Power and Influence in the Workplace

1. Chapter 10 Power and Influence in the Workplace

2. Learning Objectives 10.1 Describe the dependence model of power and describe the five sources of power in organisations 10.2 Discuss the four contingencies of power 10.3 Describe eight types of influence tactics, three consequences of influencing others, and three contingencies to consider when choosing an influence tactic 10.4 Explain how people and work units gain power through social networks 10.5 Identify the organisational conditions and personal characteristics that support organisational politics, as well as ways to minimise organisational politics

3. Managing Your Manager Managing your boss is the process of improving the relationship with your manager for the benefit of both of you and the organisation. It includes developing bases of power that enable you to influence the manager and thereby achieve organisational objectives

4. The Meaning of Power Power is the capacity of a person, team or organisation to influence others • Potential, not actual use • People have power they don’t use and they may not know they possess it • A perception

5. Power and Dependence Person A Person B’s countervailing power over Person A Person A’s control of resource valued by Person B Person B Resource desired by Person B Person A’s power over Person B

6. Model of Power in Organisations

7. Sources of Power • Agreement that people in certain roles can request certain behaviours of others • Based on job descriptions and mutual agreement • Legitimate power range (zone of indifference) varies across national and organisational cultures Legitimate

8. Sources of Power continued • Ability to control the allocation of rewards valued by others and to remove negative sanctions • Operates upward as well as downward Legitimate Reward

9. Sources of Power continued • Ability to apply punishment • Exists upward as well as downward • Peer pressure is a form of coercive power Legitimate Reward Coercive

10. Sources of Power continued • The capacity to influence others by possessing knowledge or skills that they value • More employee expert power over companies in knowledge economy Legitimate Reward Coercive Expert

11. Sources of Power continued • Occurs when others identify with, like or otherwise respect the person • Associated with charismatic leadership Legitimate Reward Coercive Expert Referent

12. DeCourcy’s Trendspotting Power Colleen DeCourcy has developed a reputation as a trendspotter, giving her considerable information power in the advertising industry. ‘Her knowledge of the digital landscape, grounded in creativity, makes her an invaluable addition to TBWA’, says DeCourcy’s boss.

13. Information and Power • Control over information flow • Based on legitimate power • Relates to formal communication network • Coping with uncertainty • More power to those who can help firms cope with uncertainty • Prevention • Forecasting • Absorption

14. Power Through Control of Information Flow

15. Contingencies of Power

16. Increasing Non-substitutability • Few or no alternatives to the resource • Increase non-substitutability by controlling the resource • Exclusive right to perform medical procedures • Control over skilled labour • Exclusive knowledge to repair equipment • Differentiate resource from others

17. Centrality • Degree and nature of interdependence between powerholder and others • Centrality is a function of: • How many others are affected by you • How quickly others are affected by you

18. Discretion and Visibility • Discretion • The freedom to exercise judgment • Rules limit discretion, limit power • Also a perception—acting as if you have discretion • Visibility • Symbols communicate your power source(s) • Educational diplomas • Clothing, etc. (stethoscope around neck) • Salience • Location—others are more aware of your presence

19. Influencing Others • Influence—any behaviour that attempts to alter someone’s attitudes or behaviour • Applies one or more power bases • Process through which people achieve organisational objectives • Operates up, down and across the organisational hierarchy

20. Types of Influence • Following requests without overt influence • Based on legitimate power, role modelling • Common in high power distance cultures Silent authority • Actively applying legitimate and coercive power (‘vocal authority’) • Reminding, confronting, checking, threatening Assertiveness

21. Types of Influence continued Information • Manipulating others’ access to information • Withholding, filtering, re-arranging information • Reduces uncertainty Coalition formation • Group forms to gain more power than individuals alone • Pools resources/power • Legitimises the issue • Power through social identity

22. Types of Influence continued Upward appeal • Appealing to higher authority • Includes appealing to firm’s goals • Alliance or perceived alliance with higher status person Persuasion • Logic, facts, emotional appeals • Depends on persuader, message content, message medium, audience

23. Types of Influence continued Ingratiation/ impression management • Increaseliking by, or perceived similarity to, the target person Exchange • Promising or reminding of past benefits in exchange for compliance • Includes negotiation and networking

24. Consequences of Influence Tactics people oppose the behaviour desired by the influencer motivated by external sources (rewards) to implement request identify with and highly motivated to implement request Resistance Compliance Commitment

25. Consequences of Influence Tactics continued

26. Contingencies of Influence Tactics • ‘Soft’ tactics generally more acceptable than ‘hard’ tactics • Appropriate influence tactic depends on: • Influencer’s power base • Organisational position • Cultural values and expectations

27. Power and Influence ThroughSocial Networks • Cultivating social relationships with others to accomplish one’s goals • Social networks are important foundations of power for individuals and companies apply social network analysis tools to discover who has this power • There are cultural differences in the norms of active network involvement

28. Social Capital and Sources of Power • Social networks generate power through social capital: the goodwill and resulting resources shared among members in a social network • Social networks can increase: • Expert power (gaining knowledge from others) • Visibility • Referent power

29. Understanding Networks • Networks benefit individuals through access, timing and referrals

30. Strong Ties, Weak Ties, Many Ties • Breadth: number/diversity of people in network • Depth: frequency of interaction, strength of attachment, members serve more than one function • Centrality: position within the network

31. Network Centrality • Person’s importance in a network • Three factors in centrality: • Shortest path between others: you control interactions of others • Direct access to others: less dependence on others for connections • Number of people connected to you: more social capital resources • Example: A has highest network centrality due to all three factors; B has lowest centrality

32. Building and Maintaining Networks • We often build networks according to self-similarity and proximity • However, it is more effective to build networks according to shared activities and apply strategic considerations (access to additional networks, key persons etc.) • We also need to consider the dark side of our networks and how inclusive or unfairly exclusive they are

33. Organisational Politics • Behaviours that others perceive as self-serving tactics for personal gain at the expense of other people and possibly the organisation

34. Conditions for Organisational Politics Tolerance of politics Scarce resources Conditions supporting organisational politics Organisational change Complex and ambiguous decisions

35. Minimising Political Behaviour • Introduce clear rules for scarce resources • Effective organisational change practices • Suppress norms that support or tolerate self-serving behaviour • Leaders role model organisational citizenship • Give employees more control over their work • Keep employees informed

36. Summary • Power is the capacity to influence others and it can be based on five sources of power with four contingencies • People can also gain power through social networks creating social capital • There are eight types of influences tactics, with soft ones more likely to result in commitment • Power is potential, influence is actual and politics is a perception

37. Chapter 10 Power and influence in the workplace