Management Essays - Organization Political

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Organization Political

Into the Fray

Political strategies are tactics that all employees in an organization can use if they want to take complete control of their career path. According to Stephen Robbins, p. (400) “When employees in organizations are converting their power into action we describe them as being engaged in politics.” For example, Joe is a tier two manager in the retail business selling computers. Lately, Joe has boosted profit margins in computer sales within the company, which is an area that was completely lagging before Joe took the job. Joe wants to apply for the recently opened regional manager position that company is offering. Joe considers himself to be a good qualified candidate because of his successful turn around in his department. However, Joe lacks the skills to interact with people and is keeping things to himself, which stopped him from growing his network of friends. Instead, the job was given to Mary who had a very strong network of connections, that provided her with resources and information that could help boost profit margins globally.

Campos Beverage Company before it was acquired by Lafleur recognized Michael for his “high potential” that he brought to the company. However, Campos did not offer an official program for high potentials like Michael, but instead did offer a highly detailed on-the-job training program, which made the transformation from a new hire to a well rounded company executive. Michael has gained extensive knowledge of expertise in sales, marketing, production and finance just by being actively engaged in taking control of his career path.

Michael’s family would be considered the dependencies for this case study. Michael’s wife was very reluctant on relocating, and has already sacrificed a great deal previously for her husband career advancements. According to Stephen Robbins p. 390 (2005) “the greater B’s dependence on A, the greater is A’s power in the relationship.” If Michael were to decide to take the opportunity in China; it would have caused a major set back for his wife, and the possibility of her being unemployed once they have arrived in China. Michael’s wife and children will have to depend on him for food and shelter. Nevertheless, this should place a high level of importance on Michael to not fail his family.

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Expert Power is what helps Michael progress in his current job field. According to Stephen Robbins p. 392 (2005) expert power “is influence wielded as a result of expertise, special skills, or knowledge. Michael’s expert power comes from his knowledge as the global category director of rums for lafleur.

Michael’s colleagues demonstrate a legitimate political behavior. According to Stephen Robbins p. 400 (2005) “legitimate political behavior refers to everyday politics – complaining to your supervisor, bypassing the chain of command, forming coalitions, obstructing organizational policies or decisions through inactions or excessive adherence to rules.” For this particular case the politics is very normal as any other legitimate political behavior in an organization. Michael considers himself to have the upper advantage over Danielle, which is due to his successful job performance. However, Danielle is more of a networking person. She is constantly communicating with various managers, which also includes talking to the Pierre the CEO of Lafleur.

Pierre called Michael on the phone and offered him a mini CEO position in China. It is a small picture of Lafleur, but has tremendous growth opportunities. The company that Lafleur acquired has not established dominant market share yet, and Pierre is giving Michael a chance to improve profit margins. This would be a perfect job opportunity for Michael to make a name for himself in the company. He has the opportunity to take a small operation and turn it into a large competitor in China. Michael will play a job position equivalent to a CEO, which makes him in charge of sales, marketing, manufacturing, and research development.

Michael should not even be thinking about the open position for President of U.S. Operations. Pierre would have given the job to Michael if he was a prime candidate for that job. Michael was given an excellent opportunity by Pierre, which he can use to his advantage if he completes Pierre objective. If the president of U.S. Operations opens again; Pierre may present that vacant job position to Michael in the distant future.

Michael can improve his political edge by first improving his network of connections. He should try to communicate more with his colleagues, and develop a more meaningful business relationship with various managers in the organization. Cohen (2005) included “individuals can gain a greater appreciation for the social alliances that make an organization run.”

A second political move for Michael can be the use of inspirational appeals. This tactic can be used easily and effectively for Michael because it can be passed down to his subordinates. According to Stephen Robbins p. 397 (2005) power tactics are “ways in which individuals translate power bases into specific actions.”

A third and final suggestion for Michael political moves would be to use coalitions. According to Stephen Robbins p. 396 (2005) individuals acting upon “the aid of other people to persuade the target or using the support of other as a reason for the target to agree.” This tactic will work excellent if Michael decides to take the job offering in China. Dealing with foreign nationals in a foreign country may not be an easy task for Michael at first. However, if he were to use certain people within the organization to convey his message for him; the organization will eventually make a turn around.

Conclusion

Politics is a hotly debated subject in today’s organization, which is mostly likely used as a legitimate or illegitimate politics practice. Any individual in today’s organization will engage in some type of politics in his / her career, and it is also strongly encouraged for that person to engage in only legitimate political strategies too. Networking is the key to survival and part of being a successful manager in today’s competitive environment. Your subordinates play a vital role to your success for climbing up the corporate ladder. As a manager or an aspiring manager it is only wise for you to get out there and converse with your fellow coworkers.

References

• Robbins, S. (2005). Organizational Behavior (11th ed.). Prentice-Hall Pearson Education Inc.
• Davis, M., Kirby, S., & Curtis Mary. (2007) The Influence of affection on Goal Choice and Task Performance, 37, 14 - 42
• Peebles, M. Ellen, Widmann, Nancy Clifford, Kopelan, Amy Dorn, Hassan, Fred, Cohen, Allan, Rhodes, Gary B., Harvard Business Review, 00178012, Jan2005, Vol. 83, Issue 1.