Change Needs More Than Vision
Successful leadership during change is not defined by a bold vision alone, but by a leader’s ability to engage with complexity and lead with integrity. Understanding how to apply different forms of power and political skill enables leaders to manage resistance, build trust, and align diverse interests.
Why Vision Isn’t Enough
Vision can inspire, but it rarely brings about meaningful change on its own. While vision can be seen as essential for mobilising people, it cannot overcome the intricate power dynamics and informal politics so often present in organisations. Change redistributes resources and challenges interests which can create tension amongst employees.
Effective organisational design must go beyond structural shifts and engage with the unwritten norms and behaviours within the company culture. This blog explores why political skill and the ethical use of power are vital for sustainable transformation in businesses.
Types of Power
Leaders can influence others through the bases by which they exercise social power. Broadly, these forces can be formal and positional, or informal and personal. There can be significant overlap amongst these power types in the workplace, even within one leader.
Formal/positional power is social power that is derived from an individual’s position of authority. This can be further subdivided into 3 bases:
- Legitimate power – authority derived from a formal position.
- Reward power – authority achieved from offering incentives.
- Coercive power – having the ability to apply pressure or punishment to enforce compliance.
Informal/Personal is social power stemming from an individual’s characteristics, expertise, or personal influence. Its 3 bases include:
- Expert power – authority derived from respected knowledge or specialty skills.
- Informational power – power enforced through the control of information access.
- Referent power – derived from personal characteristics like charisma and admiration and could make others what to emulate the individual.
Leaders and managers alike should take the time to reflect upon the formal and informal ways in which they choose – consciously or unconsciously – to exercise the power they have. This can be particularly crucial during periods of change within an organisation, as the deliberate choices they make when executing this change can have lasting impacts on the social climate of the organisation, and ultimately, its success.
Therefore, even if certain power bases don’t play to these leaders’ strengths, it may be wise for them to execute their authority through unfamiliar bases on behalf of the organisation.
What Is Organisational Politics?
Organisational politics involve informal behaviours aimed at influencing decisions, outcomes, or the distribution of resources. These actions often occur outside official structures and processes. While organisational politics is commonly viewed in a negative light—associated with manipulation or self-interest—it can also play a constructive role in driving change, especially when formal authority alone is not enough.
During periods of uncertainty or transformation, leaders who understand political dynamics are often better positioned to build support, reduce resistance, and align competing interests.
The key to navigating organisational politics effectively is political skill, which includes:
- Social awareness – understanding others’ motives and dynamics
- Strategic influence – subtly shaping perceptions and outcomes
- Networking ability – building valuable and trustworthy connections
- Self-presentation – appearing confident, competent, and credible
When used ethically, political skill allows leaders to align people around a shared vision while maintaining trust and integrity. Rather than manipulating, skilled leaders use politics to guide complex organisations through uncertainty and resistance.
Leading Ethically in a Political Environment
Leaders should keep in mind how their actions can affect their subordinates. If not kept in check, whether by themselves or those around them, their influence can quickly turn manipulative.
Good leaders should instead use their influence responsibly if they want to drive change successfully. To do so, they must communicate clearly and transparently, build alliances around shared goals, include people in the change process, all while remaining aligned with the organisation’s values and culture.
To lead in a successful and ethical way leaders should understand that logic and emotion are at the core of any change process. They should aim to create a join-up between the two so that any structural design changes made to an organisation is understood and accepted by its employees.
This is by no means an easy task, but by balancing emotions and logic through transparent communication and empathetic leadership, a leader can achieve successful and meaningful organisational change.
Final Takeaway
When used ethically, political skill bridges strategy with emotion. Real change comes from involving the people doing the work. Vision may point the way, but it is ethical leadership that brings it to life.
- This blog was written by students undertaking a Global Master’s in Management degree at LSE’s Department of Management as part of the MG448A Capstone Course – Management in Action.
- This blog post represents the views of its author(s), not the position of the London School of Economics and Political Science Department of Management.
- Feature image by Etactics Inc from UnSplash
The post The leadership art of organisational politics first appeared on LSE Management.