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Power, Politics, and Culture Kendrick Jordan Class Name and Number Dr. Eva Ananiewicz December 3rd 2023 1

Power, Politics, and Culture The word Power is defined as the capacity or ability to direct or influence the behavior of others or the course of events. When it comes to the business perspective, power is thought of as a bad thing. The perspective of power in the workplace, comes mainly from experience. Employees in an organization have seen power used in a good which benefits an organization and power being used in a negative way that brings conflict to the organization. As mentioned above, power can be used to achieve goals, build relationships in the workplace and, resolve conflict (Cogar, 2022). Power can also be used in a negative manner which can include controlling others and being manipulative to others which can cause strife in the workplace (Cogar, 2022). It is viable to understand power dynamics in the workplace because it is used to create positive and efficient workspaces. Power dynamics is related to the relationships of those in an organization. It starts from the head of the organization and trickles down to everyone else in the organization, and affects the behavior of those in the organization (Cogar, 2022). Working in an organization where the dynamics of power isn't being used to build relationships and resolve conflict, instead it is doing the total opposite. Individuals in power or have the power should focus on using their power to benefit the organization and uplift everyone in the workplace. There are many examples of dynamics of power within an organization and it is very important to understand these dynamics. Formal authority is an example of a dynamic of power, formal authority refers to a person’s position inside the organization, which gives the person in charge the ability to give orders to others and tell them what to do (Cogar,2022). Formal authority is a clear pathway for the power to be either positive or negative, because the 2

individuals in the organization knows who is giving orders and who is expected to follow them. An example of formal authority will be a department that is given a task that must be carried out through the individuals in the department. The second example of power dynamics is charismatic power. The charismatic power refers to the ability of the person in charge to charm and persuade the individuals that they have power over (Cogar, 2022). This type of power involves how well the person in charge is able to deliver his intent to the persons that they are in authority of to ensure that it is received well. I believe that how a message is delivered will determine the way that it is received, in my current organization the way that messages are delivered mainly in a negative way creates discord between the individuals that are on the team. The final example of power dynamic is the expert power, which refers to the knowledge and skills that the person in charge possesses (Cogar, 2022). The word expert means having or involving authoritative knowledge, simply put the person in charge has advanced knowledge on the task at hand. The three discussed examples of power dynamics can conflict with each other (Cogar, 2022). An example of how they can be at conflict with each other is the following scenario; A principle of a school, has formal authority of the teachers and teachers aid in the building, they will need to use their expert knowledge to convince the teachers that are practices are best to make the teachers trust the judgment of the person in charge. The source of power that I chose could be applied to influencing the department and improving organizational performance is reward power. Reward power is defined as the ability to grant a reward (Perry, 2021). I chose reward power because in a job field such as education, there is an all time teacher shortage and teachers are leaving at an all time high, so an offered 3

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reward will help keep the organization running. In the field of education, the reward will be in the form of a bonus during the school year or a raise at the beginning of the school year. Teachers in the United States are experiencing burnout and an excessive workload which causes teachers to show a decrease in their performance and quit their jobs. Most teachers complain about the lack of pay that they receive, which does not equal the amount of work that a teacher puts in each day. I believe that rewarding them with a monetary token will encourage teachers to stay at their jobs and improve their performance. A retention bonus at the beginning of the year that teachers would receive if they return for the next school year and meet certain metrics throughout the school year. The idea of a bonus at the beginning of the school year will encourage teachers to work effectively during the school year because they will have something to look forward to. Outside of a retention bonus, a Christmas bonus before the Christmas break will show appreciation to the teachers for their hard work during the first semester and to spread extra cheer around the holiday season. The idea of giving teachers and staff a bonus twice a year, will act as a motivation to them. Reward power comes into play because, as a person in charge, you won't have to apply additional pressure on them (Perry, 2023). Offering them the incentive that is desirable, will encourage them to apply the necessary pressure themselves to get the job done (Perry, 2023). The reward is thought to encourage them to use their energy to push the organization forward,and produce results, and they will be compensated for their time and performance (Perry, 2023). Having a background in education, just as in any other profession, employees need something to motivate them. According to the Better Up blog, reward power is important 4

because leaders can use their power to keep their team happy and engaged with the work they are doing (Perry, 2021). One of the most important parts of organizational behavior is understanding that the idea of power and politics are very critical and sometimes misunderstood in the idea of organizational behavior. Most organizations use their power to control the following aspects; compensation, advancement, certain decisions and company information. Politics exist both formally and informally in how the organization functions. Formal systems relate to how the organization does things and their processes are organized and executed. Informal systems are the structured activity and the built relationships that ensure that the job gets done. Organizational politics are a result of involvement of the members of the organization, to seek resources and reach their goals through informal systems and the structure of the organization. The politics show how people gain power and use their power to get ahead in the organization. According to the Harvard Business Review, organizations are meant to be political (Zalenzick, 1970). Organizations are meant to be political despite the kind of systems that are in place. Organizations distribute authority to individuals based on different reasons; their experience, ability to lead, and certain connections they have within the company. Organizations operate by distributing that power to individuals based on the mentioned above reasons (Zalenzick, 1970). The recommendations I can provide is to analyze who is given power in the organization. Some individuals only want the power just to have the position, and not to improve the culture of the organization. I think that this can be done by interviewing the person before promotion 5

to ensure that their goals for the position aligns with the goals of the organization. For example, when an individual is being promoted from being a classroom teacher, to becoming a part of the administration team. The school leaders should spend time accessing the purpose, and the goal that the person wants to reach in that new role, and how they will interact with the individual they have to manage. There are certain behaviors that those in leadership should exhibit, having a coaching mindset really stuck out to me because as a leader you should want the team that you are managing to advance their skill set and grow professionally (Santiago, 2022). Having the correct behavior as a leader and showing leadership qualities in their position, is very important to the culture of an organization. It is very important that leaders understand their role in order to do their job effectively and produce meaningful results. Leadership is about the behaviors and actions of the individual, the behaviors must align with the goals of the company and the goals that the team is expected to accomplish (Santiago, 2022). The leader must ask themselves the question, “ Is my behavior having a positive effect on the organization, or bringing the organization down”, (Santiago, 2022). The behavior of a leader can boost the organization’s morale or bring the morale down which will cause employees to quit (Santiago, 2022). 6

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References Cogar, J. (2022, September 22). Power dynamics: Understanding power in the workplace. Management Consulted. https://managementconsulted.com/power-dynamics Perry, E. (2021, November 23). Reward power in the workplace and how to motivate employees. The Most Comprehensive Coaching Platform | BetterUp. https://www.betterup.com/blog/reward-power Santiago, E. (2022, May 23). 30 leadership behaviors you need to be an excellent leader. HubSpot Blog | Marketing, Sales, Agency, and Customer Success Content. https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/leadership-behaviors Zalenzick, A. (1970, May 1). Power and politics in organizational life. Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/1970/05/power-and-politics-in-organizational-life 7

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