Power, Politics, and Culture

Human beings have been struggling to balance between power, politics, and culture, placing their lives on the line to stand for what they believe in. A combination of power, politics, and culture has spread to the organizational setting, and people have more to worry aside from completing their tasks (Said, 2014).  Most people in an organization wish to acquire some power in an organization to gain the ability to influence others. A good understanding of power and politics helps in developing a framework of an organization’s behavior (Hughes, 2018). Power and politics, for example, play an important role in Genesis healthcare Inc in ensuring quality patient care. The paper analyzes how power and politics influence organizational culture, sources of power, leadership behavior and culture, and leadership influence.

Influence of Politics and Power

Genesis healthcare, with its subsidiaries, operates nursing facilities in the US, and it comprises both human beings and material resources. It exists to achieve a definite purpose that is providing quality patient care. Human resources decide which material resources to use in the healthcare and choices have to be made, such as the type of machinery to be bought and the financial resources involved. These decisions involve some politics while the person making the decision uses power to ensure that his or her decisions are accepted (Hughes, 2018). We look up to the human resource for support.

Moreover, power and politics influence the daily operations as well as the atmosphere within the organization. In some cases, organizational politics brings conflict, but an organization can also achieve organizational and individual cohesion with the appropriate use of power (Said, 2014). 

Politics and power in an organization have political structures divided throughout the system.  Different sources of power compete for control, which is not bad unless someone decides to fight dirty. Politics comes about when someone starts acting on their interest with no regard to others in the organization (Said, 2014). 

In addition, power is necessary for carrying out the daily operations of an organization. To have something done, leaders should influence others; therefore, power is an important tool in achieving the objectives of an organization (Hughes, 2018). However, power play and politics can affect the organizational culture by influencing the daily operations whereby powerful individuals in an organization use their power for their benefit (Bacon, 2011). 

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Sources of Power

Power is the ability to influence other’s behavior. Effective use of power allows the organization to take the lead over its competitors. Proper use of the following sources of power enables the organizations to motivate their workers and have good implementation at work (Bacon, 2011).  The following are sources of power that are important in getting work done.

First is legitimate power, also referred to as positional power, and it is a formal type of power.  One holds legitimate power because of the legitimate position held in an organization. It is the organization’s laws that define and limit the duties, authority, and obligations of a person in a certain position. For example, the Chief Executive Officer of an organization has some powers over others because of the office he or she holds in the organization.  Legitimate power is based on the reality that one is in a certain position in an organization and the perception of employees  that the person holding that position have authority over them (Moriarty, 2011).

Combination Legitimate power and characteristics of a good leader is beneficial to the performance of Genesis hospital because it ensures employees compliance with the person in charge order because they believe that the manager, for example, has the right to direct the employees or else they face retribution (Moriarty, 2011). When employees meet the expectation, it contributes to the success of an organization. Having a clear hierarchy is important for the organization because everyone will understand who is in charge, therefore, smooth running of the daily activities. (ClickMeeting, 2017). Under Matthew Perry, a CEO of Genesis Healthcare, Genesis has grown and has an extensive network of multiple outpatient centers.

The second source of power is expert power (Moriarty, 2011). It is not a formal type of power but a personal based power. One holds this type of power because of the possession of knowledge in a particular area.  For example, if one is sick, he or she goes to the hospital to see a doctor. An organization values people in such power because of their problem-solving skills. Other employees highly value the decisions, ideas, and opinions of people with expert power, therefore, influencing other’s actions (ClickMeeting, 2017).

 Expert power can be used by the organization to ensure that there is no conflict within the team, therefore, making them work towards a common goal because the team is more open to being guided by a person with expert power. The team will always look up to the person with expert power for directions in areas that relate to one’s expertise. Organizations and departments will be able to avoid tragedies because coercive power will not be able to override expert power (ClickMeeting, 2017).

The third source of power is coercive power. Coercive power is a type of power where one can force someone to follow a certain order using threats (Moriarty, 2011). Moreover, it forces certain behavior rather than influencing a behavior using persuasion. Some of the examples of coercive power include threats of demotions, terminations, and pay cuts (Moriarty, 2011).

The organization can use coercive power to ensure that everyone in all departments complies with the organization’s policies and regulations because failure to do so will lead to termination or suspension.  For example, there will be an elimination of anything relating to harassment and discrimination, therefore, creating a conducive working environment that increases employee’s productivity. An organization can also use it during turnaround situations because some employees might be resistant to change and threat to job loss will make them committed to the new ways of working (Moriarty, 2011).

The fourth source of power is referent power. It is a power that results from the personality of a person (Moriarty, 2011). A relationship that one has with the co-workers and how one presents himself/herself results in a certain level of respect. It can also result from a close relationship with senior persons in the organization. It is important because organizational leadership will be more about influence and collaboration instead of control. A person with referent power is a charismatic person able to make others feel comfortable in the workplace, therefore, increasing their productivity (Moriarty, 2011).

The last source of power is reward power. Reward power is a formal type of power, and it involves the use of rewards such as pay rise or bonus to get an employee to follow certain orders (Moriarty, 2011). An organization can use this kind of power to encourage its employees to be committed to their work to get a reward, and it creates a healthy competition that is beneficial to an organization’s success. It also increases employee loyalty to the organization; for example, an employee who receives praise for accomplishing something is more loyal as compared to an employee who doesn’t (ClickMeeting, 2017).

Leadership Behavior and Culture

Different studies support that politics and power have a huge influence on the leadership of an organization. Politics and power can have a positive influence on the organization; for example, it sets a clear hierarchy, policies, and regulations that everyone should adhere to (Bacon, 2011).  Power and politics can also have negative influences such as power struggles, unjust power gain, and dishonesty. Once a person is in power, he/she can decide on how to use their power, whether it is for the benefit of the organization or personal gain (Fairholm, 2009). 

Followership plays a role in how politics and power affect the organizational structure. Followership is the willingness of one to work towards the accomplishment of set goals with the demonstration of interactive teamwork.   Effective followers are active people in the creation of the leadership process (Gill, 2009).

Organizational culture is a set of regulations and policies which dictate how employees in an organization should behave to work on achieving a similar goal (Fairholm, 2009).  To improve the organization’s culture, leaders should develop clear values about the company.  Leadership involves the use of power to direct the activities of employees towards the achievement of a common goal (Gill, 2009).  Without clear goals, the organization will not be able to run effectively, for example, Genesis healthcare Inc paid the $53.6 million to the federal government to settle federal lawsuits for providing unnecessary hospice and therapy services and substandard nursing care.

A leader should align with the organizational culture and establish desired behaviors.  Some organizational cultures might not be right, and also, an approach of a leader might not be perfect; however, the behavior of a leader establishes the tone of an organization. With daily actions, leaders shape the culture of the organization (Fairholm, 2009).   The action will then gain thrust through policies and structures to shape how workers operate.

A good leader should also connect with the employees (Hughes, 2018). In most cases, emotions are always behind human behavior, and to maintain the organizational culture. Leaders should connect with the emotional side of the employees, therefore, generating a shared motivation and a sense of purpose (Gill, 2009). Genesis healthcare CEO Matthew Perry has demonstrated emotional connectivity with the employees. He is passionate about both employee’s and patient’s welfare.

Leadership Influence

The behavior of a leader affects the productivity of an organization because it has a direct impact on employee morale. Different leadership behaviors generate different outcomes for the organization (Hughes, 2018). Good understanding of how leadership behaviors affect productivity enables the leaders to analyze and be effective. Positive leadership behavior involves the actions that are taken by a person in power to motivate others using mechanisms such as engagement and empowerment, and it promotes well-being happiness. (Fairholm, 2009). 

One learns behaviors while attributes like charisma is more inborn. Some learned behaviors include building trust with everyone in the organization (Gill, 2009). Trust does not come immediately to a leader but earned with time. Leaders engage in actions that earn them respect by involving others in making decisions which concern them instead of making unilateral calls. This consistent transparency makes the employees know what is expected from them, therefore, working towards a similar goal   (Bacon, 2011). In addition, non-transparency will give an idea that one is hiding something, therefore, creating employee doubts about their leaders (Hughes, 2018). A leader who can also inspire and bring others along is important. Successful leaders have a goal that motivates employees to follow (Gill, 2009).

Behavioral complexity is the ability of a leader to engage in a wide variety of behaviors. A person with high behavioral complexity engages in a wider variety of behaviors as compared to someone with low behavioral complexity (Fairholm, 2009). Although behavioral complexity does not certainly prove that a leader will exercise the right judgment in the application of right behaviors at the right time, it enables a leader to use a wider range of behaviors to effectively meet the daily and competing demands of an organization (Gill, 2009).

Genesis hospital should adopt complexity leadership because it focuses on the whole organization and does not support linear causality. It helps the hospital in identifying the dynamic interactions which take place in an institution as they change, create, innovate, and emerge with the intention of complex relationships and networking instead of controlling and autocracy. Complexity leadership also relies on social interactions within the organization.

Conclusion

In conclusion, politics and power are common in all organizations. There are different sources of power, which include legitimate power, expert power, reward power, referent power, and coercive power. Proper use of these five sources of power, an organization will be able to motivate their workers and have good implementation at work.  For effective running of organizations, activities leaders should not use power for their gains. A leader’s behavior has a direct impact on the productivity of the organization because they affect the employee’s morale. Motivated employees are always committed to their work.

References

Bacon, T. R. (2011). The Elements of Power: Lessons on Leadership and Influence. Amacom Books.

ClickMeeting. (2017, February 7). The 5 Sources of Power in an Organization. Clickmeeting.Com. https://blog.clickmeeting.com/power-sources

Fairholm, G. W. (2009). Organizational Power Politics: Tactics in Organizational Leadership. ABC-CLIO.

Gill, R. (2009). Leadership and Influence, Motivation, and Inspiration. Discovering Leadership, 235-253. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-137-24203-7_17

Hughes, M. (2018). Power, politics, and organizational change. Managing and Leading Organizational Change, 180-188. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781351265966-11

‌Moriarty, T. (2011, June 14). 7 sources of leadership power. Plantservices.Com. https://www.plantservices.com/articles/2011/06-human-capital-leadership-power/

Said, E. (2014). Power, Politics, and Culture: Interviews with Edward W. Said. A&C Black.

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