The Politics Of Management

Politics in organisations is an ever present reality. No matter who you are, or what you do, it is impossible to escape the power/political interactions that take place between people at work. Men and women say they find the politics in organisations distasteful, sometimes downright stressful. Politics can, however, be quite motivating, stimulating and exhilarating. Politics doesn’t arise for negative reasons, but for powerful and all-pervading organisational and personal reasons. Once people come to terms with these factors, it’s possible to become more effective at managing politics.

 

- John Pereira

Though this is the time of large companies, you need political flair in small ones – to deal with suppliers and customers, for instance. Simply doing a good job is not sufficient. Professional competence is only the first step. High office achieved quickly requires negotiating skills, an ability to look ahead, the determination to make projects work and the ability to get on with people. Many people spend much of their time managing conflict, competition and the formation of alliances as an everyday part of their workload. There are frictions and difficulties that arise between top management, who are involved with strategic change, and middle management who are concerned with making the existing systems work.

 

Understanding the people who play the politics

To understand the processes of politics, it is necessary to understand the people who play in the political arena. A number of well known psychologists and philosophers have come to similar conclusions as to why people develop particular personalities. They concluded:

• By using their experiences from the past, people learn how to cope with the world around them.

• Although this learning process is never ending, people, quite naturally, reject the more unsuccessful ways of coping.

• After a while, people develop a repertoire of thoughts, feelings, behaviours and skills which is their best way of coping with their world.

• The more successful the repertoire, the more fixed it becomes the more people develop and form their personality.

A good manager who helps subordinates: