And are you using the most effective power to get things accomplished?
Power means many different things to different people. For some, power is seen as corrupt. For others, the more power they have, the more successful they feel. For even others, power is of no interest at all.
The five bases of power were identified by John French and Bertram Raven in the early 1960’s through a study they had conducted on power in leadership roles. The study showed how different types of power affected one’s leadership ability and success in a leadership role.
The five bases of power are divided in two categories:
| Category |
Power Base |
What it Means |
|
Formal Power |
Coercive power |
Coercive power is conveyed through fear of losing one’s job, being demoted, receiving a poor performance review, having prime projects taken away, etc. This power is gotten through threatening others. For example, the VP of Sales who threatens sales folks to meet their goals or get replaced. |
|
Reward power |
Reward power is conveyed through rewarding individuals for compliance with one’s wishes. This may be done through given bonuses, raises, a promotion, extra time off from work, etc. For example, the supervisor who provides employees comp time when they meet an objective she sets for a project. |
|
|
Legitimate power |
Legitimate power comes from having a position of power in an organization, such as being the boss or a key member of a leadership team. This power comes when employees in the organization recognize the authority of the individual. For example, the CEO who determines the overall direction of the company and the resource needs of the company. |
|
|
Personal Power |
Expert power |
Expert power comes from ones’ experiences, skills or knowledge. As we gain experience in particular areas, and become thought leaders in those areas, we begin to gather expert power that can be utilized to get others to help us meet our goals. For example, the Project Manager who is an expert at solving particularly challenging problems to ensure a project stays on track. |
|
Referent power |
Referent power comes from being trusted and respected. We can gain referent power when others trust what we do and respect us for how we handle situations. For example, the Human Resource Associate who is known for ensuring employees are treated fairly and coming to the rescue of those who are not. |
As you can see, you don’t have to be in a leadership or senior level role in an organization to have some form of power. In fact, the most respect is garnered on those who have personal sources of power. There is more respect for these individuals than for those who have power simply because they are the boss in the business. It has been shown that when employees in an organization associate the leadership’s power with expert or referent power, they are more engaged, more devoted to the organization and their role within it and willing to go the extra mile to reach organizational goals.
What is your source of power? And are you using the “right source” or simply throwing your weight around? How effectively do you use your source of power to meet key goals and objectives? Please share your thoughts with others in the Comments field below. Thank you!
No arguments there Eleanor. The best leaders – even with legitimate power – get ideas/suggestions/thoughts from their employees rather than just making a decison because they are in charge and have that right. That engages their employees and gets them committed to the company’s direction. Thanks for reading and for your comment.
Best,
Gina
Oh, legitimate power can be such a tough creature to deal with. It’s not unheard of for company leaders to make decisions based on a whim just because they believe that they’re in charge and can therefore just do whatever they want.
Hi Tom, David and Sameer – many thanks for reading and for your thoughts!
Tom – I did an article on GroupThink also – you can find it here: https://www.ginaabudi.com/avoiding-groupthink/.
David – I certainly agree and have seen those “no think” environments. I often attribute those to leaders who are not competent in their role and are afraid of challenges and innovative ideas because they don’t know how to handle them.
Sameer – Power is effective when used appropriately and, you are correct, that when used appropriate does engage employees so they achieve targets.
Thanks!
Best,
Gina
Gina
Good article, power seems to be the most effective item in Management , as it has a lot of meanings and usages, the power to be used by the manager to get in friendly environnement with the staff so they may achieve targets and get proper solutions
Great post today, Gina! A subject near and dear to my heart, for sure.
When you look at organizations where positional authority is the only authority type that matters, you’re going to have problems when times are tough and innovation is called for. Those Formal Power constructs, great in times of urgent crisis, are crippling when they are the only ones allowed to be practiced.
Tom – Group Think is bad enough. In really poor environments, it leads to “No Think” – the place where, “Do as I say, or else!” is the norm.
sometimes people use some of these sources of power to drive “groupthink”, resulting in awful decisions!