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Assignment HR 9 Power Politics

The document discusses the relationship between power and organizational politics and development. It states that power is inherent in organizations, as they are made up of different interest groups and divisions. It is important for organizational development practitioners to understand where power lies and how it is used to influence the organization when implementing change. Organizational development requires power to enable change, but may also disrupt existing power structures, so recognizing and harnessing power can support the change process. The distribution of power within an organization can also inform diagnosis and intervention design. The role of practitioners is not to eliminate politics and power but to help them become a constructive force that facilitates positive organizational behaviors and embedding of change.

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Deborina Bhattacharyya
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74 views

Assignment HR 9 Power Politics

The document discusses the relationship between power and organizational politics and development. It states that power is inherent in organizations, as they are made up of different interest groups and divisions. It is important for organizational development practitioners to understand where power lies and how it is used to influence the organization when implementing change. Organizational development requires power to enable change, but may also disrupt existing power structures, so recognizing and harnessing power can support the change process. The distribution of power within an organization can also inform diagnosis and intervention design. The role of practitioners is not to eliminate politics and power but to help them become a constructive force that facilitates positive organizational behaviors and embedding of change.

Uploaded by

Deborina Bhattacharyya
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Assignment on Organisational Change and

Development HR-9

By Deborina Bhattacharyya

MBA (HR), 4th Semester

How we can link Power with Organizational development


Organisations are made up of many different power elements; different interest
groups, divisions with functional agendas, coalitions of special interests, the exercise
of managerial power and various aspects of political behaviour exercised by
individuals, teams and groups.

With power so inherent in the makeup of an organisation it is important that the OD


practitioner who is embarking on an OD programme understands what power exists,
who holds the power and also the way in which power is used to influence the
workings of the organisation.

OD by its nature is political.  Not because it wants to inherit the power within the
organisation, but because organisation development is fundamentally about change,
and change requires power to happen.  What is more OD may upset the power
boundaries and political landscape of the organisation recognising and harnessing
the power within the organisation prevents resistance and supports the change
process.

Being skilful in our recognition and use of the power holders within the organisation
will ensure that the change process is aided by those with power and supported by
the political machinations rather than being used to create barriers for the OD
practitioner to bump into.

The distribution of power is also useful to understand in the context of organisational


diagnosis.  For instance understand how many employees feel disempowered, and
don’t perceive them as having access to the sources of power within the organisation
can inform the organisation development intervention design.   Investigating and
understand who holds power, but not necessarily authority will also inform key
decisions, especially over who should be included on temporary diagnostic teams, or
trained as change agents.
The purpose of the OD intervention is not to eradicate power and politics within the
organisation, since they are inevitable, and to do so would be to create a power
vacuum which will disrupt the process of embedding the change programme.
Rather, the role of the OD practitioner is to enable power and politics to become a
healthy and transformational force for good within the organisation, dedicated to
creating a positive environment and healthy organisational behaviours.

Relationship between Power and Organisational Politics


Organizational Power According to Max Weber (1947),”Power is the probability that
one actor within a social relationship will be in a position to carry out his own will
despite resistance.” The acquisition and maintenance of power is one of the most
socially motivating processes that occur in modern organizations. Three categories
of people are always involved in the power game of an organization (especially in
small and medium enterprises): the owner(s) of the businesses can influence the
decision-making process in their favour and also influence promotions of workers.

The top level management are also involved in the power-play as they oversee daily
activities and have high influence on the decision making of the organization. The
third category is the ‘top performers.’ The company can actually not do without them
due to the high productive input they bring into the organization, and that enable
them to wield some decision making powers in the organization.

Organizational politics can be referred to as the structure and process of use of


authority and power to effect definitions of goals, directions and other parameters of
the organization. It can be defined as the management of influence to obtain ends
not sanctioned by the organization or to obtain sanctioned ends through non-
sanctioned influence means. Politics is an important function that results from
differences in the self-interests of individuals. It is the art of creative compromise or
bargain amongst competing interests. It is the use of power to develop socially
acceptable ends and means that balance individual and collective interests.

Political behaviour is the getting, developing and using of power to reach a desired
result. It often appears in situations of uncertainty or conflict over choices. It often
happens outside accepted channels of authority. It is an unofficial, unsanctioned
behaviour to reach a goal. The use of political behaviour is to affect decisions, get
scarce resources and earn cooperation of people outside direct authority. The
characteristics of political behaviour are power and influence.

 Organizations are made up of coalitions which rival with one another for
resources, influence and energy.
 Different groups that forms coalitions will strive to protect their stake and
influential positions by knowing the pressures and effects of their
environment.
 There is a dehumanizing effect in the unequal distribution of power
 The use of power within various organizations is one very important aspect of
exercising power within the larger social system.

Organizational politics has recognized various areas specifically relevant to the


degree to which organizations are rather political than rational. These areas are:
goals, change, resources, external environment and technology

Today, many organizations are more political. They possess very limited resources;
they make ambivalent decisions; have very uncertain but yet complex goals; they
have very high complex technology; and are undergoing extreme changes. These
types of organizations face more politics and game of power (or power game)
becomes rapidly more important. Conditions that intimidate the prestige of the
powerful or support efforts of those willing to expand their base of power will
encourage intensity of politics in the organization and raise the rate of behaviour in
decision making that are as political as against being rational.

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