Politics is the process by which we resolve diverse and sometimes conflicting interests. In the workplace we often think of politics as a negative — a corrupting process that hurts people and organizations. And sometimes, that's what happens.
But politics comes in many flavors — it need not be destructive. Constructive politics gives us a way to make decisions together that take into account the needs and goals of diverse groups. Practicing constructive politics is an art, and leaders can model the best practices. Here are some ideas to keep in mind when practicing politics.
- Both pragmatism and ideology have their places
- Ideologies provide guidance when we aren't sure which way to go. And sometimes, when we adhere to ideologies too closely, they limit our ability to account for uncertainty or for the views of others.
- Pragmatism creates the flexibility we need to take into account the uncertainty that prevails in most environments, and to enable us to adapt decisions to the goals of diverse constituencies.
- Favor inclusiveness over domination
- When groups become polarized, dominance of one faction over all others is one path to stability. Sadly, this kind of stability is vulnerable in changing environments.
- To achieve a more durable stability, seek solutions based on inclusive alliances.
- Shorten your time horizon
- Constructive politics
helps us take account
of the needs of
diverse constituencies - Taking the long view comes only at the expense of flexibility. In many cases the situation is so fluid that the future we were trying to accommodate never actually comes to pass, so the flexibility sacrifice we make today can be fruitless.
- By shortening your time horizon, you can recover flexibility, and that flexibility enables inclusiveness.
- Abandon behaviorism and revenge
- Some political operators choose tactics designed to "teach them a lesson." This is a behaviorist strategy, or sometimes it's driven by a desire for revenge. But because true learning is a voluntary activity, and "they" never enrolled in our "course," "they" rarely learn the lesson we had in mind.
- Hurting or terrorizing people isn't likely to convert anyone. At best, it begets compliance; at worst, destructive conflict. Neither outcome is a sound basis for an effective organization.
- Narrow your own goals
- Broad sets of goals tend to impose constraints that limit options. Narrowing your goals, which can feel like a loss, can often create new options that lead to outcomes you wouldn't have achieved otherwise.
- Focus on your must-haves, with "must" narrowly defined. Set aside for now the rest of your goals, and revisit them after your new alliance has had some successes.
Most important, when things turn toxic, get help. An impartial professional can usually suggest adjustments that would be rejected if one of the rival factions proposed them. Be careful though — this also applies to suggesting the need for help. Top Next Issue
Is every other day a tense, anxious, angry misery as you watch people around you, who couldn't even think their way through a game of Jacks, win at workplace politics and steal the credit and glory for just about everyone's best work including yours? Read 303 Secrets of Workplace Politics, filled with tips and techniques for succeeding in workplace politics. More info
For a connection between positive politics and retention, see "Retention," Point Lookout for February 7, 2007.
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Related articles
More articles on Workplace Politics:
- Knife-Edge Performers
- Some employees deliver performance episodically, while some deliver steady, but barely adequate performance.
Either way, they keep their managers drained and anxious, on the "knife edge" of terminating
them. How can you detect knife-edge performers, and what can you do about them?
- The Utility Pole Anti-Pattern: II
- Complex organizational processes can delay action. They can set people against one other and prevent
organizations from achieving their objectives. In this Part II of our examination of these complexities,
we look into what keeps processes complicated, and how to deal with them.
- Anticipate Counter-Communication
- Effective communication enables two parties to collaborate. Counter-communication is information provided
by a third party that contradicts the basis of agreements or undermines that collaboration.
- I Don't Understand: I
- When someone makes a statement or offers an explanation that's unclear or ambiguous, there are risks
associated with asking for clarification. The risks can seem so terrifying that we decide not to ask.
What keeps us from seeking clarification?
- Quasi-Narcissistic Quasi-Subordinates
- One troublesome kind of workplace collaboration includes those that combine people of varied professions
and ranks for a specific short-term mission. Many work well, but when one of the group members displays
quasi-narcissistic behaviors, trouble looms.
See also Workplace Politics and Workplace Politics for more related articles.
Forthcoming issues of Point Lookout
- Coming December 11: White Water Rafting as a Metaphor for Group Development
- Tuckman's model of small group development, best known as "Forming-Storming-Norming-Performing," applies better to development of some groups than to others. We can use a metaphor to explore how the model applies to Storming in task-oriented work groups. Available here and by RSS on December 11.
- And on December 18: Subgrouping and Conway's Law
- When task-oriented work groups address complex tasks, they might form subgroups to address subtasks. The structure of the subgroups and the order in which they form depend on the structure of the group's task and the sequencing of the subtasks. Available here and by RSS on December 18.
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Beware any resource that speaks of "winning" at workplace politics or "defeating" it. You can benefit or not, but there is no score-keeping, and it isn't a game.
- Wikipedia has a nice article with a list of additional resources
- Some public libraries offer collections. Here's an example from Saskatoon.
- Check my own links collection
- LinkedIn's Office Politics discussion group