Corporate PoliticsTurning a Negative Into a Positive

@murrinerwww.facebook.com/CorporateBraveryhttp://www.corporatebravery.com

The political process is Important

Definition: The total complex of relations between people living in society

My Personal Experience

My oldest child, Peter uses his age, strength and powers of manipulation to extract what he wants from his younger twin sisters.

This is a picture from our western road trip stop at Bryce Canyon. It is clear Peter has not quite captured the real meaning of successful sibling politics.

If Politics is Necessary, How Does It Go So Wrong?

In life & business trying to achieve outcomes depends on the actions of other people. You must find ways to influence and convince others to act in a manner that achieves the desired outcome.

Yet somehow when we apply the label of politics to this process it makes us feel dirty. We are inundated with bad experiences from this process - a ‘do-nothing’ congress, attack ads, that manager in the other department that seems intent on torpedoing your success.

The Broader Environment

• Over 25 years our political system has managed a near perfect ideological divide

• Our institutions have gotten more and more divisive

• We only see issues in black & white with no possibility of a middle ground

Sense of Ownership Exacerbates Bad Politics

• We are programmed to feel ownership over our teams, departments & divisions

• But ownership creates fear of losing something & unintended consequences of holding tight to that sense of power

• This creates a virtual fear cycle related to politics that isn’t healthy

How Fear Confuses Corporate Politics

When presented with an opposing viewpoint in daily business life there is an opportunity to square off into opposing sides, getting caught up into the political vortex.

How Fear Confuses Corporate Politics

Because we lack the training and aptitude in conflict management....

Our inclination is to oppose, discredit and attack

This leads others to respond with defend, retrench & attack

Our teams repeat this pattern until we have created or reiterated mistrust, fear, divisions and ultimately a dysfunctional organization.

How Do We Get Out of This Cycle?It starts with TRUST

Trust is a huge part of our success yet we spend almost no time intentionally building it or developing it.

As leaders we are so focused on the day to day that we do not allow time for people to build relationships. It will not happen in the normal course of our lives.

Create Opportunities for Trust to Blossom

Invest in Relationships

Peers Business Partners (Suppliers, Labor, etc)

Government Agencies Customers

Clear Communication Is Key

• Confusion creates fear - you must be clear communicators

• The struggle for resources creates the need for politics, so you must have clarity in your resource allocation processes

• Internally your mission, strategies & actions must be aligned to avoid confusing decision making

Move from Ownership to Stewardship

If we move from ownership to stewardship people are more likely to work together

How does Stewardship Differ?

• Stewardship sees all parts of the organization as an important part of the whole that need to be supported towards better performance.  

• Stewards will view their people not as head count but as people who have aspirations and will work with them to develop them to improved performance.

“In any organization, there are various factions intent on advancing their own interests--product, marketing, communications, sales--which may or may not align. And here is where balance is essential.

If any one function wins, we all lose. It’s the balance of these competing forces and the ability to keep them in this juxtaposed tension that really leads to great, great things being created and being done.”

- Ed Catmull, President & Founder Pixar

Balance is Essential