Involvement of Power, Politics in the Leadership and Organisational Processes - Essay Example

 Power refers to the capability of a person to control, influence, and guide the behavior of other persons in the organization whereas politics in an organization refers to the individual or collective behavior undertaken for the acquisition and imposition of power within the organization and its resources to gain the desired benefits (Managing Leadership and Influence Processes, 16.02.06). Therefore, in the context of an organization, power and politics are very closely linked. Power is a leaders’ ability to influence other people’s activities and behavior whereas politics lies in exercising power and influence in the organization towards the fulfillment of a person’s individual goals rather than organizational.

The “power influence approach” by Yukl (1989) states that the efficiency of the leadership process in an organization depends on the extent and level of power that is occupied by the leader. It lies in the person’s ability to gain, maintain and enhance the extent and level of power they possess. Therefore, both the factors; power and politics determine the efficiency of the leadership process in the accomplishment of goals and objectives in an organization.

The power and political factors are involved in the leadership and organizational process in the manner that the goals and objectives of an organization are achieved by the collaboration of leaders and group members where leaders play the role of controllers and directors whereas the group members act as followers and participants towards the accomplishment of these goals. Therefore, the leader is a person who is in a better position to influence the political behavior in the organization by utilizing the power of decision-making and goal setting.

Power and politics in the organization are the two factors that can be utilized by the leader in the interests of the organization and its goals altogether at all times and particularly at the time of any changes, disasters, and crises approaching the organization. In such situations, the leaders utilize their power and political influence in the organization to communicate goals, strategies, and possible lines of action, and form groups to better identify the resources available to them to meet the challenges. Leaders, therefore, act as the source and practitioners of power and politics in the organization and they possess the ability and demonstrate skills to fulfill the goals of individuals in the organization. They also use the factors of power and politics to combine the individual objectives with that of the organizational goals that could result in the accomplishment and fulfillment of the interests of both individual and organization (Leadership and organizational politics, 16.05.06)