Blog 2 min of reading
Many people think they don't have enough power and would love to become more efficient in exerting influence.
In roles such as product manager or project manager, they have tasks that require the cooperation of other professionals, yet they don't possess the formal authority to give orders, compensate, or punish them.
A product manager seeking to introduce a new version may need help from the engineering or research and development area to design the new product, from the production area, and the attention of the sales area to distribute it in the market, yet they have no authority over these fundamental functions.
Implementing a new information technology system, such as an enterprise resource planning application, typically led by an IT project manager, requires the assistance of those professionals who work in the operational units and who will need to provide data, as well as use the system and cooperate with the finance department, although the IT staff does not have line authority over the operations or finance area personnel. In summary, responsibility and authority do not always coincide.
Organizations have become matrixed, with overlapping command points and dotted lines where more people and teams are employed to bring together different specialists to solve problems and face greater demands.
“Making it happen” in circumstances where you lack direct line authority requires influence and political skills – an understanding of organizational dynamics – and not just technical and knowledge competencies.
Zia Yusuf, a senior executive at SAP, was extremely successful in roles beyond organizational boundaries – something he had to do as the leader of the internal strategic consulting team and as vice president of SAP's ecosystem unit.
In describing how he managed to implement ideas without having technical training and being an outsider to the company, at least initially, Yusuf emphasized two aspects:
Hierarchical Influence in Decision-Making
People within companies have different goals and even if they share the same goal, they may have different viewpoints on how to achieve it.
Within companies, there are many disagreements regarding cost reduction or increasing product value, entering new markets, or retreating to where the company seems to have some advantage.
There are only two ways to solve the inevitable disagreements about what to do and how to do it:
No system is perfect, but before we abstain from the functioning of markets – this includes markets of power and influence – in organizations of all kinds, know that a quote from Winston Churchill suggests that democracy is good, not just as a form of government for public entities, but also as a way to make more accurate decisions in private or non-profit companies.
Take Care!
To survive and be successful, if you don't take care of yourself, no one else will.
We know there is a great race to occupy top positions in the hierarchy. Moreover, competencies of power and influence are essential for making things happen in complex and interdependent systems . They can be an effective way to make decisions, especially when compared to more common hierarchical systems.
So, master the knowledge and skills necessary to exercise power effectively. All this can be good for the organization, but in 90% of circumstances, it will be good for you.
Source: Excerpts from the book “Power: Why Some Have It” by Jeffrey Pfeiffer