Organisational Politics | Concept, Features and Dimensions

What is Organisational Politics?

Organisational politics can be perceived and approached in two distinct ways within an organisation. The first perspective views politics as behaviour driven by self-interest, involving actions that may not align with the organisation’s sanctioned practices. This viewpoint associates politics with deception and dishonesty, often hindering the organisation’s ability to achieve its goals. Many people hold a negative view of politics, considering it devious, indirect, and counterproductive to organisational development.

On the other hand, the second perspective considers politics as a natural process inherent in organisations, aimed at resolving differences among interest groups. It involves activities such as bargaining, negotiation, and coalition building to overcome conflicts and divergent opinions. This perspective recognises that political decision-making processes are necessary to gain support for organisational actions on specific issues. Thus, organisational politics can be defined as deliberate planning, strategic manoeuvres, and resource utilisation to achieve preferred outcomes, particularly in situations where there is uncertainty or disagreement. Uncertainty and conflict are acknowledged as natural and inevitable, and politics serves as a means to reach agreements.

At the heart of organisational politics lies the concept of conflict resolution. It entails addressing and resolving conflicts that arise within the organisational context. Conflict resolution often requires the use of political strategies to manage and mitigate disagreements and varying interests among different groups. Through political activities, individuals and groups seek to acquire, maintain, and utilise power within organisations to advance their respective goals. Politics involves intentional acts of influencing others through acquired power to enhance and promote self-interest. According to Tushman, politics encompasses the structural and procedural utilisation of authority and power to shape the definition of goals, direction, and other significant aspects of the organisation. Decision-making processes in this context involve compromise, accommodation, and bargaining rather than strictly rational or formal approaches.

Features of Organisational Politics

These are some of the features of Organisational Politics:

1. Organisational politics emerges when individuals recognize that the actions of others can influence the attainment of their goals.
2. Politics can manifest to varying degrees across all levels of an organisation, although research suggests it is more prevalent among middle and senior management.
3. Power plays a central role in political dynamics. It represents the capacity or potential to achieve desired outcomes, while politics involves the actual behaviours employed to influence decisions and achieve those outcomes.
4. Politicking involves employing strategic manoeuvres to eliminate adversaries within the organisation.
5. Organisational politics is an inherent aspect of every workplace. As Piffener and Sherwood state, politicking is present in all organisations, regardless of their size, function, or ownership structure.
6. Politics also entails managing influence to achieve ends that may not be formally sanctioned by the organisation. It encompasses both positive and negative interests pursued through political means.
7. Political behaviour often involves actions that serve self-interest, utilizing organisational resources for personal gain. However, it is important to note that not all self-serving behaviour can be classified as politics. For instance, requesting a pay increase is not inherently political, but if an employee resorts to threatening union involvement to secure the increase, it can be considered political behaviour.
8. Individuals within the organisation often exhibit double standards when it comes to politics. They may perceive their political actions as defending legitimate rights while labelling similar actions by others as “playing politics.”
9. Political behaviour frequently originates from the top of the organisation and permeates throughout, as lower-level employees look to their superiors for cues on acceptable behaviour standards.

Dimensions of Political Behaviour

In the realm of organisational politics, several key dimensions come into play, shaping the dynamics and outcomes within an organisation:

1. Conflict: In any organisation, conflicts of interest, diverging opinions, and competition for resources or influence are inevitable. Such conflicts often serve as a breeding ground for political behaviour.
2. Power Sources: Various sources of power influence organisational politics. Personal power, emanating from an individual’s charisma or expertise, intertwines with positional power derived from formal roles and authority within the organisation.
3. Compatibility: The effective navigation between individual self-interest and the broader goals of the organisation is vital in organisational politics. Striking a balance between these two aspects is crucial for exhibiting effective political behaviour.
4. Dysfunctional Political Behaviour: Within the realm of organisational politics, certain behaviours can be detrimental to the organisation. Scapegoating, passive-aggressive actions, red-tape tactics, sabotage, and palace politics undermine organisational effectiveness and must be avoided.
5. Functional Political Behaviour: Conversely, some political behaviours can positively contribute to an organisation. Strategic actions, coalition building, negotiation, and influencing decisions that align with organisational goals are examples of functional political behaviour.
6. Opportunity Structures: The opportunity structures within an organisation shape the political behaviour of individuals. These structures define the channels and avenues through which individuals can exert their political influence.
7. Organisational Impact: The dimensions of organisational politics have profound implications for the organisation as a whole. Dysfunctional political behaviour hampers organisational performance, while functional political behaviour enhances decision-making and facilitates goal achievement.