Office politics - learning to pull the strings

Is there a term that evokes a more negative sentiment in the world of employment than "office politics"? Probably not. Still, office politics exist in every organization, even in a 5-person start-up, so we should learn to understand it and especially how it can be used in a positive way.

But first, a definition - what is “office politics”? The simplistic definition of corporate politics, which you will find in a Wikipedia closest to your search engine, is “…the use of force and social networking within a workplace, to achieve changes or resources that promote the organization or specific people within It.”

A slightly improved and more complex definition that I like, by Michael and Deborah Dobson " The information and sometimes emotion-driven process of allocating limited resources and working out goals, decisions and actions in an environment of people with different and competing interests and personalities.". If you focus for a moment on the words I have emphasized above, you will understand why organizational politics exists everywhere - by virtue of being a human environment, to which people come with feelings, needs, aspirations, insecurities and more.

By the way, the two wrote an excellent book on the subject:

Enlightened Office Politics: Understanding, Coping with, and Winning the Game – Without Losing Your Soul - Michael and Deborah Dobson

So here's the first recommendation - accept that politics is a fact of life that exists wherever you work in the company of other people.

Now let's make a distinction between bad politics and good politics. Bad politics is what impairs our daily work experience, and we often encounter it in the form of power struggles, a war for credit, the feeling that decisions are not necessarily made for business purposes, gossip and more. Bad politics intensify as the organization has a larger mismatch between the amount of resources and the number of people who needs them (an important point that took me a long time to crack... it's not the objective amount of resources, but how many people are fighting for the same "Libra of meat"), lack of cohesion around common goals, large number of decision makers, and lack of transparency in processes.

Good politics is one that uses sources of power like internal corporate networking to promote values, professional agenda, projects in which you and your teams are invested in and more. How can the organization (i.e. managers) promote good politics? Here are some examples:

1. Promoting participation in decision-making processes

2. Legitimacy for plurality of opinions

3. Clear definition of resource allocation or of processes in which working for a common goal prevails over a war of resources

4. Transparency and above all (as always ...) personal example!

Derived from this distinction is my second recommendation, and that is to learn to be "good politicians", that is to gain power to change reality, advance your professional agenda and influence the results of the organization (and thus also your personal results). To the question "How do you do it?" There are many answers, here are 3 points I find significant:

Map the centers of power and influence in the organization. In real life you should not really draw a map, but you should ask yourself questions when it comes to promoting something in the organization - who really decides on the subject? Who has the budget? Who does everyone go to when they want an X? Who is close to whom? Who whispers in whose ear? This will help you understand how to build your track of influence - for example, if you are about to present a project to management, do a "footwork" in advance. Harness the VPs, invest more energy in those who are likely to favour you, understand in advance the objections you should expect, give them credit for changes you have made to the program following their advice or idea - you get it.

Build significant relationships without immediate benefit. True, it's easy to say, but it's clear to all of us that it requires a wide range of skills, from emotional intelligence and interpersonal communication skills to the ability to have small talk. The good news is that everything can be practiced and improved, just not in this post :)

A practical and applicable tip that I can already give, is to invest in pouring meaningful content into relationships with people in your interfaces - be helpful, consult, listen, support, even and especially if you do not have to and its not a part of your job description. Every time you "throw a ball" into someone else's court because it is not your job, you missed an opportunity to build a significant and stronger network of contacts within the organization, a network that will one day serve you as well.

Be positive politicians. Like those who do out of values and not out of self-interest - less ego, more openness, and most importantly do not give in to bad politics. Do not spread rumours and gossip, maintain professional credibility and discretion.