Chapter Twelve: Power, Politics, and Empowerment
Chapter Twelve: Power, Politics, and Empowerment
Chapter Twelve: Power, Politics, and Empowerment
Chapter Synopsis
This chapter focuses on the concept and sources of power. It begins with a definition of power
(legitimate, reward, coercive, expert, and referent) and its sources, followed by a discussion of
interpersonal power and structural power. The final segment of the discussion revolves around
"powerlessness" and its symptoms.
The next section defines "empowerment," describes its stages, and explains its impact on individuals
and organizations, and especially on self-managed teams. The authors explain how organizations can
create the power to cope with uncertainty via prevention, information, and absorption. They also
explain the concepts of centrality and substitutability, and use the infamous Milgram experiment as
an insightful example of the illusion of power.
The chapter also touches on organizational politics, political tactics (rule evasion, personal-political,
educational, and organizational), and characteristics identified by top CEOs and managers as
essential for success. Game playing (insurgency game, sponsorship game, line-versus-staff game,
coalition-building game, and whistle blowing) is followed by a discussion of politics and the
influencing tactics managers can use.
The chapter concludes with impression management, followed by a brief examination of ethics,
power, and politics, each an aspect of ethical decisions.
Learning Objectives
After completing this chapter, students should be able to:
1. Distinguish between the terms influence and power.
2. Identify five interpersonal power bases.
3. Describe three forms of structural power.
4. Discuss the concepts of powerlessness and empowerment.
5. Identify the contingencies that influence subunit power.
6. Explain what is meant by the term illusion of power.
7. Describe several frequently used influence tactics.
8. Discuss the criteria for determining ethical behavior.
9. Identify the considerations involved in using power effectively.
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Key Terms
legitimate power—Capacity to influence derived from the position of a manager in the
organizational hierarchy. Subordinates believe that they “ought” to comply.
authority—The ability to influence others based on the perceived power of one’s position and role
within an organization.
reward power—An influence over others based on hope of reward.
coercive power—Influence over others based on fear.
expert power—Capacity of influence related to some expertise, special skill, or knowledge.
referent power—Power based on a subordinate’s identification with a charismatic superior.
empowerment—Encouraging and/or assisting individuals and groups to make decisions that affect
their work environments.
strategic contingency—An event or activity that is extremely important for accomplishing
organizational goals.
substitutability—The ability of various work units to perform the activities of other work units.
impression management—A political strategy that refers to actions individuals take to control the
impressions that others form of them.
self-promotion—An impression management tactic whereby individuals communicate their
accomplishments to appear able and competent.
intimidation—An impression management tactic whereby individuals use threats and harassment to
appear powerful.
self-handicapping—Any action taken in advance of an outcome that is designed to provide either
an excuse for failure or a credit for success.
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Chapter Outline
INTRODUCTION
Power is a pervasive part of the fabric of organizational life
Both managers and non-managers use it
A person’s success or failure in using or reacting to power is determined by…
Understanding power
Knowing how and when to use it
Being able to anticipate its probable effects
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Resources
Kanter argues that power stems from (a) access
to resources, information, and support, and (b) the ability to get cooperation in doing
necessary work
In organizations, vital resources are allocated
downward long the lines of the hierarchy
To ensure compliance with goals, top-
level managers allocate resources on the basis of performance and compliance
Decision-Making Power
The degree to which individuals or subunits can
affect decision making indicates the amount of power acquired
Individuals who influence a decision-making
process and its outcomes may or may not have formal authority
Global OB: Google in China: “Do No Evil?”
Information Power
Knowledge is considered by some to be more
powerful than any part or structure of an organization
Knowledge is a conclusion or analysis
derived from data and information
Having access to relevant and important
knowledge information is power
Those who possess the information
needed to make optimal decisions have power
A powerful manager allocates required
resources, makes crucial decisions, and has access to important information
Exhibit 12.1: Symptoms and Sources of Powerlessness
EMPOWERMENT
Defined by Conger and Kanungo as enhancing feelings of self-efficacy among
organizational members by identifying and then removing conditions that foster
powerlessness
Removal may be accomplished by both formal
organizational practices and informal techniques
Reasons that empowering employees is not universally embraced
Managers fear the loss of power, control, and
authority
Employees are unable to make responsible
decisions
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INTERDEPARTMENTAL POWER
Subunit power, the power differential between subunits, is influenced by…
The degree of ability to cope with uncertainty
The centrality of the subunit
The substitutability of the subunit
Exhibit 12.2: A Strategic Contingency Model of Subunit Power
Coping with Uncertainty
The subunits most capable of coping with
uncertainty typically acquire power
Types of coping activities:
Coping by prevention
Coping by information
Coping by absorption
Centrality
The subunits that are most central to the flow of
work typically acquire power
No subunit has zero centrality
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Substitutability
The ability of other subunits to perform the
activities of a particular subunit
A subunit’s power will be diminished if the
organization can obtain alternative sources of skill, information, or resources
The lower the substitutability of the activities of
a subunit, the greater is its power within the organization
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Game Playing
Henry Mintzberg identified 13 types of political
games played in organizations, by managers and non-managers alike
Games are played to:
Resist authority (insurgency)
Counter the resistance to authority
(counter-insurgency)
Build power bases (sponsorship and
coalition-building)
Defeat rivals (line versus staff)
Bring about organizational change
(whistle-blowing)
It is unrealistic to assume that game playing can
be eliminated
It is practiced even in the most efficient,
profitable, productive, and responsible organizations
Political Influence Tactics
Influence is what playing politics is all about
Individuals and groups try to influence
the perceptions or behaviors of other individuals and groups
Common tactics used to influence others
Consultation
Rational persuasion
Inspirational appeals
Ingratiating tactics
Coalition tactics
Pressure tactics
Legitimating
Personal appeals
Exchange tactics
Not all of these tactics are equally effective in
bringing about desired results
Inspirational appeals and consultation
are the most effective tactics
Most tactics lead to one of three
outcomes: commitment, compliance, or resistance
Exhibit 12.5: Frequency of Outcomes for the Use of Political Influence Tactics
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Impression Management
Refers to the actions individuals take to control
the impressions that others form of them
Impression management is universal
Impression management does not imply that a
false impression is being conveyed, but creating blatantly false impressions can damage
your credibility and reputation
Many impression-management tactics are
designed to emphasize the positive
Self-handicapping refers to any action taken in
advance of an outcome that is designed to provide either an excuse for failure or a
credit for success
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2. What is meant by the term empowerment? Why is empowerment a concept that is resisted
by some and rejected by others?
Ans: Empowerment means encouraging and/or helping individuals and groups to make decisions
that affect their work environment. It is resisted by some, and rejected by others, because:
1. Managers fear the loss of power, control, and authority.
2. Employees are not able to make responsible decisions.
3. Empowering employees was attempted before and it failed.
4. Sharing proprietary information means leaking ideas, plans, and knowledge to competitors.
5. Not everyone wants to be empowered.
3. If you wanted to gain compliance from subordinates, what type of power would you use?
Explain what compliance means.
Ans: To gain compliance, one would use legitimate or reward power. Compliance means that
subordinates will obey requests, but they are unlikely to exert more than the minimal effort
necessary.
4. Assume that the printing process is a strategic contingency for a publishing company, and
that only one group of employees knows how to operate the printing press. How could the
environment be changed to more evenly balance power within the printing department?
Ans: The more individuals in the organization who can use the printing press, the less vulnerable the
organization and the lower the power of the printing group. If the company trains a number of
groups or individuals to run the printing press, it lessens the power of the original group. Another
strategy might be to increase the number of presses. This would require hiring more operators, thus
reducing the power of each individual within the department.
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5. How the illusion of power can be just as effective as actual power was clearly illustrated in
the "obedience to authority" experiments of Milgram. Can you think of other examples where
people have responded to the illusion of power? Does this happen in organizations?
Ans: Students may cite several examples, such as complying with the norms of a group that the
individual perceives to be more powerful than it really is. Subjecting oneself to the degradation of a
hazing initiation would be one obvious example. Such behavior does occur in organizations,
sometimes formally (as in rites of initiation), sometimes informally (as in cases where authoritative
managers overstep their boundaries and insist that employees perform tasks that are not part of their
jobs).
6. Political games are played at all organizational levels by both managers and non-managers.
Identify the purposes for which these games are played.
Ans: Games are played to (1) resist authority, (2) counter the resistance to authority, (3) build power
bases, (4) defeat rivals, and (5) bring about organizational change.
7. A number of frequently used influence tactics were discussed in the text. Have many have
you witnessed being played in organizations of which you are a member? What other tactics
have you seen used?
Ans: Student answers will vary. Use this question to stimulate class discussion. Note the differences
in response from work experienced and non-work experienced students. Also, see if the international
student responses differ from the American students.
8. The use of power and politics often involve ethical issues. What are the criteria that may be
used to determine the extent to which a manager's behavior is ethical? Are there ever
legitimate exceptions to these criteria?
Ans: One set of criteria to use in determining the ethics of a manager's behavior involves
considering:
1. The net good (utility) of the behavior.
2. The extent to which the behavior honors the rights of all parties involved.
3. The fairness and equity of the behavior.
If a situation has "overwhelming factors" that speak to the rightness of another situation, behavior
that does not fit the three criteria may be justified.
9. Which power would you prefer to develop for yourself: expert power or legitimate power?
What are the advantages and disadvantages of each of these sources of power? Explain.
Ans: Student answers will vary, depending on how they view each type of power and whether or not
they feel they have (or can develop) a talent that is of expert level.
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Legitimate power is awarded by the organization and is more dependant on the position held than on
the knowledge of the person in the position. This type of power is lost as soon as the job is lost.
Subordinates often believe that they must carry out orders given by someone with legitimate power,
but they may not be as committed to it as they would be if the order-giver was an expert in the field.
10. When was the last time you engaged in impression management? Was it effective? Why or
why not? How might you use impression management to get a promotion? To receive a better
grade in a course?
Ans: Student answers will vary.
REALITY CHECK: Now, how much do you know about Power, Politics, and Empowerment?
CASE 12.1: The Power and Politics of Privacy on Social Networking Sites
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1. What is your opinion regarding these online privacy issues? To what extent are you
concerned about how your personal information on Facebook, MySpace, and Google is used?
Explain.
Ans: Student answers will vary.
2. Looking back at the section on “political influence tactics” in this chapter, which tactics did
Facebook’s CEO Mark Zuckenberg use after he changed the original terms of use on
February 4, 2009? Describe.
Ans: The two tactics that Zuckenberg used after changing the original terms of use on Facebook
were consultation and coalition. He used consultation by setting up a place for users to provide their
ideas, allowing users to participate in planning the next action. This site also incorporated coalition
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tactics. Zuckenberg could use feedback on the site to help persuade other users to support his
decisions.
3. Of the stakeholders listed in the last paragraph of the case, which group do you think is
most powerful in terms of shaping the future direction of online privacy issues? Explain.
Ans: Student answers will vary. Power represents the capability to get someone to do something.
Users represent power in that they are the reason all of the other groups exist. However, their power
is limited in that they are not a cohesive group. The social networking companies have power
because they are the ones who provide access to the users. The advertising firms have power
because they are the ones spending the money. Privacy advocacy groups have power because they
can unite users. In this situation, technology companies probably have the least amount of power.
Governments always have power because they have the ability to make and change laws affecting
privacy issues.
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4. Most people at some point have experienced an illusion of power, believing that someone or
some unit was more powerful than was actually the case. Ask students whether they've ever
observed a power illusion and discuss why the individual or unit appeared to possess more
power than was actually so. What was the source of this illusory power?
5. Ask students to recall examples of political game playing in organizations. Ask them to cite
examples that may not be fit neatly into the games discussed in the chapter. What effects did
these games have on the players, on the observers, and the organization?
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2. Invite an executive director of a non-profit agency to your class as a guest, specifying that your
purpose is to have that person talk with students about power, politics and leadership. Non-
profit leaders typically have to be creative in building coalitions, in appealing to multiple
audiences, and in finding rewards, other than monetary ones, to encourage people to give their
time and energy to the organization's work. Encourage students to ask questions of the speaker,
especially questions related to the concepts discussed in this chapter and the chapter on
motivation.
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