Organizational Behaviour - Sakural's Blog Entry #5—Power and Politics within Business


At the beginning of the article, the authors use metaphors to simplify the understanding of reading organizational management: corporations are machines and organizations are organisms. Managers and employees, on the other hand, are likened to "rulers and ruled", "organizations are collections of voters" or "organizations are political arenas".

Within the article's first main section, the author explores the concepts of stakeholders, power, and politics. Stakeholders are defined as individuals or groups who are affected by a company's success or failure. As time goes on, they will continue to evolve to include not only those closely associated with the company but also broader communities and government entities. Also, the author reminds us that it is essential to assess the needs and interests of stakeholders before managing them effectively.

The article also delves into several stakeholder management theories. These include:

  • Normative stakeholder management theories, which focus on stakeholder satisfaction as the ultimate goal.
  • Instrumental stakeholder management theory, which links stakeholder management to the overall success of the organization.
  • Descriptive stakeholder theories, which take into account stakeholders' changing priorities based on organization needs and resource dependency theories.

The theories outline several possible stakeholder interests and conflicts that can arise.

In the section on power, the authors describe power as competencies developed to overcome resistance and accomplish goals. There is also a discussion of the different sources of power, including authority, network status, centrality, and access to information and resources. It is also pointed out that power is dynamic and changes constantly within organizations.

In the section on politicalthis is viewed as a way to manage conflict within the organization and exercise power. It's particularly important for an organization to develop political strategies during times of uncertainty or disagreement. The authors present a variety of strategies, including alliance building, coalition building, and the use of power within the organization.

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It combines the concept of political power with the principles of practical organizational management.

The article quotes several politicians and places them in the article, such as: "Real politics is the appropriation and distribution of power. (Benjamin Disraeli, former UK prime minister)", and "Real politics is the appropriation and distribution of power. (Benjamin Disraeli, former UK prime minister)". It makes the whole article appear very serious and cold. However, it is easier to understand how politics and power work in the workplace by reading this article.

In addition, the article adds stakeholders. In the previous four articles, this crucial "game player" was not mentioned. However, they are the ones who determine the direction and design of the game. Although it is a lengthy article, it is well worth the time to read.



* Reference
Kobeissi, D. (2022, September 13). Power politics and stakeholder management: The
    effects on the organizational DNA. Meer. Retrieved from   
    https://www.meer.com/en/70109-power-politics-and-stakeholder-management


Thank you for taking the time to read my post and I would appreciate it if you would leave any comments.

Comments

  1. Hello Sakura,
    Thanks for sharing this article with us. The article uses metaphors to simplify and explain fundamental topics, providing important insights in the complex world of organizational management. I like how it focus on the importance of stakeholders and their changing requirements, the importance of understanding and efficiently managing them. The investigation of various stakeholder management ideas gives a complete strategy to handle this critical part of organizational performance. Overall, this article offers a stimulating guide to efficient organizational administration.

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