Political Analysis

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Political Analysis 1 Political Analysis Michelle Barsom School of Education, Liberty University Author Note Michelle Barsom I have no known conflict of interest to disclose. Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to: Michelle Barsom. Email: mbarsom@liberty.edu

Political Analysis 2 Political Analysis Power and influence in an organization are important in order to gain a full understanding of the dynamics behind how institutions operate. How power is handled in an organization is critical in ultimately determining the success or failure of an organization. Different people in the same organization have varying levels of power that can be used in alternative ways. Power in the Organization Five types of power have been identified in organizations. Of the formal powers, there is legitimate power, which means that an individual actually has a right to exert influence and supply directives to the company (Expert Program Management, 2017). At Hartford Technical College, legitimate power rests with the president. She gets most of her directives from the state and the board of trustees; so any policies that the president issues must be followed. Coercive power is a form of power that is not really used at Hartford. Coercion can be threatening; however, a supervisor must directly observe something that a subordinate might be doing for coercive power to be effective. With Hartford being separated into five campuses, it is extremely difficult for managers to observe employees’ actions so coercive power can only be used if there are complaints. The final type of formal power is reward power and this is based on a manager providing items such as praise or gifts to get employees to act a particular way. Most managers at Hartford regularly provide praise to their employees as a way to boost morale and maintain a commitment to the college and its mission (Expert Program Management, 2017). The final two types of power are personal power. Expert power is related to an individual’s knowledge or experience in a certain area. The library director at Hartford Technical College has expert power in library science due to years of experience in the field and her

Political Analysis 3 educational background. In addition, the deans and directors of different departments also have expert power for the same reasons as the library director, along with the vice presidents. The final pillar of power is referent power, which is related to having the trust and respect of subordinates in the workplace. Supervisors gain referent power by displaying exemplary professional behavior and delegating the workflow among employees in a manner that does not display favoritism (Expert Program Management, 2017). The library director has referent power in that she has the respect of her employees and they are always willing to work with her on any project. The president has referent power with those in senior administrative positions. Unfortunately, it is hard to determine if different department heads at the college have this particular power, as there is a lack of familiarity on those levels with the different departments. Access to Information At Hartford Technical College, the president has control of the overall procedures of the college. When it comes to different departments, the deans and directors of those departments are in charge of establishing policies and procedures for their respective areas. The same can also be said for agendas. In the library unit, the director is ultimately responsible for creating the agenda for meetings and providing access to the staff, as well as crafting the policies and procedures. However, the director does invite input from the campus library staff members on all aspects of the planning process and this data will be considered. Nevertheless, the director’s expert power will be used to determine the final result of the information that is provided and who will have access to it. This can be viewed as both transactional and transformational leadership (Elias, 2008). Power Coalitions and Alliances

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Political Analysis 4 Employees will also create alliances in the workplace in order to both gain leverage for themselves or to reap particular benefits. This can be done in multiple ways (Milacci & Kuhne, 2013). At Hartford Tech, gaining alliances is easily done by becoming friendly with a person in authority. An example that happened was a manager of a department becoming very good friends, and almost a favorite employee, of the president. Suddenly this employee could do no wrong. If there was extra money in the budget at the end of the year, it always went to her department. While there have been several departments with hiring freezes for 3 to 4 years, this employee can immediately fill any position that she deems necessary. There are alliances that exist in the library. The librarians at a particular campus have a closer bond than those at another location. However, for the most part, the library unit as a whole is an alliance and works together as a coalition. Since the library itself is not a profit-making entity of the college, the department has to fight harder to obtain access to a larger part of the budget. Therefore, the library staff works as one unit to get tasks accomplished and bring about change that will benefit students, faculty, staff, and the complete organization. Upward Influence The library also works as a united front to influence other units. In particular, this is done to other divisions with Academic Affairs regarding library instruction. This is a manner of upward influence in that it gives both instructors and students a greater ability to think critically and develop a level of information literacy that was not possessed before. Information literacy and critical thinking are critical needs today as the amount of information available can be overwhelming if individuals are not aware of how to investigate what is presented to them. The library staff must work together as it has been rather difficult convincing instructors to change

Political Analysis 5 their course of action by allowing librarians into their courses to introduce this information that will not only aid students while they are in school but also once they graduate as well. Conclusion If a leader uses power correctly it can greatly benefit an organization. Effective managers can use their influence to promote change in the organization. It is imperative that an institution adapt to the altering patterns in society and respond appropriately to both the immediate and future needs of its customers (Bolman & Deal, 2021).

Political Analysis 6 References Bolman, L.G. & Deal, T.E. (2021). Reframing organizations: Artistry, choice, and leadership (7 th ed.). John Wiley & Sons. Elias, S. (2008). Fifty years of influence in the workplace: The evolution of the French and Raven power taxonomy. Journal of Management History , 14 (3), 267-283. https://doi.org/10.1108/17511340810880634 Expert Program Management. (2017 June 16). The 5 types of power…and how to use them . [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VJztnIFPO4o Milacci, F. & Kuhne, G. (2013). Understanding organizations as organisms . Liberty University. [Video]. EDUC745_D03_202330, Week5.

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