Smart Management: Using Politics in Organisations

Contents......Page 6
List of Figures and Tables......Page 8
Acknowledgements......Page 9
Preface......Page 10
List of Abbreviations......Page 13
1 Organisational Politics......Page 14
Some of the Significant Drivers of Business Change......Page 18
The Nature of the Problem......Page 23
Politics is a Dirty Word......Page 26
A Powerful Alternative......Page 31
In Conclusion......Page 35
2 The Illegitimacy of Politics......Page 38
Managerial Mindsets......Page 39
Hierarchy and Top-down Control......Page 45
The Illegitimacy of Politics......Page 48
The Unrealised Value of Politics......Page 58
3 Legitimate Politics......Page 63
The Problem of Power......Page 64
Politics as the Application of Power......Page 80
Managers as Capable Politicians......Page 91
4 The Capable Politician......Page 93
Conceptual Understanding......Page 94
Self-understanding......Page 101
Awareness......Page 103
Interpersonal Skills......Page 107
A Model of Political Capability......Page 111
Personal Development Implications......Page 116
5 Working with Legitimate Politics......Page 118
Understanding What Managers Do......Page 119
So Why Do Managers Do What They Do?......Page 122
Activity Patterns of Constructive Politicians......Page 127
The Complete Constructive Politician......Page 155
In Conclusion......Page 161
6 Politics – The Essence of Organisation?......Page 162
The Democratisation of Organisational Life......Page 164
Education and Political Behaviour......Page 171
Individual Action, Politics and the Art of the Possible......Page 175
The Beginnings of an Agenda for Personal Action......Page 178
C......Page 182
H......Page 183
M......Page 184
P......Page 185
S......Page 186
W......Page 187