Organizational Behavior: Power and Workplace Politics (Essay Sample)

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Organizational Behavior: Power and Workplace Politics
Within organizations, power distribution is usually visible. Power is the ability to influence other people. In this context, which involves the workplace, it refers to the capacity and expertise of an individual to change the behavior of their subordinates with resources control. However, power is not something that you get to inherit, keep, or hold. It is rather something that you create. In the workplace, how an individual chooses to exercise power over others can shape the outcome and dynamics of an organization. Power is not to be confused with influence and authority. Authority is the legitimate right to exercise such powers over people. Influence, on the other hand, is the ability to affect the behavior, thoughts, and feelings of individuals. Power is an efficient tool that can lead an organization to both desired and undesired outcomes depending on how it is used. Individuals in authority primarily derive their power from their position. Workplace politics is thus the process that involves human interactions and how they relate to authority and power. It is also known as organizational politics or office politics. It tends to relate to how the use of social networking and the use of power within an organization is channeled appropriately to achieve desirable changes. Workplace politics are self-serving behaviors that employees in an organization apply so that they try and improve the organization's general output. Sometimes influence by other individuals may serve as examples. It includes access to some of the tangible assets that the company has or intangible benefits. Examples of positive politics include portraying a positive and professional image, assisting and complimenting others, and praising one’s accomplishments.
Every employee in an organization exerts a certain form of power. How an individual decides to exert in the workplace largely depends on an employee’s personality and the position that they hold in the organization. However, power is mostly exercised by leaders. In any organization, leaders who do not use their power effectively and responsibly risk losing it. Different types of power affect an individual’s ability to exercise power (Cranston). They are separated into five bases, as identified by John French. They include Legitimate, Expert, Reward, Coercive, and Referent. These bases also form the types of powers that may be exercised over people.
* Legitimate power is a more traditional form of power in which an individual has earned the role of being a leader, especially in an organization. It can also result from formal positions from an organization such as being appointed manager. It can be beneficial or detrimental, depending on how the individual handles it.
* Expert power is a type of power that can be achieved or justified by an individual's education level, specific talent, or work experience. Such professions include doctors, engineers, and other highly-trained specialists in their respective fields. Reward power is a type of power that tends to revolve around an individual's ability to impact certain changes that can spark motivation among employees. It includes salary increase, promotion, bonuses, and access to certain information.
* Coercive power is more like a dictatorship. It involves working with threats that are above the norm and forces someone to act against their own will for fear of consequences or repercussions. It is a form of power that can be destructive and tends to promote a hostile working environment and negatively impacts the reputation of the organization.
* Referent power is a form of power that is acquainted with people because they have relationships, connections, and contacts with others. It is also referred to as charisma power. It is developed through the admirable characteristics and may occur through a certain period for someone if they become successful or have a clean track record.
Different people tend to react differently to different forms of power. Most individuals have three major responses to power. The first response is resistance. It includes being aggressive and ignorant to the instructions posted by the individual in power. These individuals also show signs of sabotaging and low-interest levels. The second reaction that most individuals exhibit is compliance. It happens when the individuals comply and agree to what is required and, in fact, put no extra effort to follow the instructions. The third reaction is commitment. Individuals also tend to be self-driven to the orders due to either intrinsic or internal commitment. The different power bases and types