Transcript Mgt. 667 – Leadership Week 6 Rex Mitchell Spring 2006 Instrument 4, Attitudes re Power & Politics Tally responses by question Discuss items with wide spread.

Mgt. 667 – Leadership
Week 6
Rex Mitchell
Spring 2006
Instrument 4, Attitudes re
Power & Politics
Tally responses by question
Discuss items with wide spread or strong
shift to one end
Basic Power & Leadership
Concepts
Engaging with Readings
What are my reactions to this: thoughts,
feelings?
What do I agree with, like, want to
remember and use? Why?
What do I disagree with, wish were
different, would change, would expand
on...? Why?
What connections & expansions can I
make from my experience?
Power: potential ability to influence
behavior, events …get people to do things
they would not do otherwise
Influence, politics: processes & actions
through which potential power is used
Leadership: art of mobilizing others to
want to struggle for shared aspirations
Sources of Power
Formal authority & reputation
Resources
System connections & positioning
Expertise
Personal
Theory of Power
1. In the absence of a leader or one
exercising power, individuals will
compete to assume power
2. Power is exercised by individuals, not
groups, and is invariably personal
3. To be effective and lasting, power must
be based on a set of ideas and a body of
common knowledge
Theory of Power (cont.)
4. Power is exercised through
organizations, and the exercise is
legitimated and constrained by the
organization’s common knowledge
5. Power actions occur in a context that
includes various stakeholders and
audiences
Three Propositions I Believe
Power is necessary and is neither good
nor bad inherently
Influence is a form of power that tends to
reduce the potential for negative effects
Power and love are not a dichotomy
First Notes from Pfeffer Book
Notes are brief, so you have to think about the
concepts & expand on the notes
However, the notes have important points
Re Preface & ch. 1, Decisions & Implementation:
– Reactions, thoughts, feelings?
– Agree with, like, want to remember & use?
– Disagree with, dislike, would change?
– Connections & expansions from my experience?
Let’s also discuss:
Ambivalence re power (Pfeffer p.8-14)
Importance of implementation, especially
considering stakeholders and political
realities (p. 19, 29-30)
Stakeholder Analysis
What is a stakeholder?
Need to be selective, consider MAJOR
stakeholders
Typical stakeholder analysis:
–
–
–
–
–
Identify topic for analysis
Identify major stakeholders for this topic
Determine degree of support or opposition
Assess balance of support
If not sufficient, work on changing
Decrease larger opposing forces
Increase supporting forces
…HOW?
How to Decrease Opposing Forces
1. Find out stakeholders' reasons for opposition, plus what
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
is important to them
Try to convince them of the advantages of the change,
framed in ways that address important concerns for
them
"Horse-trading"
Modify your plan to accommodate some of the
objections and interests
Involve third-parties who have credibility, influence, &/or
power over stakeholders
(Occasionally) try to intimidate them or get them moved
elsewhere
Involve key stakeholders earlier in the decision-making
and planning process
Stakeholder Exercise
Do a stakeholder analysis for Case 6 (Informal
Leader Firing), with the topic of reinstating Mike
Henry (should write notes):
– Identify the major stakeholders (individuals and
groups)
– Infer their likely positions and concerns regarding the
topic above
– Estimate the balance of support (i.e., relative strength
of support for and against reinstating Henry)
– What could be done to shift this balance of support in
either direction?
Basic Power & Leadership Concepts (cont.)
See Pfeffer book notes, ch. 2
Your reactions?
Agree
Disagree
Extend
In groups, discuss: (p.38) power is used
more frequently under conditions of
moderate interdependence
Pfeffer ch.3
Diagnosing power & dependence
Note connections with stakeholder
analysis
Agrees?
Disagrees?
Extensions?
Ex.2: Indicators of Power
In groups, take turns identifying some
indicators of power in your organizations
Note similarities and differences
Brief reports back to class
Leadership is not an affair of the
head.
Leadership is an affair of the heart.
Next time
Instrument 5 in advance
Pfeffer ch. 4-9
– Use my five sources of power as basis
– Use notes to help focus
Framing piece on Web