Positive InfluenceHow Leaders Get Others

to See It Their Way

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8

R

Influence is an essential component of leadership, especially in today’s

organizations, which rely less on hierarchy and more on the leader’s

ability to get buy-in from others. Attempts to influence can produce

three different outcomes: resistance, compliance, and commitment—

with the latter, of course, being the most desirable result. Here’s a look

at the three types of influencing tactics that are most effective at

winning commitment.

by Dav id Ba ldw in and Cur t Grayson

ecognition of the impor-tance of influencing skills for effec-tive leadership is nothing new. In hisbook Human Nature and Manage-ment: Application of Psychology toExecutive Leadership, educatorOrdway Tread wrote that “leadershipis the activity of influencing peopleto cooperate toward some goalwhich they come to find desirableand which motivates them over thelong haul.” That book was first pub-lished in 1933. Yet with today’strend toward “flatter” organizations,

the rank of influence among theessential components of leadershiphas never been higher. Contempo-rary organizations have adopted flex-ible and interactive structures thatrely less on hierarchy and more onleaders’ ability to influence and wincommitment.

Influence is important because itachieves desirable outcomes. Leadersneed it to sell ideas and to motivatepeople to support and implementdecisions—sometimes the leaders’own ideas and decisions and some-

times those of others whom the lead-ers represent. A leader’s position inan organization and the power itgives him or her may not be enoughto influence people and motivatethem to complete a task. Leaders canuse their influencing skills strategi-cally to communicate their vision,align the efforts of others in theorganization, and build commitmentto the work at hand.

Leaders who use influencing skillseffectively can achieve their goalsand objectives more successfully thanothers do. But what does it mean touse influencing skills effectively? Tounderstand the answer to that ques-tion, leaders need to know that influ-encing tactics can produce three dis-tinctly different outcomes: resistance,compliance, and commitment.

The least desirable outcome of try-ing to influence others is resistanceto the request or proposal the leaderis making. People may directlyoppose what the leader is asking foror stealthily resist it, perhaps subtlysabotaging the leader’s efforts toinfluence. For example, they may ini-tially agree with the request but thenput up roadblocks to its completionor make excuses about why the taskcan’t be accomplished.

Compliance is better than resist-ance, but it’s hardly an idealresponse. The people the leader istrying to influence will carry out therequest but with minimal effort andlittle if any acceptance of the reasonsthe leader has given to gain support.Compliance may be sufficient whenthe proposed action is simple androutine and doesn’t require people toexert much additional energy or effortto accomplish it. But it’s importantfor leaders to remember that althoughthey can get people to act produc-tively by securing their compliance,that won’t change people’s attitudetoward the work itself.

When influencing efforts result incommitment, the leader has suc-ceeded in presenting sufficient rea-

sons to achieve people’s voluntaryendorsement and support for carryingout a task. This is an important dis-tinction, and it’s vital to win commit-ment when what the leader is askingfor requires people to take on jobs

that may not be simple or quick andmay have negative effects on theirpersonal time or work schedules.When leaders are able to influencepeople to adopt the level of commit-ment, several advantages are realized:

• There is less need to monitorprogress toward the goals or fightresistance to them.

• There is greater sustainedeffort, which is particularly importantwhen the tasks involved are complexor difficult and require a concentratedeffort over a long period of time.

• People endorse the objectives,so they tend to be more efficient, cre-ative, resilient, and focused on theshared goal.

• Working relationships improve.

Developing influencing skills canhelp leaders achieve commitmentfrom their peers, direct reports, andbosses. These groups often require

different approaches for influencingtactics to be successful. Whetherleaders are attempting to influence akey individual, a specific group, orwhole departments, their first steptoward getting commitment should beto consider individual personalities,goals and objectives, and organiza-tional roles and responsibilities.

TACTICAL MOVESUnderstanding their own influencingstyle is critical to leaders’ success.The first step in that understanding isassessing the influencing tactics theycurrently use. In general, leaders canchoose influencing tactics thatdepend on logic, appeal to emotions,or support a cooperative effort.Following is an overview of thesethree kinds of influencing tactics.

Logical AppealsLogical appeals seek to align with peo-ple’s rational and intellectual positions.When using these tactics, leaders pres-ent an argument based on two differentbut important types of benefits—

L I A • VO LU M E 24 , N U M B E R 1 • M A RC H /A P R I L 20 0 4

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David Baldwin is a senior

associate at CCL’s campus in

San Diego. He holds an M.S.

degree from Illinois State

University.

Curt Grayson is a senior

associate at CCL’s campus in

San Diego. He holds a Ph.D.

degree from the California

School of Professional

Psychology at Alliant

International University.

A B O U T T H E A U T H O R S

When influencing efforts

result in commitment,

the leader has

succeeded in presenting

sufficient reasons to

achieve people’s

voluntary support for

carrying out a task.

organizational and personal—that peo-ple will gain if they agree to the actionthe leader is proposing. Here are someexamples of such tactics:

• Objectively and logicallyexplain the reasons for the requestedaction. One of the most powerful andpersuasive incentives for people toagree to a request is simply that itmakes sense. This tactic relies on twocritical components to minimizeresistance: that the leader has donesufficient research and thinking prior

to the attempt at influencing and thatthe leader is able to explain therequest in such a way that it comesacross as a clear and compellingargument.

• Offer factual and detailed evi-dence that the proposal is feasible. Intheir zeal to persuade people, leadersshould avoid focusing on what’s pos-sible under ideal conditions andinstead explain benefits as they existunder actual conditions.

• Explain clearly and logicallywhy the proposal is the best of allpossible choices. Another compellingand influential argument that leaderscan make is that they have thoughtthrough several other options in addi-tion to their own. Explaining thatthey have carefully considered theadvantages and disadvantages ofother approaches makes it easier to

make a case that their plan most com-pletely meets the objective.

• Explain the logical process bywhich potential organizational prob-lems or concerns will be handled.Allow people to ask questions, indi-cate problems, and voice their con-cerns about the proposal. Listencalmly and carefully, and avoid get-ting defensive or interpreting people’sconcerns or questions as resistance.Remain flexible—the problems orconcerns might be ones you had notconsidered. They may also be anexpression of people’s natural anxietyabout the changes the proposal mightbring, and that anxiety will need tobe addressed if the proposal is tomove forward.

• Explain how a requestedaction, which may require people toput in additional work, is likely tohave long-term benefits for theircareers.

• Provide opportunities for peo-ple to learn new skills through theproposal. This can be a motivator forpeople to get behind the request.

Emotional AppealsA second major category of influenc-ing tactics involves ideas that carrythe leader’s message by relating it toan important emotional motivator. Anidea that promotes people’s feelingsof well-being, service, or sense ofbelonging has a good chance of gain-ing support. Here are some examplesof such tactics:

• Show people how the requestedaction meets their individual goalsand values. People look for align-ment between their own goals andvalues and those of the organization.Leaders should present proposals insuch a way that people will under-stand that their support will helpachieve such alignment.

• Describe the task with enthusi-asm, and express confidence in peo-ple’s ability to accomplish it. It’s rareto find someone who doesn’t want to

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be thought of as capable and skilled.Even so, different people prefer toreceive encouragement in differentways. If leaders deliver support at theright level, it makes it easier for peo-ple to get behind a request—eitherbecause the leadership support givesthem the confidence they need tocarry out the request or because theyfeel empowered by having been givenan assignment they must completethemselves.

• Link the request to a clear andappealing vision that people can fullysupport. Aligning the desired actionwith a previously established visioncan provide the motivation peopleneed to carry out the request.

Cooperative AppealsThe power of cooperative appeals isthat they build a connection betweenthe leader, the people he or she is try-ing to influence, and other stakehold-ers in the organization that results inbuy-in for the proposal. A proposal towork together to accomplish a mutu-ally important goal extends a hand toothers in the organization and is anextremely effective way to influence.Further, these tactics illustrate thatinfluencing is not always a linearprocess that flows from one person toanother. Rather, it is often recipro-cal—flowing back and forth andyielding ideas, plans, and decisionsthat are better than any individual’soriginal ones. Here are some exam-ples of such tactics:

• Provide the necessaryresources—time, staff, materials, andtechnical support, for example—thatpeople need to accomplish the task.Leaders’ willingness and ability toprovide the help needed to accom-plish a proposed task is an importantfactor in determining whether peoplewill commit to the goal. What leadershave to offer often depends on theirposition and access, but the morethey can offer, the more likely peopleare to follow through on the request.

10

Developing influencing

skills can help leaders

achieve commitment

from their peers, direct

reports, and bosses.

• Reduce the difficulty of carry-ing out the request by removing bar-riers to success. Part of supportingpeople who have agreed to take on atask is removing barriers to successor reducing the difficulty of carryingout the request. It’s important forpeople whom the leader is trying toinfluence to see that the leader isworking on their behalf.

• Volunteer to help peopleaccomplish the task. By doing so,leaders model their motivation andgenuine interest in the success of theproject, and people will be morelikely to commit to it.

• Offer to help people with theirregular work. Pay attention to areaswhere people might be experiencingstress in their current work situations,and offer to provide support. (At thesame time, leaders should avoid over-committing or trying to help in areasnot in their sphere of expertise.)

• Ask for suggestions on how toimprove a tentative proposal in orderto create a win-win outcome foreveryone involved. Ideally, leadersneed to be flexible about the final out-come, but this isn’t always possible.The organization may hold the leaderresponsible for a task that when com-pleted affects other people. Yet thosepeople may not have been consultedon whether the right decision wasmade. In these situations it’s impor-tant for leaders to provide whateversupport they can to help people alignwith the organization’s direction.

• Ask people for ideas on how tocarry out the requested action, andincorporate those ideas into theprocess. People are more likely tocommit to an idea after they have beeninvolved in choosing how it might beaccomplished. When leaders do askfor input, they should follow throughand make adjustments to their propos-als to accommodate people’s ideas. Todo this, leaders have to work closelywith those who have submitted ideasto decide whether their suggestionsare practical and feasible. This allows

leaders to guide expectations in anopen way so that the final plan is morelikely to meet everyone’s needs.

• Thoughtfully reflect on andrespond to people’s concerns andsuggestions. Listen, listen, listen. Inthis stage, leaders gather additionaldata that if not attended to couldshow up as reservations on the part ofother stakeholders further down theroad. Thank people for their input.

• Before making a specificrequest, ask people for their opinionson the general topic. Influencingtakes time—it is about planting seedsand growing them. Leaders shouldlook for situations in which they canbring up their ideas for further exami-nation and buy-in. When leaders feelthat the time is ripe and they haveestablished enough buy-in by incor-porating people’s feedback, then theycan share their specific requests.

• Create coalitions with peoplewho support the requested action.Contemporary organizations haveadopted a more horizontal structure,which means that few decisions aremade without involving multiplestakeholders. As a result, buildingcoalitions of support has become crit-ical to success. An effective influenc-ing tactic is to locate and involvestrategic stakeholders who arealigned with the proposal and thusprovide a broad base of support.

• Inform people about crediblestakeholders who support therequested action. Leaders should becareful about dropping names, butwhen given permission by these rec-ognized and respected backers,should mention them to others, alongwith an explanation of why theystand behind the idea.

• Involve credible stakeholders inthe influencing effort. Which leadersin the organization do people reallylisten to and trust? Ask them to pro-mote the proposal through publicendorsements.

• Develop strategic alliances bynetworking with key stakeholders

who can help develop the influencingstrategy. Building a well-establishednetwork takes time and continualmaintenance. Look at every interac-tion, e-mail, and public discussion asa means to that end.

THERE WILL BE A TESTInfluencing others isn’t easy. Forleaders, it involves not only learningand practicing influencing tactics butalso assessing themselves as messen-

gers—a factor of their interpersonaland communication skills. Further,successfully influencing people toendorse an agenda or commit to adesired goal doesn’t always happenimmediately. Each individual whom aleader attempts to influence has tocarefully consider the costs and bene-fits involved with agreeing to the pro-posal. So the leader’s flexibility andadaptability will be tested.

Leaders can get better at influenc-ing by using a mentor, colleague, orcoach to help develop their influencingskills. Seek out influential people inthe organization. Observe what they doand say and how they handle theirinfluencing opportunities. Talk to themabout their influencing tactics and howthey developed them. If leaders stay intouch with their own strengths andweaknesses, strive to develop rarelyused skills, and turn every influencingopportunity into a learning experience,they can greatly enhance this crucialleadership capability.

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11

Influencing is not

always a linear process

that flows from one

person to another.