Telling the Truth About Power - HBR IdeaCast - Harvard Business Review

Harvard Business Review

Audio: 11 min, 24 sec

Telling the Truth About Power - HBR IdeaCast - Harvard Business Review


HBR IdeaCast
Telling the Truth About Power
9:00 AM Monday June 21, 2010


Featured Guest: Jeffrey Pfeffer, Stanford Business School professor and author of the HBR article Power Play.


Harvard Business Review Article
Power Play
by Jeffrey Pfeffer 10 pages.
Publication date: Jul 01, 2010. Prod. #: R1007G-HCB-ENG



If you want to get anything done in a large corporation, you need power. And it won't just fall into your lap: You have to go after it and learn how to use it.

Many highly competent people get stuck because they're uncomfortable with that reality. Stanford University professor Pfeffer offers a primer on why power matters, how to get it, and how to use it to advance your organization's agenda--thus, not incidentally, furthering your career.

When push comes to shove, the author explains, there are several things powerful people do to prevail.
- They mete out resources;
- deploy rewards and punishments to shape others' behavior;
- advance on multiple fronts;
- make the first move;
- co-opt antagonists;
- remove rivals (nicely, if possible);
- avoid drawing unnecessary fire;
- use a personal touch;
- persist;
- attend to important relationships;
- and make their vision compelling.

Throughout, Pfeffer draws on real-world examples of people who exercised power skillfully to implement their plans--people ranging from the director of UCSF's breast cancer center to a successful software executive to an Indian cricket mogul.

And Pfeffer identifies three big barriers that can make you your own worst enemy unless you learn how to get over them and embrace the power you need.

Access Content Source: http://hbr.org/product/power-play/an/R1007G-HCB-ENG?referral=00134


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http://dreamlearndobecome.blogspot.com This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.