • Don’t use rewards in a manipulative way • Avoid complex, mechanical incentives • Don’t use rewards for personal benefit

5. Reward Power: How to Use Power Effectively • Offer desirable rewards • Offer fair and ethical rewards • Explain criteria for giving rewards • Provide rewards as promised • Use rewards symbolically to reinforce desirable behavior

6. Expert Power: How to Increase and Maintain Power • Gain more relevant knowledge • Keep informed about technical matters • Develop exclusive sources of information • Use symbols to verify expertise • Demonstrate competence by solving difficult problems • Don’t make rash, careless statements • Don’t lie or misrepresent the facts • Don’t keep changing positions

7. Expert Power: How to Use Power Effectively • Explain the reasons for a request or proposal • Explain why a request is important • Provide evidence that a proposal will be successful • Listen seriously to target concerns • Show respect for target (don’t be arrogant) • Act confident and decisive in a crisis

8. Referent Power: How to Increase and Maintain Power • Show acceptance and positive regard • Act supportive and helpful • Don’t manipulate and exploit people for personal advantage • Defend someone’s interests and back them up when appropriate • Keep promises • Make self-sacrifices to show concern • Use sincere forms of ingratiation

9. Referent Power: How to Use Power Effectively • Use personal appeals when necessary • Indicate that a request is important to you • Don’t ask for a personal favor that is excessive given the relationship • Provide an example of proper behavior (role modeling)

10. Coercive Power: How to Increase and Maintain Power • Identify credible penalties to deter unacceptable behavior • Gain authority to use punishments • Don’t make rash threats • Don’t use coercion in a manipulative way • Use only punishments that are legitimate • Fit punishments to the infraction • Don’t use coercion for personal benefit

11. Coercive Power: How to Use Power Effectively • Inform target of rules and penalties • Give ample prior warnings • Understand situation before punishing • Remain calm and helpful, not hostile • Encourage improvement to avoid the need for punishment • Ask target to suggest ways to improve • Administer discipline in private