Power and how it relates to leadership.
In leadership, power can be used as an attribute to mean various factors. First, a leader can be termed powerful when followers are willing to abide by his or her rules without questioning. On the other hand, power can be used to mean the ability of a leader to influence others without necessarily having to apply force or brutal measures. Power can either promote or ruin the leadership path of a manager. Salovaara (2016) asserts that a leader who uses the different types of power to influence others in a positive way will create a work friendly environment. On the other hand, a leader who misuses power for personal benefits that sideline the strategic plans and goals of the organization might end up achieving nothing. Therefore, Salovaara (2016) concludes that it is important for a leader to use the power they are bestowed to ensure that they create and promote better relations within the workplace.
Types of Power
Once in a leadership position, every manager is granted various types of power irrespective of their position in the organization. According to Vidula (2010), the following are the seven common types of power in every workplace;
• The power of position/legitimate power is the power that is guaranteed to a leader through the various positions or ranks they are in an organization.
• The Power of charisma is generated internally or as a result of a leader’s style and/or ways of doing things.
• The Power of relationship/connection power is gained through the connections a leader gain from within or outside the organization while conducting daily leadership routines.
• The power of information is the control that a leader gains due to the ability that valuable and most important information is at their disposal. They are thus capable of making a guided argument as they are properly equipped with the necessary tools.
• The power of expertise/expert power is gained from the constant communication and dynamic knowledge gained working in the leadership position.
• The power of punishment/coercive power is the ability of a leader to sanction followers which in most cases are those below in the leadership ranks whenever they have not conformed to standard expectations.
• The power of reward is the power granted to a leader as a result of their capability of bestowing rewards to individuals who have performed exemplary well in the organization.
Relationship between influence and power
Power and influence have a lot to share. In fact, the word ‘influence’ appears within the definition of the term ‘power’. Before looking at how the two correlate, it will be important to first understand what influence means. According to Wolfram (2016), influence is a broader term that is used to imply the ability of a person or scenario to alter the value, attitude, behavior, and the feelings of another person. From the types of power discussed in this paper, it is clear that most of them are directed towards altering how those below in the leadership hierarchy feel, behave, and value themselves. For instance, the power of reward gives a leader an opportunity to alter how employees do things within an organization. A leader who rewards fairly will be termed as influential and hence powerful.
Additionally, power within a leader can only be experienced or noted when the subject feels influenced. This is to mean that a leader who applies the power of punishment on the subject for a mistake within the organization yet the mistake keeps on repeating can lose his or her ‘powerful’ tag. In other words, power must be felt and a change realized.
References
Salovaara, P., & Bathurst, R. (2016). Power-with leadership practices: An unfinished business. Leadership, 1742715016652932.
Vidula, B., Campbell, J., & Steed, K. (2010). The Role Of Power In Effective Leadership. Center of Creative Leadership. Retrieved from <<http://insights.ccl.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/roleOfPower.pdf>>
Wolfram, D. (2016). The Power to Influence: An Informetric Analysis of the Works of Hope Olson. Knowledge Organization, 43(5).
