How Politics Kills Organisational Performance
Politics
can be defined as the actions associated with people or groups arriving at
decisions or forming a consensus, which in part is influenced eventually by the
majority, upon which a person steers and influences others to strengthen the
force of their own opinions or convictions upon people, who have no specific
feelings or thoughts on the subject in consideration.
Politics
is used to increase the power of relationships with others, either as single
people or groups, to influence the distribution of resources or status. Many
different methods are used in politics to control the distribution of physical
resources, typically items of perceivable permanent or temporary value, or to
increase the status of a person or group to the detriment of other people or
groups.
Political Influence
The
methods used to influence the political landscape will include promoting one's
views by controlling others, negotiating with or against other political
issues, invoking laws, and exercising coercion, including warfare against
adversaries.
Directors,
team leaders, and staff exercise politics within organisations through social
interactions at various levels, multiple times, and with varying degrees of
force. In politics concerning government, people form themselves into political
parties, allegiances, or groups to present their views of the world, thoughts,
ideas, or stances on issues.
Members
often agree with others in the group on their positions on many topics and
support other group members to ensure that their opinions prevail over other
people's equally valid but differing opinions and views.
The Freedom of Democracy
Democracy
is based on the belief that people have the freedom to speak, express their
opinions and take any reasonable action to influence the thoughts of others,
with the warning that any such reasonable action is within the confines of
social boundaries, the law and that they do not disrespect or affect an
injustice upon others.
In
government, democracy preserves an environment where others are respected,
protecting human rights and fundamental personal freedoms. In this environment,
everyone can equally and freely express their thoughts, and free speech is
protected.
In
countries where democracy is practised, people have the right and enjoy the
direct authority to think, deliberate, talk freely, choose governing officials,
decide upon legislation and how valued resources are distributed, authority is
shared or delegated, and status is rewarded.
Democracy
confers the divine right to all in terms of the freedom of association, of
assembly, to own personal property, practice their choice of religion, and to
give their consent to be governed through the right to vote, with the freedom
of unwanted governmental deprivation of the right to liberty, life and rights,
no matter how much in the minority people might be.
The Pursuit of Power And Influence
Every
organisation has a hierarchy of people, thoughts, directors, team leadership,
and power, which is unevenly distributed throughout the organisation, often in
places where they are least expected. Specific parts of the hierarchy are more
likely to seek power and status than others. This will vary between
organisations, industries, and geographical locations.
However,
pursuing power and status is considered workplace political behaviour.
Organisational politics refers to the personal agenda that directors, team
leaders, and staff utilise within an organisation and the manoeuvring and
activities they take part in to assemble the power to act in a way they see fit
by increasing their status amongst others, gathering the resources and
authority to function, and achieving or gaining a desired outcome.
The
act of politicism takes place when a person or group of people assume the
necessary actions to impose their own will at the expense of others, which may
or may not be in the best interests of other people, and they convey
information that might or might not be truthful.
They
may cast a different impression upon an issue, hide or influence the group
majority about the true implications of a problem, or steer others to a
conclusive course of action that does not resolve the issue but furthers the
power and status of those who look to influence others for their pecuniary
advantage.
Causes of Organisational Politics
Understanding
the causes of organisational politics aids in the reduction of the adverse or
dysfunctional effects of politicism to support colleagues in engaging in more
favourable political behaviours that help organisational stakeholders. The
goals of organisational politicism include the following:
- Furtherance
of personal goals and aims.
- The
building of powerful allies and networks.
- The
need for recognition, usually as the result of personal insecurities.
- Self-interest
and protectionism.
- Developing
and managing invaluable connections.
- Money
and financial rewards.
Organisational
politics occur in most, if not all, organisations. These complex social
networks interconnect horizontal relationships between teams and vertical
connections between directors, team leaders, and staff. Defining where a
political stance lies, its direction and the overall understanding of the
political landscape within an organisation can be challenging.
The Use of Politics
Colleagues
experience the impact of organisational politicism, positive or negative,
throughout their work. Politicism can occur when gathering information for
political reasons by engaging in office gossip or joining and acting as part of
a group to manipulate others.
In
contrast, others will use politics to climb the corporate ladder, to be seen as
productive and efficient, and to curry favour with potential partners who have
the power to further a person’s personal goals and aspirations. The
characteristics of politicism will include some or all of the following:
- Self-Promotion:
When people
act purely to further their careers without regard for their impact on
others, including taking credit for others' results, publicly identifying
others as foolish or unintelligent, and putting people down to bolster
their self-image or increase their self-worth.
- Office
Politics:
Office politics occurs when colleagues or groups try to influence other
stakeholders through manipulation, persuasion, pressure, or influence.
This can positively influence those sceptical of a course of action to get
them on board with a project or vision. However, the negative impact is
that it can cause disagreements, leading to increased tension if people
believe that a change of mind concerning an issue is at the expense of
others.
- Territorialism: When colleagues become stubbornly
attached to a specific role or position within an organisation, in which
they undertake the role entirely or all of the tasks associated with a
role themselves. Typically, this might be a team leader who will only hand
over the reins of a project once it has been completed.
- Factionalism: Seen when a group of people
becomes disjointed in their thoughts and beliefs in the way that the goals
and aims of the group should be achieved or completed. It becomes
difficult to steer and manage tasks when common interests become
disjointed. The larger group splits into smaller groups to form alliances
in which the aspirations of the splinter groups do not align with the
leading group's goals and aims. This can increase the innovation and
agility of the leading group, but can have negative consequences where
splinter groups commit to achieving the goals and aims of the group in
diverse ways.
- Gatekeeping: Colleagues whose position or
influence in an organisation gives them a degree of power to block or
control access to resources or people who have the authority to preserve
and support their power to avoid confrontation and being challenged. This
stifles innovation and entrepreneurialism, which stops others from
performing at higher levels or their best.
The Side Effects of Office Politics
In
contrast, the positive effects of organisational politics include improved
performance and motivation among directors, team leaders, and staff. The
reality is that it can go either way, depending on how an organisation uses
this tactic, the common adverse side effects of which might include:
- Increased
Stress:
Stress comes from the constant fear of the unknown and the threat of
directors, team leaders, and staff losing their jobs.
- Decreased
Productivity:
Directors, team leaders, and staff caught up in organisational politics
pay less attention to their work and other commitments.
- Low
Concentration Levels:
Directors, team leaders, and staff preoccupied with personal agendas are
less likely to perform at their best.
- Cynicism: Being cynical can lead to low
morale, productivity, and dissatisfaction.
- High
Staff Turnover:
Directors, team leaders, and staff who excel at what they do but leave an
organisation because of its politics may result in a lack of qualified
colleagues or a loss of organisational knowledge and experience.
- Demotivated
Staff:
Undeserving directors, team leaders, and staff succeeding or engaging in
toxic work practices could leave the rest of an organisation's colleagues
feeling demotivated and demoralised.
- Miscommunication: Organisational politics thrive on
manipulation, leading to a prevalence of miscommunication. Directors and
team leaders are often provided with edited versions of events, while
colleagues are kept out of the loop.
- Decreased
Productivity:
The organisation's overall performance suffers due to the negativity
caused by lousy office politics.
- Resentment: Colleagues resent their
directors, team leaders, and the organisation.
Bad
office politics occur when people in power and trust use their influence for
personal gain. Unfortunately, backstabbing, gaslighting, and the formation of
unhealthy cliques are common in office environments. Individuals cannot avoid
corporate politics, regardless of their position within the office. It is a
reality that must be acknowledged.
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