Issues Faced in OD: Issues Related to Client Relationship, Power Individual skills and Attributes as a Source of Power, Power and Influence Tactics, Politics and OD

Issues Related to Client Relationship

One of the most important aspects of a successful organization is their customers and the relationships they uphold with them. Satisfied customers contribute to increased revenue and consistent purchases as a source of income. Customers become may unsatisfied with an organization because the employees provide poor customer service or they’re unhappy with the product itself.

A solution to customer satisfaction as an organizational issue could be to retrain employees on how to provide the best customer service and engage with consumers through surveys, social media and market studies.

For every organization from every industry, clients are so important as they are the one who provides projects. The relationship between the client and the company is imperative as they decide the fate of the company’s progress.

The success of every company relies on the relationship with their clients. It modestly defines the state of the business i.e. whether the business is making out the expected profit and also, a complete client base. In simple words, your clients are your business. If you lose them, you lose your business, and if you treat them well, you are sure to do well in your business.

Here are some of the most common problems that most the companies that have in the client relationship.

Not being problem solver:

This problem is significant. Clients hired us to help them solve problems. When you are not in a state to solve problems, then the business is under threat. It is exactly the opposite of the previous point. But, always saying no to things doesn’t put your business in a proper state. Clients are too sensitive when they don’t have the response they require.

Not having proper contract:

It is very necessary to have a clear understanding before proceeding things with the clients. Many companies make this mistake as it is one of the most common and repeated mistakes. People fail in deploying a proper contract that results in relationship barrier between the parties involved i.e. the company and the client.

Not having clear definitions:

Many companies will think way beyond what they can do. They always say yes to everything that clients’ requests/suggest. It is not entirely wrong but sometimes the client might ask for something way beyond our skills. When we accept, it marks that we can do it. When we don’t do as accepted, the problem hits and cracks the relationship.

Not being a learner:

Not being a learner means not having an open mind to accept new approaches. Clients, when they don’t see any new methods in your work, often get frustrated and sometimes will drop the project in the middle. In simple words, it is sure to turn off the clients.

Not staying focused:

Many falls into this category. People will build a proper contract and definitions initially but forget the work intended to do. As a result of this, the deliverables get delayed and sometimes the quality goes for a run. The clients are sure to get irritated when they get a work not done exactly assigned.

Power Individual skills and Attributes as a Source of Power

Organizations are made up of individuals that exercise greater or lesser degrees of power. Sometimes, authority stems from a person’s title in the organization, or from specialized knowledge and expertise. Others may exercise power through interpersonal relationships or the force of their personality. And still others gain influence through an ability to grant access to important resources.

Legitimate power is also known as positional power. It’s derived from the position a person holds in an organization’s hierarchy. Job descriptions, for example, require junior workers to report to managers and give managers the power to assign duties to their juniors.

Reward power is the ability to grant a reward, such as an increase in pay, a perk, or an attractive job assignment. Reward power tends to accompany legitimate power and is highest when the reward is scarce. Anyone can wield reward power, however, in the form of public praise or giving someone something in exchange for their compliance.

Coercive Power

In contrast, coercive power is the ability to take something away or punish someone for noncompliance. Coercive power often works through fear, and it forces people to do something that ordinarily they would not choose to do. The most extreme example of coercion is government dictators who threaten physical harm for noncompliance. Parents may also use coercion such as grounding their child as punishment for noncompliance.

Power and Influence Tactics

By the time you hit the workplace, you have had vast experience with influence techniques. You have probably picked out a few that you use most often. To be effective in a wide number of situations, however, it’s best to expand your repertoire of skills and become competent in several techniques, knowing how and when to use them as well as understanding when they are being used on you. If you watch someone who is good at influencing others, you will most probably observe that person switching tactics depending on the context. The more tactics you have at your disposal, the more likely it is that you will achieve your influence goals.

1. Rational persuasion includes using facts, data, and logical arguments to try to convince others that your point of view is the best alternative. This is the most commonly applied influence tactic. One experiment illustrates the power of reason. People were lined up at a copy machine and another person, after joining the line asked, “May I go to the head of the line?” Amazingly, 63% of the people in the line agreed to let the requester jump ahead. When the line jumper makes a slight change in the request by asking, “May I go to the head of the line because I have copies to make?” the number of people who agreed jumped to over 90%. The word because was the only difference. Effective rational persuasion includes the presentation of factual information that is clear and specific, relevant, and timely. Across studies summarized in a meta-analysis, rationality was related to positive work outcomes.
2. Inspirational appeals seek to tap into our values, emotions, and beliefs to gain support for a request or course of action. When President John F. Kennedy said, “Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country,” he appealed to the higher selves of an entire nation. Effective inspirational appeals are authentic, personal, big-thinking, and enthusiastic.
3. Consultation refers to the influence agent’s asking others for help in directly influencing or planning to influence another person or group. Consultation is most effective in organizations and cultures that value democratic decision making.
4. Ingratiation refers to different forms of making others feel good about themselves. Ingratiation includes any form of flattery done either before or during the influence attempt. Research shows that ingratiation can affect individuals. For example, in a study of résumés, those résumés that were accompanied with a cover letter containing ingratiating information were rated higher than résumés without this information. Other than the cover letter accompanying them, the résumés were identical. Effective ingratiation is honest, infrequent, and well intended.
5. Personal appeal refers to helping another person because you like them and they asked for your help. We enjoy saying yes to people we know and like. A famous psychological experiment showed that in dorms, the most well-liked people were those who lived by the stairwell—they were the most often seen by others who entered and left the hallway. The repeated contact brought a level of familiarity and comfort. Therefore, personal appeals are most effective with people who know and like you.
6. Exchange refers to give-and-take in which someone does something for you, and you do something for them in return. The rule of reciprocation says that “we should try to repay, in kind, what another person has provided us.” The application of the rule obliges us and makes us indebted to the giver. One experiment illustrates how a small initial gift can open people to a substantially larger request at a later time. One group of subjects was given a bottle of Coke. Later, all subjects were asked to buy raffle tickets. On the average, people who had been given the drink bought twice as many raffle tickets as those who had not been given the unsolicited drinks.
7. Coalition tactics refer to a group of individuals working together toward a common goal to influence others. Common examples of coalitions within organizations are unions that may threaten to strike if their demands are not met. Coalitions also take advantage of peer pressure. The influencer tries to build a case by bringing in the unseen as allies to convince someone to think, feel, or do something. A well-known psychology experiment draws upon this tactic. The experimenters stare at the top of a building in the middle of a busy street. Within moments, people who were walking by in a hurry stop and also look at the top of the building, trying to figure out what the others are looking at. When the experimenters leave, the pattern continues, often for hours. This tactic is also extremely popular among advertisers and businesses that use client lists to promote their goods and services. The fact that a client bought from the company is a silent testimonial.
8. Pressure refers to exerting undue influence on someone to do what you want or else something undesirable will occur. This often includes threats and frequent interactions until the target agrees. Research shows that managers with low referent power tend to use pressure tactics more frequently than those with higher referent power. Pressure tactics are most effective when used in a crisis situation and when they come from someone who has the other’s best interests in mind, such as getting an employee to an employee assistance program to deal with a substance abuse problem.
9. Legitimating tactics occur when the appeal is based on legitimate or position power. “By the power vested in me”: This tactic relies upon compliance with rules, laws, and regulations. It is not intended to motivate people but to align them behind a direction. Obedience to authority is filled with both positive and negative images. Position, title, knowledge, experience, and demeanor grant authority, and it is easy to see how it can be abused. If someone hides behind people’s rightful authority to assert themselves, it can seem heavy-handed and without choice. You must come across as an authority figure by the way you act, speak, and look. Think about the number of commercials with doctors, lawyers, and other professionals who look and sound the part, even if they are actors. People want to be convinced that the person is an authority worth heeding. Authority is often used as a last resort. If it does not work, you will not have much else to draw from in your goal to persuade someone.

Politics and OD

Organizational politics refers to a variety of activities associated with the use of influence tactics to improve personal or organizational interests. Studies show that individuals with political skills tend to do better in gaining more personal power as well as managing stress and job demands, than their politically naive counterparts. They also have a greater impact on organizational outcomes.

Political behavior is also likely to be present, but not explicit, until it is too late. For example, it may be the case that a manager needs to exert a large amount of pressure on a team to get something done by using the power of their position over others. It is also occasionally necessary for employees to work behind the scenes to build coalitions of believers in a new vision to convince others. Whatever the situation, it is important to understand that the root cause of political activities are often scarce resources (including time pressures), social and structural inequalities, and individual personal motivations.

Types of Organizational Politics

• Legitimate political behavior consists of normal, every-day politics:
• Forming coalitions
• Bypassing the chain of command
• Complaining to your supervisor
• Developing outside contacts through professional activities
• illegitimate political behavior is so extreme that it violates the rules of the game
• Sabotage
• Whistle-blowing
• Symbolic protests

OD values consistent with positive face of power:

Trust, openness, collaboration, individual dignity, promoting individual and organizational competence

• Emphasis on power equalization

Increases power among organizational members; the whole organization has more power

OD in Political Environments

1. Become a desired commodity personally and professionally

• High interpersonal competence
• Listening, communication, problem-solving, coaching, counseling skills; appreciating other.

2. Make OD a desired commodity

• OD allows individuals and organizations to reach their goals

3. Make OD a valued commodity for multiple powerful people in the organization

• Creates value for OD
• Increases power base and support
• Endorsement, support and protection of OD interventions

4. Create win-win situations

• Enhance stable, constructive social relationships
• Different way to handle conflict

5. Mind you own business (Help others solve their major problems)

• Help upon request
• Help the manager meet her/his goals

6. Mind your own business; be a process, not content, expert
7. Mind your own business and don’t invite political trouble

• OD practitioner’s role is that of facilitator, catalyst, problem-solver, educator
• Role is not power-broker or power activist