Home Library Translate
A A A
Share »
Follow us on Facebook Follow us on Twitter Follow us on LinkedIn
Connect »

Blog: Career Management

Menu

  • This Blog's Home
  • Guest Writer Submissions
  • Policies
  • To Subscribe to a Blog
  • About
  • Feedback

Office Politics: Love Or Hate! It’s Here To Stay

By Marcia Zidle on April 3, 2012

“There’s too much wrangling and maneuvering going on. Joe really knows how to get on his boss’s good side. I hate this politicking….I just want to do my job.”

These are things  I hear in my career management and development programs. Are these the types of comments you might make as well?

Whether you hate it, admire it, practice it or avoid it, office politics is a fact of life in any organization. And, like it or not, it’s something that you need to understand and play to an extent to be successful no matter what business or organization you work for.

“Office politics” are the strategies that people use to gain advantage personally or for a cause they support. The term often has a negative connotation because some people use it to seek advantage at the expense of others. Good “office politics”, on the other hand, helps you to promote yourself and your cause in a fair and appropriate way.

Why It’s Important

If you deny the bad politics that may be going on around you and avoid dealing with them, you may needlessly suffer whilst others take unfair advantage. And if you avoid practicing  good politics, you miss the opportunities to further your own interests and those of your team and your cause.

Making Politics Work FOR You

To deal effectively with office politics and use it yourself in a positive way, you must first to accept the reality of it. Second you  need to be a good observer.  Third you then use the information you gathered to build  strong networks and to start practicing influencing which is the proper name for good politics.  Here are strategies to get you started.

1. Re-Map the Organization Chart
Office politics often circumvent the formal organization chart. Sit back and watch for a while and then re-map the organization chart in terms of political power.

  • Who are the real influencers?
  • Who is the “go to guy” when things need to get done?
  • Who champions or mentors others?
  • Who is “the brains behind the organization”?

2. Understand the Informal Network
Once you know who’s who in the organization, you have a good idea of where the power and influence lay. Now you have to understand the social networks.

  • Who gets along with whom?
  • Who eats together? Works out together? Commutes together?
  • Are there groups or cliques that have formed?
  • What is the basis or commonality for the groups or cliques ?

3. Build Relationships
Now that you know how the existing relationships work, you need to build your own social network accordingly.

  • Do not be afraid of politically powerful people in the organization. Get to know them.
  • Ensure you have relationships  in all directions (peers, bosses, executives)
  • Start to build relationships with those who are “in the know.”
  • Be a part of multiple networks. This way you can keep your finger on the pulse of the organization.

Office politics are  a fact of life. Positive or negative politics happens. If you don’t participate in the political game, you risk not having a say in what happens to you and perhaps your team. This allows people with less experience, skill or knowledge to influence decisions being made around you and about you.

Career Success Tip:

Realize that political savvy brings personal power. And as a career building tool, personal power is a key strategy for success. Skilled influencers are not overtly political; they are seen as competent professional and leaders who play the political game fairly and effectively. Also  see Power is Not a Bad Word –  Influencing Your Boss – Influencing How to Be taken Seriously.

Do you want to develop Career Smarts?

  • For more resources, see the Library topic Career Management.
  • Start with the  Career Success System.
  • Sign up for Career Power: 101 success tips.
  • Fast track your career. Be part of a Success Team.
  • Need a speaker? Get the Edge Keynotes-webinars-workshops.
  • Find career and leadership boosters in the Smart Moves Blog.
  • Copyright © 2012 Marcia Zidle career and leadership coach.
« Previous Next »

Search Our Site

Meet This Blog’s Host

Marcia Zidle, a certified career strategist and business coach, works with high potential, high impact executives, managers and professionals to advance their careers and grow their leadership capabilities.
[Read more ...]

Recent Blog Posts

  • Watch Out For These Bad Habits: They Can Stop Your Career
  • Getting the Recognition You Deserve
  • Your Career Goals: Are You On Track or Side-Tracked?
  • Communication: Make Small Talk Big Talk
  • New Job and New Boss: Get Off On The Right Foot
  • What Are Your Career Goals For 2013?
  • What’s Important to an Employer?
  • Career Advice For Young Professionals and Leaders
  • The First Six Months On the Job: What You Need to Do!
  • Asking For Help Can Help Your Career

Categories of Posts

  • Basics and Overviews
  • Career Advancement
  • Career Planning
  • Career Resilience
  • Career Transition
  • Change Management
  • General Resources
  • Job Satisfaction
  • Job Search
  • Leading Others
  • Professional Development
  • Success Tips
  • Uncategorized

Related Library Links

  • Changing Your Behavior
  • Personal Development
  • Emotional Intelligence
  • Management Development

Library's Blogs

  • Boards of Directors
  • Building a Business
  • Business Communications
  • Business Ethics, Culture and Performance
  • Business Planning
  • Career Management
  • Coaching and Action Learning
  • Consulting and Organizational Development
  • Crisis Management
  • Customer Service
  • Facilitation
  • Free Management Library Blogs
  • Fundraising for Nonprofits
  • Human Resources
  • Leadership
  • Marketing and Social Media
  • Nonprofit Capacity Building
  • Project Management
  • Quality Management
  • Social Enterprise
  • Spirituality
  • Strategic Planning
  • Supervision
  • Team Building and Performance
  • Training and Development
About Feedback Legal Privacy Policy Contact Us
Free Management Library, © Copyright Authenticity Consulting, LLC ®; All rights reserved.
  • Graphics by Wylde Hare LLC
  • Website maintained by Caitlin Cahill

By continuing to use this site, you agree to our Privacy Policy.X