An Analysis of Power Dynamics in Leadership and Organizations

This report delves into the multifaceted concept of power within organizational settings, examining its various forms and consequences. It begins by defining power as a dynamic element influenced by individual choices and actions, crucial for effective leadership. The report categorizes power into five distinct types: coercive power, which relies on threats; reward power, based on incentives; referent power, stemming from charisma; expert power, derived from specialized knowledge; and legitimate power, rooted in authority. Each type is analyzed in terms of its application, potential consequences, and relevance to leadership theories. The report further explores the role of power in effective leadership, emphasizing its importance in achieving organizational goals and strategic decision-making. Finally, it examines the interplay between power and organizational politics, highlighting how power influences decision-making and communication within both internal and external environments. The report concludes by summarizing the significance of power in organizational dynamics and leadership success.

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Power
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Table of Contents
Introduction................................................................................................................................2
The five types of Power.............................................................................................................2
Power and its role in Effective Leadership................................................................................4
The role of Power in Organizational Politics.............................................................................5
Conclusion..................................................................................................................................6
References..................................................................................................................................7

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Introduction
As opined by Miller (2018), the ideology of power increases and decreases within the
mental state of an individual as per the choices and decisions they take in their life. The
power in an individual also depends on the actions they take, as well as the thought process
the same creates. It was also noted that power is available to every individual working in a
productive business organization, no matter what position or designation the working
employee is placed in (Hatch, 2018). In this concern, this given report is focused on
examining the different kinds of power that lies in the hand of the employees as well as the
respective consequences of the same.
The five types of Power
As critically stated by Cooley (2017), power is considered to be the most critical
aspect of the civilization of human living since the immemorial of time. In the context of
business, the power is deemed to be physical, political as well as social, influencing the
decisions and the transactions of the working people (Berlin, 2017). In order to understand
the concept of power in a simple and understandable manner, the same is divided into the
given below categories.
Coercive Power
The above-mentioned power is conveyed in terms of letting an employee have a fear
of losing the job, getting demoted, receiving a below-grade review in the performance and
even prime projects being taken away from the management of a particular employee (Raven,
2017). This kind of power is received in the connection of threatening other working
individuals, which is against the workplace ethics. The consequence of the coercive power is
recognized as a leader purposefully trying to punish or threat one or more employee in order
to manipulate the workforce of the individual, which contradicts the propositions of Trait

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Theory of leadership. Take, for example, a senior level manager forcefully asking an
employee to work for long hours or to do a task the employee is not capable enough or
willing to do, and if the employee does not perform the same, the manager threatens to fire
the employee.
Reward Power
As the name itself suggests, this kind of power includes the synergy of rewards, perks,
better roles, new projects and training opportunities as well as financial advantages that
would influence the individuals of a working organization (Tedeschi, 2017). The
consequence of this kind of power is recognized to be positive. This is because the leaders
can use this power to motivate the employees by offering different pay-out schemes. This, in
turn, will increase the investment of the employees into work as well help the company to
reap the reward of success for itself as well. In this, Herzberg’s Motivation theory can be
related. Rewards can be considered as an element, catering to the hygienic factors needed for
luring the staffs.
Referent Power
The referent power is termed to be the power when an individual who is working as a
leader in an organization or a celebrity and other people loves to be around them (Johnson,
2017). This charisma of these people lets them be in power. Thus, they can exert influence on
other people because they are ready to affect their behavioural attribute as per the instructions
of the leaders or the celebrities they follow. The consequence of this kind of power is that the
person into power may take undue advantage of the power and manipulate their followers.
This kind of power exposure is a degradation for the preconceived skills, expertise and
knowledge. Instead, it is a misutilization of the provided power and authority, indicating

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taunts, mocking. Negligent approach towards altering the approach can act as a threat
towards upgradation of the personality. These aspects contradicts the Great Man Theory.
Expert Power
The expert power is that kind of power that an individual inherits because of the skills
and the expertise talent the same possesses (Hambrick et al., 2018). These skills and abilities
are considered to be of higher quality and paradigm, which is not easily recognized in every
individual. Concerning this situation, the person adhering the skills and talents have the
power to exercise their knowledge in order to influence other people. The consequences of
this kind of power are determined to be positive, as the person who is expertise receives a
higher level of respect and can thereby motivate the working nature of other individuals. In
this, behavioural theory of planned action and reasoned behaviour can be applied. Experts
consider tactfulness to be a prime aspect for exerting influence on the staffs.
Legitimate Power
The above-mentioned power reflects the exertion of power by the higher authorities
through the compliance with the legislative requirements (Van Werven, Bouwmeester &
Cornelissen, 2015). The boss of a company needs to adhere to the standards and protocol of
Ethical Code of Conduct for displaying leadership skills, abilities and competencies in an
adequate manner. Careless and negligent approach to the needs of the employees is a deviant
behaviour from the workplace behaviour. The behaviour exposed shapes the persona of the
personnel, setting an example for the staffs. Mapping the arenas in which the leaders expose
their power is assistance in terms of measuring the individualism, one of the effective
dimensions of power suggested by Hofstede.

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Power and its role in effective leadership
As stated by Bryson (2018), the conceptualization of leadership and power have
known to be inter-connected since its past existence in any situation and will continue with
the same. Therefore, concerning a working organization, any leader working in the same
should exert power in order to achieve a capable individual, the team, as well as the
organizational goals and desires.
This, in turn, helps all the employees to achieve an effective and efficient
performance level, the senior level managers to take critical strategical decisions as well as
allows the stakeholders to ensure the vibrancy of the organization. It was also examined that
power plays an essential role in defining the position of the different leaders connected to a
business entity. In this, the dimension of individualism vs collectivism can be related. This is
in terms of mapping the arenas through which the power and authority ventures. The leaders
with higher authority of power are placed at the highest level and in lieu of this, the leaders
with less authority of power in hand are placed at a medium or lower level of the
organization.
The role of Power in organizational politics
Power and organizational politics move together in a parallel direction (Wildavsky,
2017). In this connection, it was examined that the synergy of power provides guidance to the
politics of the organization that helps in its decision making process. Moreover, the
methodology of power helps in maintaining the regular and frequent communication process
between the upward and lower of both internal and external environment of the business
entity. Attempt towards combating excessive and dysfunctional political behaviour.
Consideration of the causal effect relationship is crucial in terms of achieving the desired

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outcomes. Open communication contradicts favouritism, which is needed in terms of gaining
respect from others.
Conclusion
Hence, to conclude, it can be stated that the ideology of power incoherently related to
every aspect of any productive business entity. This is because the power helps an individual
to implement its uses and get the work of the organization to be done effectively and
efficiently. Any organization without a proper leader will not be able to achieve its desired
goals and objectives. Similarly, any leader will not be able to delegate the authority of work
to the employees connected to the working structure of the organization unless and until the
individual is authorized to some extraordinary power in hand.

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References
Berlin, I. (2017). Two concepts of liberty. In Liberty Reader(pp. 33-57). Routledge.
Cooley, C. H. (2017). Human nature and the social order. Routledge.
Hambrick, D. Z., Burgoyne, A. P., Macnamara, B. N., & Ullén, F. (2018). Toward a
multifactorial model of expertise: beyond born versus made. Annals of the New York
Academy of Sciences, 1423(1), 284-295.
Hatch, M. J. (2018). Organization theory: Modern, symbolic, and postmodern perspectives.
Oxford university press.
Johnson, C. E. (2017). Meeting the ethical challenges of leadership: Casting light or shadow.
Sage Publications.
Miller, L. H. (2018). Global Order: Values and Power in International Relations. Routledge.
Raven, B. H. (2017). The comparative analysis of power and power preference. In Social
power and political influence (pp. 172-198). Routledge.
Tedeschi, J. T. (2017). Conflict, power, and games: The experimental study of interpersonal
relations. Routledge.
Van Werven, R., Bouwmeester, O., & Cornelissen, J. P. (2015). The power of arguments:
How entrepreneurs convince stakeholders of the legitimate distinctiveness of their
ventures. Journal of Business Venturing, 30(4), 616-631.
Wildavsky, A. (2017). Speaking truth to power: Art and craft of policy analysis. Routledge.