Office Politics Research Articles

Perceived ethicality of political behaviours in organisations: a constructivist grounded theory study

Office politics is a part of everyday professional life. In this work, we have attempted to uncover the cognitive moral logic employees utilise with regard to political behaviour in organisations. To accomplish this, we applied the constructivist grounded theory methodology by conducting, recording, analysing and coding 27 in-depth semi-structured interviews of working individuals in various organisations. Our results revealed 13 rationalising tactics or neutralisation techniques for judging whether a given political behaviour was ethical or not unethical and six different rationales of mostly normative nature for perceiving political conduct as unethical. Moreover, it also revealed that while applying logic in the context of office politics, employees tend to use more than one logic-combination. The justifications for employee behaviour seemed to depend on the position and the nature of the individual. The practical implications, limitations of this study and future research directions are also discussed.

The Ideal Team Player: How to Recognize and Cultivate Three Essential Virtues

Patrick Lencioni The Ideal Team Player: How to Recognize and Cultivate Three Essential Virtues Jossey-Bass, 2016, $25 (hardcover), 219 pagesThe ideal team player is humble, hungry, and smart.the ideal team player is a follow-up to Lencioni's previous book, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team, where he explained that real teamwork requires tangible, specific behaviors such as: vulnerability-based trust, healthy conflict, active commitment, peer-to-peer accountability, and a focus on results. This new book focuses on Lencioni's opinion of what team builders should be searching for in ideal team members. According to Lencioni, the three underlying virtues of ideal team players are: (1) humility, (2) hunger for success, and (3) people smarts. He asserts that leaders who identify, hire, and cultivate employees with these three virtues will have a significant advantage over those who do not. The purpose of the book is to help the reader understand how these three simple attributes can help managers build effective teams quickly and reduce costs associated with negative office politics, high rates of turnover, and workforce morale problems.Lencioni makes use of a story, which he calls a fable, to illustrate his key points. The story involves who leaves a CEO position at a Silicon Valley technology start-up to take a job with his Uncle Bob's construction company. Shortly after starting the job, Uncle Bob steps down due to health problems and puts Jeff in charge. As CEO, Jeff's biggest new challenge is quickly hiring 60 new employees to handle two huge new projects. In consultation with the other company executives, it was decided that hiring excellent team players is key. The big question is, how a manager identifies such candidates. What hiring and training processes assure the new employees will be good team players?Pages 192-193 contain 18 questions Lencioni uses to score applicants on the virtues of being humble, hungry, and smart. The humble employee will compliment and praise others, admit mistakes, and share credit for team accomplishments. The hungry employee will do more than is required, have a passion for the mission of the team, and look for opportunities to contribute outside of their area of responsibility. The employee is basically people as evidenced by understanding what others are feeling, showing empathy, demonstrating interest in the lives of teammates, and by being an attentive listener. Essentially the smart employee is someone with a high level of emotional intelligence.Lencioni is an excellent story teller and readers will find it hard to put down the book without finding the results of the drama. This 219 page book can easily be read in a few hours and the fable makes it easy to understand and apply the key concepts. The three virtues of being humble, hungry, and are undeniably important in building effective teams. …

A grounded investigation of Chinese office politics

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to critically review the extant western literature on political skill and impression management in human resource management and organisational behaviour and applies an inductive approach to explore an equal Chinese concept of office politics in the People’s Republic of China (PRC).Design/methodology/approachAn empirical study conducted in a wide range of Chinese organisational forms, employing an inductive approach based on critical incident technique.FindingsData collected from 173 employees supported this model and indicated the existence of 14 clusters of behaviours that characterise political skill, impression management and the overlap between the two. Extending impression management theory, the authors found that individual players’ political skill drives the dynamics of Chinese office politics and may help a subordinate gain a favourable image with superiors and serve as the overlap between individual political skill and impression management from the Chinese perspective.Originality/valueThe authors used a grounded theory approach to report the construct of a Chinese concept of office politics in the PRC, which is much similar to the western concept of political skill in organisation. Compared with western political skill literature, this study found both universal and cultural-specific phenomena on political perspective in Chinese organisations.

HBR Guide to Office Politics

HBR Guide to Office Politics

You Can't End Office Politics, But Can ReduceTheir Impact

Successful FundraisingVolume 23, Issue 7 p. 8-8 Articles You Can't End Office Politics, But Can ReduceTheir Impact First published: 17 June 2015 https://doi.org/10.1002/sfr.30152Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat No abstract is available for this article. Volume23, Issue7July 2015Pages 8-8 RelatedInformation

Stay above the fray: how to navigate office politics and personalities.

Stay above the fray: how to navigate office politics and personalities.

Data-driven design — Using data on human behaviour and spatial configuration to inform better workplace design

Recent studies have shown that the majority of staff are dissatisfied with their workplace environment. At the same time, scientists are beginning to discover clearer and recurring patterns that show how the spatial design of a workplace affects staff satisfaction, wellbeing, exchange of information, communication and movement flows. This paper argues that insights from this body of research could be used to improve workplace design. It gives an overview of evidence-based and data-driven design as new emerging practices, which base design decisions on rigorously collected data. Using various case studies from Spacelab — a London-based practice — as an example, the paper shows how the typical needs of clients can be solved more profoundly by relying on data rather than intuition, opinion or office politics. The main insights include answers to the questions of how to fit more people into a space, whether everyone needs a desk, who should sit where, how to find the perfect property and how to establish the success of a project. In conclusion, the paper identifies key barriers for the further integration of research findings into design practice and suggests how they might be overcome in the future.

Product placement with ‘Chinese characteristics’: Feng Xiaogang's films and Go Lala Go!

This study examines the practice of product placement (or ‘soft advertisement’/ruanxing guanggao) in Chinese cinema in order to create an understanding of the specific realities of film production and consumption. The return of consumer culture, instead of nostalgically recreating the ruined socialist past, engenders the imaginary of a ‘brand’ new China of the global future. Commercialization of film and television exploits the emerging practice of product placement as economic necessity and a reflection of the urban consumer culture. The director Feng Xiaogang, encouraged by the private film company Huayi Brothers, exemplifies the integration of product placement in a series of high-budget box-office hits. Feng's films, Feichang wurao/If You are the One (2008) and its sequel (2010), successfully merge the narratives surrounding the new urban middle class and their conspicuous consumption in China and abroad. Adapted from a popular ‘workplace’ novel, Du Lala shengzhi ji/The Promotion of Du Lala (2007), Xu Jinglei's Go Lala Go! (2010), a chick flick aimed at white-collar women, places products including luxury cars, apartments, personal goods, fashion items and laptops, while downplaying office politics in favour of love and consumption as its main tropes. Through examining product placement in Feng's films and Go Lala Go!, this study analyses why twenty-first-century Chinese cinema merges entertainment and commercial culture, and how the practice reflects the emergence of consumer culture in China and the specificity of the use of product placement in Chinese cinema.

Sex as a Concealed Weapon: Race, Gender, and Incivility of Office Politics

Within a highly sexualized American culture, men and women have used sex and flirtation to manipulate coworkers, even at the risk of sexual harassment charges. Therefore, this study will examine the question: Do Black men use flirtation to advance at work? In the fall 2014, 141 employed, Black men, ages 18–65 were asked about their workplace strategies to answer the central research question. The study theoretically considers historical, economic, and sociological parameters as a potential motivation for Black men to use flirtation as a work advancement strategy. Twelve percent confirmed they use flirtation to gain sex from employees, while 15% use flirtation to create a fun workplace. Fifty-three percent did not use flirtation in any part of their careers.

A Cultural Reading of a Chinese White-Collar Workplace Bestseller and its Filmic Adaptation: Li Ke’s A Story of Lala’s Promotion and Go Lala Go!

In 2007, Li Ke’s novel A Story of Lala’s Promotion (Du Lala Shengzhi Ji) became a bestseller among Chinese white-collar workers in foreign-owned (Western) companies and struck a chord with the Chinese middle class. The novel revolves around office politics, Western company culture and the white-collar lifestyle, the ‘shelved ladies’ phenomenon and middle-class aesthetics. To decipher the embedded cultural codes of this book, this study undertakes a textual analysis of the plots of A Story of Lala’s Promotion and its filmic adaptation, Go Lala Go! (Du Lala Shengzhi Ji dir. Xu Jinglei, 2010). This paper conducts a trans-media adaption study (from fiction to film) to examine three interrelated themes in the novel and the film. First, focusing on the influence of Western corporate culture on Chinese white-collar workers under economic globalisation, the widely circulating rules of Western workplaces are interpreted, clarifying the acculturating process of Western culture over its Chinese counterpart. The paper further explains that on the platform provided by foreign companies, and with the influence and training of Western corporate culture, intelligent and diligent young Chinese aspirational women struggle and realise their dreams in the workplace. Second, employing a feminist perspective, an attempt is made to address the situation of contemporary Chinese white-collar women represented by the contemporary social phenomenon of the ‘shelved ladies’, which also serves as an emblem of female independence and individualism. Third, through an analysis of the filmic adaptation, which focuses on the white-collar female’s lifestyle and consumption habits, the paper also highlights the contemporary Chinese population’s pursuit of a middle-class identity and aesthetic that mirrors the overwhelming consumerism of post-socialist China.

Modern Dublin: urban change and the Irish past, 1957-1973

Introduction: Modern Dublin and the Irish Past 1. Chapter One: Planning and the Eighteenth-Century City, 1955-75 2. Georgian Dublin and Modern Architecture, 1950-65 3. Kildare Place and the Irish Georgian Society, 1957-58 4. Modernization and Preservation, 1958-65 5. Housing, Community, and Preservation, 1963-70 6. Material Culture and Social Politics, 1964-73 7. Office Politics, 1965-70 Conclusion: The Invention of Georgian Dublin Bibliography

Exploring capitalist fiction: business through literature and film

Preface Introduction Chapter 1. The Rise of Silas Lapham: A Story of Self-Identity, Self-Respect, and Morality Chapter 2. Taking a Look at Edward Bellamy's Looking Backward Chapter 3. Frank Norris's The Octopus: An Epic of Wheat and Railroads Chapter 4. The Financier: Theodore Dreiser's Portrait of a Darwinian Businessman Chapter 5. Abraham Cahan's The Rise of David Levinsky Chapter 6. Babbitt: Sinclair Lewis's Portrait of a Middle-Aged Middle Class Businessman Chapter 7. is Henry M. Galt?: A Review of Garet Garrett's The Driver Chapter 8. F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby Chapter 9. An American Romance: King Vidor's Epic Film of Immigration and the American Dream Chapter 10. Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman: A Case of Self-Delusion Chapter 11. John P. Marquand's Point of No Return Chapter 12. Henry Hazlitt's Time Will Run Back: A Tale of the Reinvention of Capitalism Chapter 13. Executive Suite: A Story of Corporate Success and Succession Chapter 14. Cash McCall: The Story of a Heroic Corporate Rider Chapter 15. Sloan Wilson's The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit Chapter 16. Atlas Shrugged: An Epic Story of Heroic Businessmen Chapter 17. Sometimes a Great Notion: The Story of a Family Who Would Never Give an Inch Chapter 18. Wilfrid Sheed's Office Politics: A Lesson about Organizational Conflict Chapter 19. The Franchiser: Stanley Elkin's Tale of a Man Who Wanted to Costume the Country Chapter 20. Glengarry Glen Ross: A David Mamet Word Play Chapter 21. Wall Street: Oliver Stone's Zero-Sum Vision of Capitalism Chapter 22. Tucker: The Man and His Dream Chapter 23. David Lodge's Nice Work: A Tale of Two Cultures Chapter 24. Other People's Money: A Tale of Capitalism and Creative Destruction Chapter 25: Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps Conclusion

The Effect of Office Politics upon the Implementation and Management of the Job Evaluation Programme: An Analytical View

This paper concentrates on the negative office politics and negative ‘office ‘politicians’ by simply identifying their divisive effect in context with the implementation and management of the job evaluation programme within organisations along with the difficulties that this can cause both the programme’s committee or management and the employees whose jobs are to be evaluated. It does this by way of example and not because the former (office politics) is considered an exclusive phenomenon of the latter (job evaluation). From here this paper traces the sources of power for those office ‘politicians’. Simultaneously it suggests counter-measures (prophylactic and remedial) by which both the harm caused by and the virulent effect that can result from such unhealthy office politics in relation to the job evaluation programme can be inhibited or marginalized. The purpose and consequence of these counter-measures are to fortify the programme’s processes and outcomes against the office political ploys and tactics. Our experience of teaching this discipline for more than two decades with a further decade in education and the business sector is the backbone upon which this work is established.

Political Life in the Shadows: the post suffrage political career of S. Margery Fry (1874–1958)

Drawing upon research on the working life of the penal reformer and educationalist S. Margery Fry (1874–1958) and her role as a policy-maker, this article argues that there were alternative ways in which women could participate in post-suffrage political culture, other than through elected office or party politics. The article positions Margery Fry both as a feminist and a public intellectual and argues that the First World War and the granting of women's suffrage allowed a step change to take place in Fry's career, taking her from a regional political stage to a national and international one. It also contends that she was able to wield considerable power ‘in the shadows’ as a policy advisor.

Beyond Office Politics: the Hidden Story of Power, Affiliation and Achievement in the Workplace

Beyond Office Politics: the Hidden Story of Power, Affiliation and Achievement in the Workplace

A personal reflection by a serial entrepreneur on the failings of the digital media company, TuDocs Ltd

This paper contains a personal account by the author on his experiences of running TuDocs Ltd. As such it is personalised, but also made with close reference to wider experiences. This paper examines the personnel, legal, and management issues which afflicted this small but complex company, which began as an e-portfolios website, migrated into games creation, moved into active (graphic) novel development, and drifted towards becoming a games education and research organisation. The primary reasoning behind the paper is to give a rare account by a central actor in the processes that worked in and around a failed computer games company. There were some positive aspects to the company, including the central role of networks; enthusiasm amongst its directors and some interns; the general feeling of serendipity; and, the pursuit of several opportunities. Negative experiences included some office politics, and the lack of assistance and cooperation from government agencies and the banks. It is hoped that this account will serve as a warning to other future computer games entrepreneurs who are aiming to launch and run their own new-start companies. Despite all the problems experienced by the author and other people in TuDocs Ltd, the best advice the author can offer to other entrepreneurs is simply (i) stay focussed on the original and/or best business ideas (do not try several projects all at the same time); and (ii) just get on with building and marketing computer games products.

Fashioning the Cosmopolitan Girl: Sartorial Display and Technologies of Femininity in the Chinese Bestseller Du Lala (2007–11)

This article focuses on the bestselling Du Lala novel series portraying the career rise and love life of a “foreign corporate white collar woman” in contemporary China. It argues that on top of the books’ popular image as career novels that offer useful tips on office politics and desirable Western business practices for young, educated, upwardly mobile urban women, they also inculcate sartorial and consuming practices as a crucial technology to construct an ideal cosmopolitan femininity predicated on material success, cultural and economic capital, and integration with the world. In Lala's process of “striving for success” (fen dou) and her fashioning of a neoliberal, enterprising, and self-responsible self who is determined to achieve success and status often measured in terms of financial gains and commodity ownership, sartorial display, bodily adornment, and material consumption mediated via Western styles/brands figure crucially. Fashion thus functions as a crucial and contested site where global consumer culture, local tradition, and post-socialist party politics intricately intertwine and vie for ascendance, with consequences reverberating both in the geopolitical dimension of modernization and also in the biopolitical dimension of self-construction.

The experiences and perspectives of agency social workers in England

One of the solutions to the shortages of social workers in England has been to employ social workers on a temporary or locum basis, often these social workers are called agency social workers as their contract of employment is with a employment agency rather than the social work employer. This paper explores the background to the use of agency social workers in the current context of government efforts to reduce the expenditure of public sector employers on agency staff. Data were collected through interviews with 40 social workers working with adults in England, in three diverse local authority settings; spanning those social workers whose careers in social work were in their early years; those with that were experienced and third group who while experienced and specialist were considering possible retirement or career moves. The aim of the interviews was to investigate motivations and experiences around this type of social work employment. The findings of the interviews are presented, with illustrations of ‘push and pull’ factors around agency working. The article concludes that agency working presents opportunities for social workers that may be within the power of social work employers to foster more generally, such as ways to minimise ‘office politics’ and to provide greater variety of work.

Causes, Consequences, and Prevention of Burnout Among Substance Abuse Treatment Counselors: A Rural Versus Urban Comparison

Substance abuse counselors are vulnerable to burnout, which has negative repercussions for the counselor, employing organization, and clients. However, little is known about differences in counselor burnout from the counselors' perspective in rural versus urban treatment centers. In 2008, focus group data from 28 rural and urban counselors in a southern state were analyzed, revealing three burnout themes across all counselors: causes, consequences, and prevention. However, there were various differences between rural and urban counselors in subthemes, with only rural counselors citing office politics and low occupational prestige as causes of burnout. Only urban counselors reported responses endorsing the subthemes of role reversal, clients trying to choose their counselors, and changing jobs as consequences of burnout. All counselors cited coworker support, clinical supervision, and self-care as important strategies for managing burnout. In sum, context clearly matters as rural counselors cited more causes of burnout; yet, the implications of burnout are universal in that they often lead to poor quality clinical care. There is a continued need for greater understanding of addiction as a disease, which would reduce stigma, especially in rural areas, as well as increase the prestige and earning potential of the substance abuse counseling occupation.

Careers development in construction firms: application of Sun Tzu's Art of War principles

PurposeCareer development involves how employees manage their career advancement. This study aims to investigate the relevance of Sun Tzu's Art of War to career development of construction professionals with the aim of suggesting strategies that may be adopted for career development.Design/methodology/approachThe data collection technique was in‐depth interviews with 32 subjects who are Singapore‐based construction professionals. The subjects were asked 13 open‐ended questions which were developed based on the Art of War.FindingsThe main findings on the effective career development strategies are: outperforming peers by developing deep job experience and delivering excellent performance; adopting a team member posture before moving on to a team leader stance; handling office politics and conflicts effectively; maintaining flexibility and manoeuvrability in one's career; networking; and acquiring foreknowledge.Research limitations/implicationsThe study is qualitative in nature, thus, the actual effectiveness of the recommendations for career development is not known. There may also be some more strategies undisclosed by interviewees as sharing them may cause them to lose their competitive advantage.Practical implicationsThe effective strategies for career development are found. Construction professionals may adopt some military strategies that may help them in their career development.Social implicationsThe relevance of military strategies to career development in construction firms suggests that career progression is akin to war, where winning is important and strategizing to win is necessary.Originality/valueIn this paper military strategies are mapped onto career development, and relevant career advancement strategies are identified.