You may have noticed that people have political games in business. Not you, of course, many other people. However, it is essential to know how they do it and why. Little time should be devoted to dysfunctional work of politics in companies. It is costly and divisive, it burns energy that can instead go to the pursuit of the organization’s goal. It can also lead to all kinds of distortions. Sustaining the introduction or old-fashioned powers of new unjustified ones. Less appreciated, however, are the conditions under which politics plays a functional role in organizations: the positive side of politics and what it can do to help an organization.
Henry Mintzberg is among the leading business gurus, particularly in the world of strategy. He described a series of political games. Note exactly how most of these are about building strength in numerous places, as well as how more than one game can be happening at exactly the same time alongside identical individuals.
The games
Insurgency game
Revolution at the bottom. Much loved by the unions, as well as by all those who believe in the weight of power. It often has a parent-child transactional basis.
Counterinsurgency game
Play with the authorities as they fight the insurgents. Lots of parents and children. Between them they play a number of other games within this area, such as ‘Catch me in case you can’, the Blame video games and also the ‘Poor me’ game.
Sponsorship game
Build strength by joining all those who will help you along the way. The basic deal is the fact that lower people have the ability to call on higher people, who in turn have a loyal servant who keeps their ears to the ground and so on.
Alliance building game
Strengthening through peer networks. Note how this plays out horizontally across group vs. the vertical game of Sponsorship.
Empire building game
Played especially by supervisors on their rise in the business, developing the power base of their own. Next, the internal competition is between total fiefdoms and not between individuals. This is invaluable in case you are actively playing a war game.
Budgeting game
Budgeting generally includes clear rules and this particular game is all about getting as much money as you can, usually asking a lot with the data that you’re going to get just one component of everything you asked for. More than any other game, this one is zero-sum, because when I find the money, you can’t find it.
Gaming experience
This is played by people with expert power, exactly where their knowledge and skills are managed by them much more for their personal gain than for which business. For example, they will only give information or perhaps help those who can help them in the future. Hence, it is played in conjunction with various other games.
Lords game
This is played on the strength of one’s position, for example, in which a top manager rallies his staff and also creates pronouncements, handing them over to carry out his orders (which, of course, could no longer be in the passions. company).
Line vs. staff game
This is the game between line supervisors who are faced with the daily work of the organization, as well as personnel advisers who seek, for example, to distribute best practices and frequent execution procedures. Staff generally do not have direct authority, allowing resistance or even line managers to refuse.
Rival camp game
When Empire Building becomes a game of us against them, usually when there are 2 main camps, it can turn into an all-out war. This usually happens between departments, such as research and manufacturing, sales and marketing, etc. where you will find different knowledge, interests and goals and it is not difficult to put your finger over the fence.
Strategic Candidate Game
This occurs when you can find layouts in sight and organizations of people are grouped around these suggestions. In a way, it is the suggestions that fight each other.
Whistleblowing Game
This is where an informant leaks information (perhaps to the press) or perhaps when someone names the ‘dead elephant’ in the middle of the table. When the emperor is informed that he is not dressed, it is typical for him to defend himself, so this is a risky game and can certainly also be played due to morality, naivety, or perhaps with a different political intention, such as discredit a rival.
Young Turks game
This is generally played as the ‘shoving younger men’ game in which testosterone patterns and aggression are the primary tool. In addition, he appears in leadership difficulties and tries to change his strategic direction.