The Bases of Power and the Use of Power by Managers

Power is defined as "the potential ability to influence behavior, change the course of events, overcome resistance, persuade people to do something they do not do." (Pfeffer, 1992. 29). Power within an organization can be broken down into the foundation of power. These power supply infrastructure can be divided into two general tags (formal one and individual one). The purpose of this white paper is to explain the similarity of identifying, explaining, distinguishing the foundation of power, and using power in the organizational environment.

The power given to a person based on whereabouts is called legal force (or positional force). This depends on the hierarchy of the organization, the junior manager reports to the senior management, and the senior management reports to the board. With the exception of promotion, there is nothing that can directly achieve a more legitimate force. Adding some of your other types of power - primarily reference and expert power - will bring more legitimate power. Legal powers can not be forged: In order for it to be used, the person claiming power must be legally authorized

Legal authority - authority granted by an organization and managed by an administrator - is the simplest and most basic source of authority in administration. Employees are considered to be fair and legitimate because administrator authority and influence arise from the position, experience or status of the manager. Mandatory forces are the source of power and rely on employees' high trust in their work, current salary and profit. Managers are trying to intimidate their employees with condemnation or punishment such as unemployment or demotion, but such sources of power not only indicate goods or dangers to employees but also they may be lost.

The alleged authority is based on the relationship between manager and employee. With such power, employees have a positive work relationship, strong emotional bonds, or physical appeal, so they work hard and respond well to the power of their bosses. The source of claimed power is based on employee's choice rather than management style and strategy. The power of experts is the source of all the managers should strive to achieve. With the power of experts, employees believe that managers have extensive expertise in specific business areas, so they trust the manager and tell everything and ask the manager. Employees respect their boss's expertise and experience, so the boss can let employees do almost all activities to support their business.