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Bolman, L. G., & Deal, T. E. (2003). Reframing organizations: Artistry, choice, and leadership. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-BassChapter 9 Power, Conflict, and CoalitionConflictPowerCoalitionPatricia Murthy

Power and control are embedded in all social relationships and organizational practices, and are constructed and reproduced in everyday interactions.

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What event in US history happened 10 years ago, this past Friday?Space Shuttle Columbia exploded upon its return from its space mission17 years earlier, the Challenger met with the same result

Political assumptions Five propositions for the political frame NASA was part of a complex coalition of contractors, Congress, the White House, the military, the media, and the American public. 1. Organizations are coalitions NASA wanted more funding, while the public wanted lower taxes. Astronauts wanted more safety, while NASA wanted to maintain its flight schedules.

2. Coalition members have enduring differences3. Important decisions involve allocating scarce resources. Time and money were both in short supply. 4. Scarce resources and enduring differences make conflict central and power the most important asset.NASA was Thiokols only customer (=power). 5. Goals and decisions emerge from bargaining, negotiation, and jockeying for position among competing stakeholders. Thiokol managers feared if they acknowledged problems with their products, it would erode the companys credibility. NASA

Power and Decision MakingAlliances in an organization need power to accomplish their common goals.

Structural theorists say - Power --> authority --> decisions. H.R. theorists say Influence --> mutuality --> collaboration (= participation, openness, and collaboration substitutes power).

Authorities and Partisans (Gamson, 1968)Authority is a form of power.Scarce resources cause group needs to collide.Authorities are entitled to make decisions on partisans.

If partisans are convinced that existing authorities are too evil or incompetent to continue, they risk trying to wrest with control unless they regard the authorities as too formidable. Conversely, if partisans trust authority, they will accept and support it in the event of an attack.

Distribution of Power: Over-bounded system highly concentrated and everything is tightly regulated.Under-bounded system diffuse and the system is very loosely controlled.

Conflict in Organizations:Horizontal conflict in the boundary between departments or divisionsVertical conflict at the border between levelsPosition power (authority)Control of rewardsCoercive powerInformation and expertise

ReputationPersonal powerAlliances and networksAccess and control of agendasFraming: control of meaning and symbolsSources of Power

Can undermine effectivenessConflictEncourage new ideas and approaches to problems. Conflict is the gadfly of thought. It stirs us to observation and memory. It instigates invention. It shocks us out of sheep-like passivity, and sets us at noting and contrivingconflict is a sine qua non of reflection and ingenuity. John Deweyuntitledmikesfreegifs.comOboe 1Organ

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