Practical office politics

2. where do you stand on the topic of office politics?

3. most people 1 2 3 4 5 6 Politics is bad, but I can live with it. I’ll just ignore it Politics is annoying, but I recognize that it is probably just a fact of corporate life. I’ll play the game when I have to, hopefully not too often Politics is bearable. Politics is generally good & we should all get better at it. There is a place for politics in work Corporate politics is a wonderful, fun, and exciting tool that yields better decisions for companies. We need more of it! Politics is caused by a bunch of scheming, self-serving, scam artists that waste energy & time. We need none of it!

4. how I want you to answer after this deck 1 2 3 4 5 6 Politics is bad, but I can live with it. I’ll just ignore it Politics is annoying, but I recognize that it is probably just a fact of corporate life. I’ll play the game when I have to, hopefully not too often Politics is bearable. Politics is generally good & we should all get better at it. There is a place for politics in work Corporate politics is a wonderful, fun, and exciting tool that yields better decisions for companies. We need more of it! Politics is caused by a bunch of scheming, self-serving, scam artists that waste energy & time. We need none of it!

5. i’ve got 3 questions i’d like you to consider

6. Q1: What bad experiences have you had with office politics that create your assumptions? Q2: Is an office without politics preferable? Q3: Is an office without politics possible?

7. now I’ve got 1 perspective I’d like you to consider

8. politics is natural & unavoidable because people will always have different and legitimate beliefs, issues, wants, needs, and sources of power

9. those differences are created biologically, environmentally, &because of organizational structure

10. so we’re all stuck with the differences however much we wish it were not so

11. there must be a process to resolve conflicts that arise from these natural and unavoidable differences

12. that is what politics is

13. politics is neither good nor bad

14. however, how people implement politics can be good or bad

15. and last but not least, politics exist once there are two or more people

16. so, don’t kid yourself, entrepreneurs

17. start-ups have politics

18. so what do we mean by bad politics?

19. Lying • Cheating • Stealing • Back Stabbing • Ego Tripping • Sucking Up • Manipulating • Self promotion • General Ignorance, which causes political pain to those around you

20. and what do we mean by good politics?

21. Fair distribution of resources • The ability to invest in future firm returns, with no immediate silo gains • Protection of minority interests • Ethical decision making • Strategic prioritization • Reduction of authoritarianism • Protection from “bad politics” • Engaging with bad politics rather than sticking our heads in the sand

22. and what do we get if we are good at good politics

23. Get your projects up the priority list • Get resources or funding for your project & team • Clear project barriers • Influence decision making • Compensation, acknowledgement and advancement • Get hard shit done • Help others succeed • Survive change and avoid trouble

24. here are a few really useful thoughts on the subject

25. “Politics has such a bad name that many good people persuade themselves they want nothing to do with it. The ethical and spiritual apprehensions are understandable. But one cannot abjure politics.” – John Gardner

26. “There is no doubt power can be used for evil purposes. Of course most medicines can kill if taken wrongly, thousands die in automobile accidents each year, and nuclear power can provide energy or mass destruction. We do not abandon chemicals, cars or nuclear power. Instead we consider danger an incentive to get proper training.” – Jeffrey Pfeffer

27. “Of course leaders are preoccupied with power! The significant questions are: What means do they use to gain it? How do they exercise it? And to what ends do they exercise it?” – John Gardner

28. and one slightly ironic one

29. “It is not enough for a leader to know the right thing. He must be able to do the right thing. Leaders without the judgment or perception to make the right decisions fail for lack of vision. Those who know the right thing, but cannot achieve it, fail because they are ineffectual.” • Richard Nixon

30. so, how good are you at getting shit done…

31. 1 2 3 4 5 6 I find it very difficult to get what I want done outside the scope of my direct reports I sometimes get what I want done, so long as my interests are aligned with the interests of dependent parties I sometimes get what I want done, even if my interests are misaligned with the interests of dependent parties I often get what I want done, even if my interests are misaligned with the interests of dependent parties I’m totally hopeless. Unless I have the authority to beat someone to death if they don’t comply, dependent resources simply do whatever they want I use Jedi mind powers on others – “these are not the droids that you are looking for”

32. what tools are in your ‘getting shit done’ tool box?

34. Authority (or else) What I’m good at and like What I need to use daily Q: Are there dangers of using each axis too much or too little? Culture (it’s right!) Politics (It’s in our interests)

35. so with all that said, it is time to propose the basic rule of ethical politics

36. Be Political

37. accept that you need to be political to get shit done

38. but, in the process, never advance your own interests by harming the business or by hurting other people

39. focus on building, protecting, and using your power

40. not on undermining the power of others

41. ok, so let’s assume that you agree with me that you should be better at politics

42. in that case, the next step is to develop your Political Intelligence and a plan to build and use your power

44. power comes from position

45. Title & “vestiges” of power (think corner office) • Authority to act within a specific scope • Control of the allocation, access to, and use of specific resources “that others need” • Objective-setting, appraisal & compensation approval • Access to Information • Location in the info/social web • Centrality – how often you proxy • Connectedness – how many nodes you touch • Closeness – How close are you to connected nodes • Complexity – The # of nodes unique to you

46. political wisdom sidebar Seasoned players know how to “create” resources to control! Defend your positional power from encroachment by other managers – But no Evil Politics!

47. take time to regularly update a positional power audit

48. how strong is your positional power?

50. extra credit who has positional power around you? Why do they have it?