Managing Conflict and Power

/Politics in Organition
Dr.Yuni Ros Bangun MBA
INTERPERSONAL SKILLS – MANAGING CONFLICT

A want X, B does not want X

Let us discuss about that - perform

Organization, people, change , etc

 Conflict ? Good or bad ?

OUT
COME

Degree of conflict optimum

CONFLICT PROCESS
• POTENTIAL CONFLICT
• PERCEIVED CONFLICT (cognition /personalization
• BEHAVIOR
• RESOLVING CONFLICT

RESULT - PERFORMANCE
POTENTIAL CONFLICT
• COMMUNICATION
• ORGANIZATION / WORK STRUKTUR
• INDIVIDUAL CHARACTERISTICS
BASIC STRATEGY
TWO DIMENSION in RESOLVING CONFLICT

• ASSERTIVENESS ( preference style of people in dealing

with conflicts)
• COOPERATIVENESS ( all about willingness to
cooperate in resolving conflicts)
 STRATEGY
NEGOTIATION

FORCE/COMPETE INTEGRATE
HIGH

COMPROMIZE
LOW

AVOID ACCOMODATE
Assertiveness
LOW HIGH

cooperativeness
HOW about you ?

•Managing Interpersonal Conflict

•Strategies for Handling Conflict

YOUR score ?
 What is your most STRATEGY
NEGOTIATION

FORCE/COMPETE INTEGRATE
HIGH

COMPROMIZE
LOW

AVOID ACCOMODATE
Assertiveness
LOW HIGH

cooperativeness
Appropriate resolving conflict
• Variable degree of problem ( urgency ?
Crisis ?, tendency of problem impact)
• People involved
• Time available
• Risk involved
• Information available
• EMPHATY - LISTEN
• SAY “ Yes, yes , We do understand”
• Sebutkan nama pihak ybs …ya pak Andi…,
saya mengerti persoalannya, jika sayapun merasa dirugikan, saya juga akan
protes”
• Start dengan
* Mengulangi statement / problem yang sangat dipedulikan ybs
* Hal hal yang “common” dan disepakati bersama
* Sell all the main benefits

• Flexibility of using an Appropriate Transactional Analysis

• Get “ YES” dari ybs dengan menggunakan point diatas.
What happen when individual join the group ?
What need to know ?

• CONFLICT and manage conflict

• Your interaction mode 

• To follow or to lead -
• Influence and get the power
• Influence and get group support
Sources:
•Organizational Behavior-Stephen P.Robbins

•Developing Management Skills – David Whettten , K. Cameron

•Interpersonal Skills –Suzanne,Karen, Beth
 It’s good to be the King

• Power A capacity that A has to influence

the behavior of B so that B acts in
accordance with A’s wishes
• Dependency B’s relationship to A when A
possesses something that B requires
Dependencyincrease when resources are
importance,scarce and non substitutable
Where the POWER is ?
• It was in organization chart, but not longer change (tech,
business,competition make change in “the job weight” in the
organization position impact level to the business targets
• Power tactics ways in which individuals translate power bases into
specific actions
POWER in GROUPS COALITION

• There’s strength in numbers

POLITICS  POWER in ACTION

Political behavior  those activities that are not required as part of one’s
formal role in the organization, but that influence, or attempt to influence,
the distribution of advantages or disadvantages within the organization

When employees convert their power into action, we describe

them as being engaged in politics - legitimate political or
illegitimate political behavior
Factors influencing Political Behavior
INDIVIDUAL
• High self monitor
• Internal locus of control
• High mach
• Organizational investment
• Perceived job alternatives
• Expectation of success
POLITICAL BEHAVIOR
Low
FAVORABLE OUTCOMES
* Reward
* Averted punishment
ORGANIZATIONAL
• Reallocation of resources
• Promotion opportunities
• Low trust
• Role ambiguity
• Unclear performance evaluation system
• Zero –sum reward practices
• Democratic decision making
• High performance pressure
• Self serving senior managers
High
 IMPRESSION MANAGEMENT
• The process by which individuals attempt to
control the impression others form of them
Niche
• Conformity
• Excuses
• Apologies
• Acclamation
• Flattery
• Favors
• Association
 Perilaku politik seseorang untuk melindungi dirinya dengan
taktik tertentu taktik politik “avoidïng action” dan
“avoiding Blame”
DEFENSIVE BEHAVIOR
Avoiding Action Avoiding Blame

• Over conforming
•Buffing
• Buck passing
•Playing Safe
• Playing dumb
•Justifying
• Depersonalized
•Scapegoat
• Stretching and smoothing •Misrepresenting
• Stalling

Organizational rigidity
and stagnation
Is a political Action Ethical ?

HOW do you gain and use power ?

• PERSONAL CHARACTERISTICS
Expertise
Personal Attraction
Effort
Legitimacy
• POSITION
Centrality
Critically BAGAIMANA ANDA ?
Visibility
Flexibility
Relevance
• Using Influence
• Resisting Influence
• Increasing Influence

USING INFLUENCE STRATEGY

•RETRIBUTION
•RECIPROCITY
•REASON
Sources of Power
Interpersonal Structural Sources
Sources
- Legitimate - Resources
- Reward - Decision Making
- Coercive - Information
- Expert
- Referent Centrality
Critically
Visibility
Flexibility
Relevance
Central
Interpersonal Sources of Power
–Capacity to influence derived from the position of
Legitimate Power a manager in the organizational hierarchy.
Subordinates believe that they “ought” to comply.

An influence over others based on hope of reward

Reward Power
–Influence over others based on fear. A subordinate
perceives that failure to
comply with the wishes of a superior would lead to
Coercive Power punishment of some
other negative outcome.

–Capacity to influence related to some expertise, special

Expert Power skill, or knowledge.

–Power based on a subordinate’s identification with a superior.

Referent Power The more powerful individual is admired because of certain traits,
and the subordinate is influenced because of this admiration.
Structural Sources of Power
• Resources
• Power occurs when a person has open channels to
resources - money, human resources, technology,
materials, customers, and so on.
• Decision-Making Power
• The degree to which individuals or subunits can affect
decision making determines the amount of power
required.

•Information Power
–Having access to relevant and important
information is power
Politics are Real and Unavoidable
• Not all politics are bad
• Realize that this is reality
• Expect politics in all situations
• Politics are part of human interaction
Lets Review The Political Types
• Corporate Shark
• Climber
• Survivor
• Straight Arrow
• Lamb for Slaughter
Corporate Shark
• Score of highest
• Tends to use others to enhance career
• Power-hungry, ruthless, and devious
• Survives well in Piranha Land

“Ninety-eight percent of the adults in this country are decent, hardworking,

honest Americans. It's the other lousy two percent that get all the publicity.
But then, we elected them.” - John Kenneth Galbraith
Climber
• Shrewd politician
• A moderate score suggests you might have a good chance of success
• Politics are everything - let’s campaign

“
Survivor
• Practices some office politics and is aware of the political climate
• Ok, what do I have to do to survive
Straight Arrow
• Not perceived as office politician
• May neglect cultivating key people for career advancement
• Honesty is the best policy

“In politics, strangely enough, the best way to play your cards is to lay them
face upwards on the table.” - H. G. Wells
Lamb for Slaughter
• Doesn’t believe in office politics
• Commonly boasts of never practicing office politics
• Easily eaten by sharks
• Survives in Nirvana Land
8 suggestion to improve your political effectiveness

• Frame arguments in terms of organizational

goals
• Develop the right image
• Gain control of organizational resources
• Make yourself appear indispensable
• Be visible
• Develop powerful allies
• Avoid “tainted” members
• Support your boss

Would you do that ?

Organizational Scan for culture
• Who’s related to who
• About my boss
• Irritations
• Enemies
• Personal facts
• Politics practiced
• Identify the true power and players
• Look below – motivations
• What are favored behaviors and status symbols
Generic Influence Tactics
1) Consultation
2) Rational persuasion
3) Inspirational appeals
4) Ingratiation tactics
5) Coalition tactics
6) Personal appeals
7) Pressure
8) Legitimizing tactics
9) Exchange
How to minimize Political
Behaviour

•Introduce clear rules

•Manage Team Norms
•Free flowing information
•Manage Change effectively
•Support Desired Values
•Leaders as Role Models