Countless hours of training, books upon books, academic and non-academic papers and vital units of business education curriculum have been devoted to many competencies required by managers and leaders. However, little has been written about organisational politics, either because many find the subject distasteful or perhaps because it is not deemed worthy of study. Indeed, the subject is not available in the syllabus of any management programme of MBA course that I have come across. What an oversight!
It is possible that more people’s careers flounder on the rocks of organisational politics than for many other reasons. So, it is an area of great interest to practising managers. An exceedingly high proportion of the extra-curricular questions (i.e. those asked in the bar at the end of the day) in most out-of-site training programmes centre on this thorny area.
Whether we want to admit it or not, the stark reality is that there is heavy, sometimes dangerous, politics going on in our establishments and corporations. While it may not be surprising to find it in government institutions and corporations, the so-called blue chip companies are not left out.
In our environment, the basis of politicking is a little more complex and the instrument of practice can be scary. Organisational politics here is complicated by unbridled nepotism, ethnicity and corruption. It is not unusual for promotions, appointments and postings to be done on one or more of the above considerations, rather than merit and competence. And the instrument ranges from the absurd to the macabre – juju, assault, arson and, even, assassination!
Understanding the dynamics
So how can politics be defined and, more importantly, how can it be survived? If company politics can be described as “the way we do things around here”, then surely it can also be described as “the way that we do things to people around here.” It is a sad truism that whenever people gather to tackle a task, there will be tensions, rivalries, jalousies, hidden agendas and plain old-fashioned mischief. Not only do people want to achieve the task in their own way, they also want the way that the task is approached to reflect glory in certain specific directions and to help the careers of specific individuals or groups.
It may not be pleasant, but, whether your place of work is a merchant bank or a monastery, it is unavoidable. Indeed, there is evidence to show that the more senior and better educated the participants, the more prevalent and unpleasant the politics will be.
The concept of political animals is a popular one, and the University of Birmingham has conducted intriguing studies on the nature of these beasts in organisations. Researchers identified two axes behaviour:
That of being “well-read” in what was going on politically within the organization: having an interest in the different factions’ power camps and power plays. The degree to which one was well-read could be high or low.
That of having an interest in self and the promotion of one’s own aims versus that of having a prime interest in the fortunes and welfare of the organisation.
With these axes in mind, it becomes possible to identify four discrete orientations and to label each with the name of the animal most representative.
Orientation A: Here, the individual is politically well-read and has a high interest in the fortunes of the organisation rather than self. This individual is the wise owl. Owls are both liked and respected; furthermore, they are seldom hunted and usually survive. There is one downside, however: they do not often get to the head of the forest.
Orientation B: In this box, the individual is well-read and takes an active interest in the politics; moreover, the individual promotes him- or herself actively within the organisation. Here, we have the crafty fox. The fox is not always popular, for it hunts and it can create mayhem, but usually it is a survivor. Occasionally, it oversteps the mark and is hunted down.
Orientation C: In the first of the lower boxes is found the person who is politically ill-read, but who on the other hand has a high degree of self-interest. The researchers contemptuously labelled this individual as the donkey – both stubborn and stupid. The donkey is used as a beast of burden, resents it and is seldom thanked. It never reached the top.
Orientation D: The final box contains those who are badly-read politically, who have no interest in improving their knowledge or skills and yet who continually put the organisation before self. Loyalty, blind loyalty, is the name of the game, and these people are labelled sheep, because they are unquestioningly naive. It often happens that the sheep ends up in the slaughterhouse.
So, where is the best position to be politically? Having put this question to a wide variety of executives from different countries and cultures, the answer is invariably “just to the right of the fox/owl divide (i.e. a combination of both, but being slightly more of a Fox). In other words, you have to know the political forces at work and have to keep up-to-date with the trends and development here. In addition, you have to know how to play the game in order to appreciate that the game is not worth the sacrifice of your personal integrity and self-respect.
So, to survive, the effective leader must be “aware” and must learn to apply this awareness in ethical ways that reinforce his credibility, rather than detract from it. Having one’s antennae out at all times is not being manipulative and does not sacrifice integrity. It is simply being smart.
Acknowledgement: This piece relied heavily on John Maurik’s Discovering The Leader in You (McGraw-Hill, 1994) and The Portable Leader (McGraw-Hill, 1997).
Tunde Oyeniran, B.Pharm., MBA, FSPSM, a sales/marketing strategist, selling/sales management trainer and personal sales coach is the president of the Society for Pharmaceutical Sales and Marketing of Nigeria, and lead consultant, Ekini White Tulip Consulting Limited, Lagos. We deliver training, recruitment and field force management solutions. Feedback Channels: 080-2960-6103 (SMS/WhatsApp)
/ekiniwhitetuliptraining@gmail.com or check out https://fb.me/EkiniWhiteTulipConsulting
