The Empowered Manager, 2nd Edition

TwoPersonal Choices That Shape the Work Environment

In being political we walk the tightrope between advocating our own position and yet not increasing resistance against us by our actions. The path we take is a mixture of two forces: (1) the individual choices we make in creating our environment and (2) the nature of the norms and culture of the organization in which we find ourselves imbedded.

As managers, in addition to delivering organizational outcomes, our fundamental purpose is to build a department and organization that we are proud of. Our unit in many ways becomes a living monument to our deepest beliefs in what is possible at work. We strive to create both a high-performing unit and one that treats its own members and its customers well. Each time we act as a living example of how we want the whole organization to operate, it is a positive political act.

Organizations have limited resources, limited budgets, limited people, and a limited number of actions they can attempt. We want at least our fair share of those resources. Therefore, the methods we use in reaching for those resources are at the heart of politics.

The Road Most Traveled

If we get what we want but do it in a way that is expedient and safe, we are in a quandary. We have achieved our short-term goal but acted in a way that is not an example of the world we want to live in. This dilemma became very vivid to me in a lunch meeting I had with Phil, the president of a major chemicals company.

We had talked ...