Question 3. (A) Managers In Organizations Are Expected

Power is loosely understood as one’s ability to influence the actions of others (Kelly & Tazbir, 2014). However, it is important to note that power remains independent from authority. Authority over others, as explained by Gonclaves (2013), is a formal responsibility that accompanies a title or position. While one may have administrative authority over an employee, they may not necessarily possess the ability to influence the person’s behavior. Power is derived from “expertise, legitimacy, reference (charisma), reward and coercion, or connection” (Kelly & Tazbir, 2014, p. 189). These sources of power are a combination of both purposeful and inherent behaviors that allow one to exercise influence over others (Kelly & Tazbir, 2014). To be most

Leadership is the process of influencing individuals or a group of individuals by providing purpose, direction with the support of others, and motivating those individuals with the purpose of accomplishing a certain obligation which is helpful to all individual that is involved.

The amount of legitimate power someone has depends on the importance of the position she or he occupies and the willingness to grant authority to the person in that position. The benefits of this type of power are that incorporates weight of the entire organization, effective for gaining obedience, helps large organizations function effectively. The costs are that lowers follower task performance, lowers follower task satisfaction, and may become less effective overtime.

The two major types of power are position power and personal power. Position power is power held by an individual due to the position they hold within an organization; whereas, personal power is power bestowed upon an individual due to their personal connection with (or likability) by their followers. power is divided “Position power includes legitimate, reward, and coercive power” (Northouse, 2010). “Personal power includes referent and expert power” (Northouse, 2010).

There are several different powers in any organization but it is something very prevalent at GEICO. In the beginning of my career at GEICO I did not have much power at all but after building confidence and recognition through the company I have some power in my office. I am working on getting legitimate power but at this time I have plenty of connection power and charismatic power. I have several connections at GEICO. My trainer at GEICO who I connected with as soon as I was hired is now the sales manager. My old boss is now a rotational manager. A supervisor I spoke with on a regular basis is now a performance coach in service. My former Quality Assurance boss is now a director in Arizona, and I am connected with the Vice President of the company. I did all this by working hard but also having the ability to attract people to me. I attempt to be a warm and welcoming person, but at the same time very driven and focused. Through my time at GEICO I have really developed my connection power and soon enough that connection power will develop into legitimate power once I become a sales supervisor.

There are two forms of power; personal and positional. As I look for promotion within my organization I am seeking more positional power, such as formal authority and autonomy. Over the years, I have successfully gained credence with my personal power through demonstration of my expertise and track record. "It is not just what they have done, but how they have done it. Those who have a positive track record have more power than those who do not (Hill, pg. 14)." I have also noticed

1. Power is the ability to have control over someone or a community. If used wisely, it can be a great virtue to one and can increase the respect others have for him or her. Power is also one’s role to instruct or affect the conduct of others or the course of events.

Power is defined as the ability to do something or behave in a particular way, especially as a faculty or quality. The real question here is not what power is, but

Power can be defined in many ways. Most simply, it is the ability to get what you want.

Expert power: Expert power can be associated with the experience, skill and knowledge of an individual. The more the experience of an individual the greater the chances of thinking critically and logically. The individual can begin to gather expert power while utilizing others for the achievement of objectives. For instance, the project manager can be recognized as an expert while solving particularly challenging problems to ensure a project stays on track (Lee, J., 2008).

It is important for managers to understand the sources of power and influence as they must rely upon the cooperation of subordinates in order to be successful. Strong managers rely upon more than just authority they also use leadership skills and power to obtain the most productivity from their staff. According to French and Raven (1959) there are five sources of power. Referent power seems to be the most influential and the least affected by change. To quote Paul Argenti,

(4) INFORMATION POWER: Employees have a perception that the supervisor has access to or at least possesses useful reformation. Recall that old adage: Information is power.

Referent power is the power that people have over followers because of the relationship between them (Hughes, et al, 2015). I have a low level in referent power at the beginning of my relationship with people around me and even at work because of my personality. I am an introvert and it takes a long time for me to get attached to people around me. For example, when I was working with one of the universities back in Ghana as the administrative assistant to the liaison officer of the university, it took about three months for me to get closer to the secretary.

The management can use this power to demote, transfer, fire or deny raises to their employees. The third power base of Position is legitimate power. This power stems from the level of hierarchy in which the subordinates report directly to the authority over them for decisions. Process Power controls the input and output of organizations to make sure that the processes are carried out efficiently and effectively within. Information power is the control of information or access to it within an organization. Information can be controlled to a ?need to know? basis and/or just limited to the upper management. This type of power compliments the legitimate power. Finally, there is Representative power in which an organization uses an individual to be there spokesperson both within the organization and when dealing with people outside of the organization.

Referent power refers to a manager’s personal power or charisma. Employees obey managers with referent power simply because they like them and identify with then.