Power and Politics 2: Analyzing Workplace Dynamics Report

This report delves into the intricate relationship between power and politics within organizational settings, examining both positive and negative manifestations of influence. It explores how power dynamics shape decision-making, employee interactions, and overall workplace culture. The report distinguishes between positive forms of power, which promote productivity and employee empowerment, and negative forms, which can lead to decreased morale and high turnover. It highlights the importance of transparent policies and collaborative environments in fostering positive workplace politics. Furthermore, the report includes a case study of a large corporation, such as General Motors, to illustrate the complexities of power struggles, coalition formation, and the impact of leadership decisions. The analysis underscores the significance of understanding power dynamics for effective management and organizational success, emphasizing the need for leaders to navigate political landscapes and build strong coalitions.

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Power and Politics
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Table of Contents
Introduction………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….3
Positive forms of power…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………3
Negative forms of power……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….3
Positive workplace politics…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….4
Negative workplace politics……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………4
Case study………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………5
References.................................................................................................................................................10

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Introduction
Power and politics have been attributed to affecting businesses right from governing how
decision-making process gets implemented to how employees associate with each other (Zeiger,
n.d.). In both large and small enterprises, the effect of power rests on whether workers engage
positive or negative power in influencing others in places of work. Politics may be used in
influencing the people who have power thus dictating whether the general culture of the work
environment promotes productivity.
Positive forms of power
The use of positive power in an organization entails promoting productivity. This entails
according to employees the authority to make concrete decisions, giving awards to employees for
their robust and excellent performance and promoting employees who show strong performance
to be in charge of other employees. Positive power has the effect of boosting employee
confidence and motivate the same workers to work harder. It also involves the people in
executive positions to command respect through workers’ respect and communication as
opposed to coercive engagements. The rates associated with employee retention are high when
employees are accorded power to present their concerns and work in unity in the organization.
Negative forms of power
On the other hand, when leaders fail to show respect to employees working under them,
then they can be said to be possessing negative power. With this type of leadership, employees
are motivated to perform and deliver exemplary results by being threatened with job loss and
other forms of punishment or favoritism is extended to particular employees as opposed to
recognizing their endeavor of multiple workers. This does not only see the quality of work
decrease under this type of regime but also results in high turnover rates in an enterprise.

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Positive workplace politics
Employees that have mastered the art of navigating organizational politics are deemed to
be more productive compared to those who are left out in the dark. In order to boost productivity,
organizations are tasked with developing a political culture that is not only easy but also simple
for workers to fathom. Establishment of transparent policies and chains of authority makes it
simple for workers to find solutions they require thus spending more time on delivering quality
work. A work climate that emphasizes collaboration and equality when it gets to the treatment of
employees assists in preventing and curbing conflicts that can impact negatively on productivity.
Negative politics in workplaces
Organizations that cultivate climates exhibited and dominated by negativity and conflicts
end up suffering in the long-run. The encouragement of employs to indulge themselves in
unethical behavior so that they can develop and aspects of favoritism crown the quality of work,
an organization experiences decrease in productivity levels and turnover rates that are high. An
organization that lacks policies that are transparent and clear chains of command makes
employees spend more time seeking answers while trying to attempt to fix issues rather than
engaging in the completion of quality work.
Organizations of the modern world provide fertile yet perfect ground for the prosperity of
politics, and the term is commonly heard from individuals who work in organizations that are
either large or small. It is only when people in such organizations convert their power into action
that they are deemed to be actively involved in politics. The aspect of power at times exerts
much pressure as it is one of the most issues among employees and prompts several employees
to quit their jobs in such organizations in the event that political waters rise above their heads.
Employees who exhibit a great deal of knowledge and expertise but fail to demonstrate the

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ability to handle political environment get disappointed easily and this has the effect of affecting
their level of output.
Organization politics can be explained as the accomplishment of personal motives and
prioritizing individual interest over organizational interest without paying attention to the effect
on the organization. The power scene and the use of politics in a firm can be characterized by
individuals who are the cause of problems affecting the growth of their fellow workmates. Such
employees as they strive to climb up the ladder in their profession, they encounter problems that
are imposed along their way. Such problems are not authentic but are rather created deliberately
with the aim of hindering one’s growth and pulling such people down.
Case study
Some of the business activities are more attached to credibility gaps compared to the
manner in which executives view and handle organizational life (Zalenzik, 2013). A sense of
disbelief arises whenever managers attempt to make decisions in a rational manner while a
number of participants understand that politics play an important if not an overriding role.
Whatever motive organizations are formed for that is either for purposes as systems of reward or
entities for problem-solving, they still remain political structures. This translates to organizations
run based on delegating authority and developing a stage to exercise the power. It is thus no
surprise that people who are motivated to seize and use power endure a familiar and
accommodating environment in business.
Also, executives become reluctant to identify the platform for power both in personal
motivation and in institutional relationships. In one way or another, power and politics are
considered dirty words. In connecting these words to the context of personalities in enterprises,
some managers retreat into the safety of institutional logics.

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When it comes to the issue of competition for resources, conflicts of interest always
suffice and are easily identified for instance when allocating funds for research and development.
However, such conflicts are subject to bargaining procedures where all parties to the contest
have to validate their involvement (Cairns, 2017). The secondary impacts of bargaining do entail
organizational and power matters. However, the fact that such power issues ensue debate on
economic challenges as opposed to leading them to develop a manifest content that can be
subjected more readily compared to sectors where major considerations are channels for
delegating authority.
In such scenarios, that entail constructing a formal organization entity, a succession of
management, promotions, and conflicts of interest are dire and open mainly because there are no
subjective mechanisms to determine what is a wrong or right course of action (Verdasca, 2011).
The crucial question to be asked is who is to be entrusted power and position. This includes
specific people with both their strengths and weaknesses and a particular historical content where
actions are interpreted as symbolic.
The case of a large corporation such as General Motors, inadvertently proved what every
top seasoned manager knows (Zalenzik, 2013). Those power coalitions established to outdo
instances of rivalry and the play with regards to personal ambitions are fragile solutions.
Following the appointment of Cole to replace Knudsen that led to the resignation of Knudsen
terminated instances of an illusion that argues that the logical processes in organizations are
independent or preside over human emotions and relations that bind people together. If there is
an organization that can boast of rationality is General Motors (Entrepreneur, 2015). The display
of primary corporate life to the public more so the in the ranks of the executive is not logical at

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all and can be tainted to the point that the security that people think that they get from the belief
in a particular idea as such idea is attached to the corporate image.
The issue of Knudsen being discharged from being the president of Ford indicates that
personalities and politics of organizations are fewer aberrations and more instructions of life in
large corporations (Zalenzik, 2013). However, as General Motors strive in sustaining its image,
many executives like to ignore what this illustration displays, those corporations are political
entities which survive by feeding on the psychology of comparison. In trying to understand and
grasp something from the psychology of comparison drives us into the self-esteem theory in all
its manifestations that have both conscious and unconscious sources. Despite enlightening in a
general perspective, and drawing a realistic image of individuals and organizations, there are
some advantages that accrue in such knowledge and include: increased degree of freedom to act
directly instead of beating about the bush about a problem. Also, there is greater subjectivity
with regards to individuals’ strengths and limitations and thus the ability to utilize them
effectively.
Power relations
Corporation life, when viewed through the lens of politics, may be termed as a series of
contradictions (Nwaeke & Ugiabe, 2012). As a matter of fact, it is the practice of rationality
though its zeal and energy originate from the ideas that dominate the minds of people in power,
whose content and origins are vaguely perceived. It handles sources of authority and their
delegations yet rely on the availability of balance of power that rests on the shoulder of the
individual who triggers actions and gets an outcome. There are many rituals associated with such
a practice such as participation and power-sharing yet results entail power consolidation along
with a key figure to whom other people make emotional associations.

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Faulty coalitions
The structure of a formal organization adopts a coalition among its core executives.
However, the forms are different and also psychological significance in this context may differ.
However, it is apparent that no organization can operate without power consolidation in the
association of a key figure with his assigned team (Geppert & Dörrenbächer, 2014). Such a
coalition between the chief executive and his subordinate should not exist in the first place. It
may surpass the second level as witnessed in the context of presidents of the United States who
fail to establish relationships with their cabinets but instead depend on executive staff outside the
formal setups.
The lack of a coalition within the executive structure of a corporation can generate severe
challenges for instance paralysis that exists in the form of inability to make concrete decisions
and to examine performance and an overt rivalry in the executive team.
The failure of a coalition to develop stems from chief executive and issues in developing
relationships that are confident (Zalenzik, 2013). There are many causes that are complex but
they usually revolve around the kind of defenses by the chief executive and what he needs as a
mechanism of alleviating stress. The departure of Knudsen was triggered by palace revolt and is
a perfect illustration of the failure in the development of a coalition.
Though it is a fact that Henry Ford II appointed Knudsen as the leader of the company,
Knudsen’s absolute power as a tyro to an established structure rested on his effort of developing
an alliance (Zalenzik, 2013). The specific person who seemed ideal and critical in forming a
strategic alliance was Lee Iacocca. However, for some reason, both Knudsen and Iacocca seemed
to compete for authority and influence rather than soliciting a pool of power to which both
parties would contribute as it the case with many workplaces. Due to the lack of a coalition,

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postures of rivalry and battle for leadership ensued. Ford on the other hand acted by weighing
power exhibited on one side as compared to the other side. However, it is not clear why coalition
failed to emerge as with the case of Knudsen.
Though in any failure the ideal place to identify for the flaws is in the characters of the
main victims and the nature of defenses they exhibit which translates to some coalitions being
probable irrespective of how robust other variables demonstrate their necessity.
However, defensiveness on the role played by the chief executive could also lead in developing a
coalition that is unworkable and unrealistic, with the main character being isolation that is self-
driven as its repercussions (Zalenzik, 2013).One of the defensive mechanisms that are normally
engaged and has the effect of developing coalitions that are unrealistic or isolation of a top-
ranking official is fear to create rivalry.
A coalition that is realistic aligns with formal authority and professionalism with
emotional attachments vital for developing and sustaining a coalition. The top executives fear of
rivals or jealousy on the part of junior employees of the authority by the chief executive can in
extreme cases lead to distortions that are extremely paranoid. As such people become suspicious
of others and through their subjective perceptions and estimations of their fantasies develop
counterplots.
Critical episode
There are some scenarios that occur where there a good number of subordinates share and
aspire the same fantasy of being leaders (Goddard & Nexon, 2016). Suppose the same
subordinates feel that their rights are infringed based on their relationship with the chief
executive, such a condition can be the platform for developing a collision and this leads to a
critical episode that entails replacement of the key figure.

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For instance, the executives of an Interpublic Group, a complex estimated worth to be $
700 million and specialized in advertising and public relations facilitated and advocated for the
resignation of the chief executive by the name Harper. Harper had a long history of the company
as she had managed the company for a period of not less than 18 years. Marion had built the
company into becoming the global largest conglomerate in the distribution of marketing services.
In trying to expand the company, Harper led the company into acquisition processes, formed new
enterprises and widened his scope into global branches and firms. As it often occurs the
innovator becomes careless when it comes to controlling the empire built such that financial
crisis becomes apparent.
In the case of Harper, it is either he was unable to identify the gravity of his financial
challenges and specifically, the importance of allowing cash balances to operate below the
minimum set requirements as per the agreements with the financial institutions.
Harper appeared to be more careless in a more telling manner. Instead of forming strong
coalitions with his executive team, he depended on the development of individual ties which
controlled most of his relationships. If any of his executives offended him, Harper automatically
exiled the offender to one of the branches considered as remote.
When matters of financial constraints became too hard to bear, the aggrieved managers
who were once relied on Harper walked out and formed their coalition and were successful in
combining votes that were used to cast out Harper, firing him in return. Though there is little
information on the aftermath of this revolution, the coalition that had been formed faced
challenges of its own kind and this involved though not limited to power contention

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References
Cairns, T. D., 2017. Power, Politics, and Leadership in the Workplace. Employment Relations,
43(4), pp. 5-11.
Entrepreneur, 2015. 10 Examples of Companies With Fantastic Cultures. [Online]
Available at:
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/284732729_The_impact_of_teamwork_on_employee_
performance
[Accessed 28 April 2018].
Geppert, M. & Dörrenbächer, C., 2014. Politics and Power within Multinational Corporations:
Mainstream Studies, Emerging Critical Approaches and Suggestions for Future Research.
International Journal of Management Reviews, 16(2), pp. 226-244.
Goddard, S. E. & Nexon, D. H., 2016. The Dynamics of Global Power Politics: A Framework
for Analysis. Journal of Global Security Studies, 1(1), pp. 4-18.
Nwaeke, L. & Ugiabe, M., 2012. Power and politics in Organizations. [Online]
Available at:
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/275031275_POWER_AND_POLITICS_IN_ORGANI
SATIONS
[Accessed 20 May 2018].
Verdasca, A. T., 2011. Workplace Bullying, Power and Organizational Politics:A case-study in
the Portuguese Banking sector. [Online]
Available at: https://pascal.iseg.utl.pt/~socius/publicacoes/wp/WP_6_2011.UV.pdf
[Accessed 20 May 2018].

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Zalenzik, A., 2013. Power and Politics in Organizational Life. Harvard Business Review, 21(2),
pp. 124-136.
Zeiger, S., n.d. The Impact of Power and Politics in Organizational Productivity. [Online]
Available at: http://smallbusiness.chron.com/impact-power-politics-organizational-productivity-
35942.html
[Accessed 20 May 2018].