Wk 9

The Concept of Power: How organizational subunits and individuals are controlled is related
to the issue of power and influence.
The difference between the definition of power and the definition of influence: Power
represents the capability to get someone to do something; influence is the exercise of that
capability. Another way of stating the distinction is to say that power is the potential to
influence, while influence is power in action.

Power relationships in organizations

1- symmetrical: this means that both parties are equal, or have the same amount of
power.
2- Asymmetrical : meaning one person in the relationship has more power than the other
Symmetry is a property that can change over time, as a person or group gains or loses power.

Two important categories of power in an organization are

interpersonal and structural.
1- Interpersonal Power
John French and Bertram Raven suggested five interpersonal sources or bases of power: ▪
Legitimate ▪ Reward ▪ Coercive ▪ Expert ▪ Referent
1- Legitimate power is a person’s ability to influence others because of the position
within the organization that person holds. Legitimate or position power is derived
from the position itself. That is, the organization has given to an individual
occupying a particular position the right to influence and command certain other
individuals. This formal power is what we call authority . The manager has the
legitimate power to command certain subordinates in lower positions. Not
following orders subjects the offender to disciplinary action
Organizational authority has the following characteristics:
1. It is invested in a person’s position An individual has authority because of the
position she holds, not because of any specific personal characteristics.
2. It is accepted by subordinates The individual in a legal authority position
exercises authority and can gain compliance because he or she has a legitimate
right.
3. Authority is used vertically Authority flows from the top down in the
hierarchy of an organization.
*For a subordinate to comply with an order from a superior requires that the order
fall within the subordinate’s zone of indifference.
zone of indifference means: If all possible orders that might be directed to an
individual from a superior were arranged in the order of their acceptability to the
individual, some would be clearly acceptable while others might be clearly
 unacceptable. Zone of indifference is dependent to the extent to which the boss
has a source of power other than authority.

2- Reward Power is based on a person’s ability to reward a follower for compliance.

It occurs when someone possesses a resource that another person wants and is
willing to exchange that resource in return for certain behavior. Reward power is
used to back up the use of legitimate power. If followers value the rewards the
manager can provide (recognition, extra time off,.), they may respond to orders,
requests, and directions. If what a manager is offering as a reward has no value to
an individual, it will not likely influence behavior.
3- Coercive power, is the power to punish. Followers may comply out of fear. A
manager may block a promotion or criticize a subordinate for poor performance.
These practices and the fear they will be used are coercive power.
One need not be in a position of authority to possess coercive power. For example,
fear of rejection by co-workers for not complying with group norms (e.g.,
punctuality, reliability, or high performance) represents coercive power even
though one’s co-workers have no formal authority.
4- Expert Power a person has expert power when they possess special expertise that
are highly valued. Experts have power even when their formal position in the
organizational hierarchy is low. A person may possess expertise on technical,
administrative, or personal matters. ▪ The salesperson who has a knack for landing
new accounts, ▪ The IT support person who always solves computer problems for
employees, ▪ The college dean who consistently raises the most Money. They have
enhanced ability to influence others because of their special expertise. The more
difficult it is to replace the expert, the greater degree of expert power they possess.
5- Referent Power many individuals identify with and are influenced by a person
because of the latter’s personality or behavioral style. The charisma of the person
is the basis of referent power. A person with charisma is admired because of his or
her characteristics. The strength of a person’s charisma is an indication of his or
her referent power.

Interpersonal Power
Organizational Power Personal Power
▪ Legitimate Power ▪ Expert Power ▪ Referent
Power
▪ Reward Power
▪ Coercive power

SUBORDINATE RESPONSES TO DIFFERENT POWER SOURCES

1. The use of legitimate or reward power will typically result in compliance.
Compliance means that subordinates will obey your requests, but are unlikely to
exert more than the minimal effort necessary.
2. The use of coercive power may result in resistance. Resistance means that
subordinates may only pretend to comply with your requests, and they may openly
resist.
 3-The use of expert or referent power frequently results in commitment.
Commitment means subordinates are likely to exert high levels of effort to
accomplish what you ask, perhaps even exceeding what you requested.

2- Structural Power

Power is frequently prescribed by structure within the organization. Structural

sources of power result from the nature of the organizational social system rather
than from attributes of an individual. The structure of an organization is the control
mechanism by which the organization is governed.
In the organization’s structural arrangements, decision-making discretion is
allocated to various positions. Also, the structure greatly affects the patterns of
communication and the flow of information within the system. Thus,
organizational structure creates formal power and authority by specifying certain
individuals to perform specific tasks and make certain decisions. Structure also
significantly impacts informal power through its effect on information and
communication flows within the system.

Other forms of structural power exist because of

▪ Resources ▪ Decision Making ▪ Information

Resources
power stems from:
1. access to resources, information, and support
2. the ability to get cooperation in doing necessary work.
Power occurs when a person has open channels to resources— money, human
resources, technology, materials, customers, and so on

The top-level manager has more power to allocate resources than do other
managers further down the managerial hierarchy. The lower-level manager
receives resources that are granted by top-level managers. To ensure compliance
with goals, top-level managers (e.g., presidents, vice presidents, directors) allocate
resources on the basis of performance and compliance. Thus, a top-level manager
usually has power over a lower-level manager because the lower-level manager
must receive resources from above to accomplish goals.

Decision-Making Power
The degree to which individuals or subunits (e.g., a department or a special project
group) can affect decision making indicates the amount of power acquired.
A person or subunit with power can influence ▪ how the decision-making process
occurs ▪ what alternatives are considered, and ▪ when a decision is made
Decision-Making Power Individuals who influence a decision-making process and
its outcomes may or may not have formal authority.
Information Power
Knowledge is considered by some experts to be more powerful than any part or
structure of an organization.
Knowledge is defined as a conclusion or analysis derived from data and
information.
Data are facts, statistics, and specifics. Information is the context in which data are
placed.
Microsoft, Facebook, Apple, Google and Amazon used the knowledge,
information, experience, and creativity possessed by employees to gain a
competitive advantage in their industries..
Accountants generally do not have a particularly strong or apparent interpersonal
power base in an organization. Rather, accountants have power because they
control important information. Information is the basis for making effective
decisions
Sales people who have access to major customers also have power in
organizations. The power comes from knowing what these customers like and
dislike regarding the company’s products, prices, delivery terms.
Sales people may reject an idea from the production department by stating: “My
customer won’t like the new packaging” or “if we do that, we’ll definitely lose
business.”
Thus, those who possess information needed to make optimal decisions have
power. A true picture of a person’s power is provided not only by the person’s
position but also by the person’s access to relevant information.

Negotiation

parties are potentially in conflict, they may choose to negotiate a resolution.

Negotiation occurs in the interactions of almost everyone in groups and
organizations.
Negotiation as a process in which two or more parties try to agree on the exchange
rate for goods or services they are trading. Negotiation and bargaining terms are
used interchangeably.
Within a negotiation, one should be aware that individuals have issues, positions,
and interests. Issues are items that are specifically placed on the bargaining table
for discussion. Positions are the individual’s stand on the issues. For instance,
salary may be an issue for discussion. The salary you hope to receive is your
position. Interests are the underlying concerns that are affected by the negotiation
resolution.

Bargaining Strategies

▪ Distributive Bargaining ▪ Integrative Bargaining

Distributive bargaining is a negotiating strategy that operates under zero-sum
(win-lose) conditions. any gain I make is at your expense, and vice versa. example
of distributive bargaining is in labour management negotiations over wages.
When engaged in distributive bargaining, a party focuses on trying to get the
opponent to agree to a specific target point. Ex.: persuading your opponent of the
impossibility of reaching his or her target point and the advisability of accepting a
settlement near yours.

Integrative Bargaining operates under the assumption that there exists one or more
settlements that can create a win-win solution. In terms of intraorganizational
behaviour, all things being equal, integrative bargaining is preferable to
distributive bargaining. Because this builds long-term relationships and makes
working together in the future easier.
t bonds negotiators and allows both sides to leave the bargaining table feeling that
they have achieved a victory. In union-management negotiations, both sides might
sit down to figure out other ways to reduce costs within an organization, so that it
is possible to have greater wage increases.
Negoiation procecess: Developing a Strategy. Defining grounds, Clarification and
justification, Bargaining and problem solving, Closure and implemenation.