TERM PROJECT- WEIGHS 40% OF FINAL GRADE Step-by-step1: Identify a Failed Collaboration with Significant Issues/Stakes Identify a specific case of collaboration failure for an in-depth analysis. The ca

CHAPTER 8:

BASES OF POWER

As the discussion at the beginning of this chapter illustrates, under certain circumstances, most people are powerful to a certain degree. CEOs and Managers are certainly powerful as they can determine whether you get to keep your job or receive that promotion or raise you have been waiting for. On the other hand, under certain circumstances, flight attendants and mailroom person can also be powerful. Flight attendants are powerful when you are on board because at that time you are under their supervision. Mailroom persons are powerful when they have the letters or parcels that you have been waiting for. Therefore, power comes in many different forms, and each form is associated with a unique power base. In this section, we compare and contrast the following five bases of power. 

• Coercive power

• Reward power

• Legitimate power

• Expert power

• Referent power

Coercive power

• Power that is based on fear

• Coervice power can be exercised through the infliction of pain, restriction of movement, or deprivation of basic psychological or safety needs

• Example: Managers use coercive power when they discipline uncooperative employees by threatening them with write-ups, demotions, pay cuts, layoffs, and terminations

Reward Power

• Power based on the ability to provide benefits or rewards to people.

  • Rewards can be financial or non-financial

  • Recipient must value the rewards

• Example: Managers use reward power when they try to motivate uncooperative employees with pay raise, promotion, and extra vacation time.

Legitimate Power

• Power based on relative position in the organizational hierarchy, legitimate power is broader than the power to coerce or reward as it includes acceptance by members of an organization of the authority of a position

• Example: Managers have the power to reward the employees s/he likes and punish the employees s/he dislikes using organizational resources simply because as the manager, s/he is entitled to have access to those resources. 

Expert Power

• Power based on a person’s experience and knowledge.

• Expert power often takes the form of expertise, special skills, and knowledge.

• Without invoking any sense of coercion, expert power is one of the most powerful sources of influence as the world is now more technologically oriented 

• Example: You think one of your colleagues is powerful because s/he has the technological know-how that everyone needs at work. That colleague is not a manager, neither does s/he have access to reward or punish anyone. But the fact s/he has the expertise that everyone else needs give him/her power because everyone is dependent on him/her.

Referent Power

• Referent power develops out of admiration of another and a desire to be like that person

• Referent power explains why celebrities are paid millions of dollars to endorse products in commercials

• Example: One need not be a movie star to have referent power. Referent power comes out of respect. If others genuinely respect you, then you have referent power over them. That being said, getting others to respect you is not easy, which explains why referent power is more difficult to obtain than power resulted from other bases.

EVALUATING THE BASES OF POWER

Power rooted in different bases elicits different reactions. For example, because people don't like to be coerced, coercive power is more likely to elicit resistance than other bases of power. In this section, we compare and contrast the effects of different power bases on the recipients. Specifically, we assess each power base based on how likely they will result in the following three reactions:

• Commitment – The person is enthusiastic about the request and carries the task out.

• Compliance – The person goes along with the request grudgingly, putting in minimal effort.

• Resistance – The person is opposed to the request and tries to avoid it.

As summarized in the figure above, coercive power is most likely to result in resistance. Because people in general do not like to be coerced, when coercive power is used, they will react by fighting back as part of their instinct. Although sometimes people give up fighting back out of fear, they will still be constantly on the lookout for the opportunities to resist. 

In contrast, expert and referent power are two power bases that are most likely to result in commitment. This is because power rooted in expert and referent power is voluntarily given to the power holders by those who admire them or need their expertise and knowledge. Therefore, people will be more receptive to power of this kind. 

Reward and legitimate power are trickier. People report that they will react to these power bases by going along with the request grudgingly, putting in minimal effort. From this perspective, reward and legitimate power are similar to coercive power in that people react to all three bases by unwillingly going along with the powerholder. Therefore, depending on how reward and legitimate power are used, they may very well be experienced as coercive power, resulting in undesirable consequences. One way to resolve this issue is to use reward and legitimate power together with expert and/or referent power.

Ironically, research has found that less effective power bases, such as coercive, reward, and legitimate power, are the ones most likely to be used by managers, as they are easier to implement.

HOW TO USE INFLUENCE TACTICS

• Rational persuation, inspirational appeals, and consultation tend to be the most effective

• Pressure tends to backfire and is usually the least effective

• Compatible tactics can be jointly to increase your influence (e.g., ingratiation + legitimacy )

• Direction of influence matters

  • Rational persuasion is effective across organizational levels

  • Inspirational appeals is most effective downward influencing tactic

  • Pressure also creates downward influence

  • Personal appeal and coalition create lateral influence

• Sequence of tactics also matters

  • Begin with softer tactics such as personal and inspirational appeals, rational persuasion, and consultation

• Assess your audience

  • Reflective and intrinsically motivated individuals prefer soft tactics for they tend to have high self-esteem and desire for control

  • Hard tactics work better with action-oriented and extrinsically motivated individuals, who are more focused on getting along with other than on getting their own way

POLITICS IN ORGANIZATIONS

How does politics manifest itself in organizations. There are many forms that politics can take. Below are some political activities that occur most frequently in organizations. 

• Attacking or blaming others

• Using information to advance one's self-interest or the interest of one's own group

• Managing impressions

• Building support for ideas

• Praising others

• Building coalitions

• Associating with influential people

• Creating obligations

Research indicates that:

• Politically skilled individuals use influence tactics more effectively.

• Political skills appear to be more effective when stakes are high.

• Politically skilled people are able to exert influence without others detecting it.

• Political skills are more effective in organizations with low levels of procedural and distributive justice