Sources of power in Organization:
Power equals influence. It 's personal, too, residing within those who wield it. Sometimes a position of authority within an organization lends power to a person, but borrowed power isn 't necessarily as effective as power derived from leadership. Every organization has leaders who hold no positional authority, yet somehow wield influence, while managers who should be able to command respect flounder. Small-business owners wanting to enhance their influence and that of their managers should consider the five sources of power available at organizations. Three come with position. The other two are available to anyone.
Legitimate Power
Legitimate power comes from a position of authority and increases the higher a manager rises within the organizational hierarchy. Once awarded legitimate power, its wielder has influence because he can set and enforce standards and use and distribute organizational resources. Managers can build upon a legitimate power base through other sources of power, which transforms managers into leaders. Leaders inspire behaviors in others without resorting to their legitimate authority alone.
Coercive Power
Coercive power is bestowed on a person through position and is based in fear. Subordinates follow a manager 's directives to avoid being suspended or fired. Employees also know that rewards such as raises, plum projects or promotions can be held back if standards of work or behavior are not met. Coercive power loses some of its effectiveness if administered unfairly.
Reward Power
Reward power comes from a manager 's ability to give rewards -- not only raises and promotions, but also favorable reviews, shifts, positive attention and mentoring. If coercive power is the stick, r...
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...Management have immediately considered the solution and had a discussion with the managers to encourage the team participation.
Relating the event that I have presented I see that Referent Power was the action that I have followed where I have taken the inputs from the management and also made sure that the management is aware of the issues that the employees facing. Through this approach our committee and the management have been successful in taking up my solution.
Conclusion:
Hence, I would like to conclude that Referent power would always benefit both the employee and the organization integrity within the employees, with the solution that I have given to the management, Employee interaction with their manager and also interaction with other teams increases, which would benefit in knowledge sharing and also to develop healthy work place environment to employee.
The definition of power is the ability to influence the behaviors of others or to change the course of events. Power can be gained through hard work or power can be given to you In a book published in 1937, this problem couldn’t be more prevalent. This book is Of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck. The story tells of two migrant workers, who are incredibly close friends. They goes place to place looking for a job during The Great Depression era. They eventually find a ranch in Soledad, California. Where they will face characters and incidents that will decide the fate of their dream. Powerful people are not as powerful as they seem, but is given power due to societal hierarchy or physical traits.
“My husband had this wonderful magnetic quality-this glow-he’d just point those incredible blue eyes at you and you’d feel like you were under a big hot sun or something…” (O’Brien 195). Many people described Paul Wade, John’s dad, as powerful and influential. So influential, in fact, a kid from John Wade’s class claims he “wish[es] he was my father” (O’Brien 67). Often, the words power and influence go hand in hand. However, these words possess two different meanings. According to the Oxford Learner’s dictionary, power is defined as “The ability to control people or things ” (Oxford Learner’s). While power is described as the ability to control, the term influential is defined as “The effect that somebody/something has on the way a person thinks or behaves or on the way that something works or develops” (Oxford Learner’s). Paul has little power over John; however, Paul’s indirect influence leaves a long lasting, negative impact on his son’s actions.
Power is based on movement. It is the ability to move ideas, people or actions. Power can also be defined as currency. Power is like currency because it enables movement of ideas, people, and actions through making connections with or influence others. Power currency is worthwhile only if the other person values it. What is valued varies from individual to individual. It is imperative a strong understanding. This paper will attempt to describe the role of power currencies in the coaching process and how an action plan and feedback aid the coaching process.
The classic definition of power is the sum total of one capabilities (Pevehouse and Goldstein, 2016, 2.2), but what influence does that “one” legitimately hold over any other “one” and/or groups of other “ones”.
There are many theories pertaining to the nature of power in society. In modern society, it is important to identify where and when power is exercised, who benefits and who suffers from it being exerted upon them. In this tradition, it is useful to examine the managerialist perspective.
According to the "Power and Leadership" essay written by Paula Braynion, "the first thing one encounters when trying to understand power is a difficulty in arriving at a concise definition, as there are many and varied definitions and perspectives seeking to explore and explain the concept." (Braynion, para 1) There are two main kinds of power to look at when figuring out how power and leadership relate. The first kind of power is formal power which is obtain by an individual from having a formal or privileged position in an organization's hierarchy, for example a VP or a CEO would have formal power over his or her employees. The second kind of power is known as informal power or influential power, this power is based on the ability to influence others rather than the ability to control rewards and punishment. Informal power is the result of peers and other employees choosing to follow an
Reward power is the reverse of coercive power. It is based on the capability to allocate rewards th...
There are several sources of power, some of them are authority, reward, expertise, and coercion.
The literature generally suggests that effective leaders express their needs and motives in ways that benefit the organization. These needs or motives, are considered to be; tenacity, power, drive and work ethic (DuBrin et al. 2006). The power motive is significant, as it plays a major role in the relations taking place within the organization. Power over others is an inevitable part of leadership, but it also carries with it the risks associated with the misuse or abuse of power (Wikipedia, 2008).
McClelland proposed that an individual’s particular needs are obtained over time as a result of life experiences (Wood et al. p. 146). Most of these needs fall into three general categories of needs which can be class as need for achievement, affiliation or power. The strengths of the McClelland’s acquired needs theory is that it provides a clear picture for the organization and the managers to know which type of job are suitable for the employees and which types of people that can make the organizations more successful. According to the article, the authors stated that managers who have strong power of needs are more successful than those with lower power needs (Wagner & Swanson 1979, p. 66). ‘McClelland and Burnham identify two types of power managers: those who seek personal power and those who seek institutional power’ (Lyden 1976, p. 201). However, manager who seek for institutional power are more successful as they can create favorable condition at work. Wagner and Swanson (1979, p. 66) attributes the success of higher power needs people to their ability to create a greater sense of responsibility and team spirit in their organizations. This will give a clear picture for the organization on which of the employees that are suitable to be promoted and become a manager.
Ability to influence a group of people or members of an organization towards the achievement of a set of goals is called Leadership. In an organization, not all managers are leaders, nor, all leaders are managers. In other words, leaders can emerge from within a group as well as by formal appointment.
Power has been defined as the psychological relations over another to get them to do what you want them to do. We are exposed to forms of power from the time of birth. Our parents exercise power over us to behave in a way they deem appropriate. In school, teachers use their power to help us learn. When we enter the work world the power of our boss motivates us to perform and desire to move up the corporate ladder so that we too can intimidate someone with power one day. In Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness Kurtz had a power over the jungle and its people that was inexplicable.
McShane and von Glinow determine that the first three powers - legitimate, reward, and coercive power - are granted to persons through the organization or co-workers, whereas the two other powers – expert and referent power - depend on the “power holders own characteristics” (301). The first source of power that can be assigned to members of the organization is Legitimate Power, which is defined as an “agreement among organizational members that people in certain roles can request certain behavior of others” (302). This source of power generally results from different roles in the organization (hierarchy). Like the manager can expect his or her employees to do what he or she requires. Another source of power that can be given to employees is Reward Power, which is defined as “the person’s ability to control the allocation of rewards valued by others and to remove negative sections” (302). Reward power offers incentives and is the opposite of the third source of power, which is Coercive Power. Coercive power is the last source of power that is assigned to people and involves “the ability to apply punishment” (303). The fourth source of power is Expert Power, which does not originate from the position but rather from within the person. Expert power is “the capacity to influence others by possessing knowledge or skills that others value” (303). For instance, an employee can develop expert power when gaining important knowledge for the organizations that others would also like to have. The fifth source of power that does not depend on the role or position of an employee, but on the person’s own characteristics is Referent Power, which is defined as “the capacity to influence others on the basis of an identification with and respect for the power holder” (303).
Influence is defined as "as a force, one person exerts on someone else to induce a change in the target." (Hall, 2007). The level of influence is contingent upon the level of power and power is based on an individual’s role in the corporation. The higher the role, the more power that individual can exert and the more influential that person can become as “the person with the power has the influence” (Tardanico, 2011). There are several sources of power that leaders can exercise including legitimate, reward, coercive, expert, information, and referent ("13.3 The Power to Influence | Organizational Behavior", 2010).
Power is defined in the course study notes as the “ability of individuals or groups to get what they want despite the opposition”. Power is derived from a variety of sources including knowledge, experience and environmental uncertainties (Denhardt et al, 2001). It is also important to recognize that power is specific to each situation. Individuals or groups that may be entirely powerful in one situation may find themselves with little or no power in another. The county Registrar of Voters, who is my boss, is a perfect example. In running the local elections office, she can exercise the ultimate power. However, in a situation where she attempted to get the county selected for a desirable, statewide pilot project, she was powerless, completely at the mercy of the Secretary of State. Power is difficult to measure and even to recognize, yet it plays a major role in explaining authority. In organizations, power is most likely exercised in situations where “the stakes are high, resources are limited, and goals and processes are unclear” (Denhardt et al, 2001). The absence of power in organizations forces us to rely on soley hierarchical authority.