In the business world, power refers to a leader’s ability to influence the behavior of other people. People can acquire power from two sources. It can emerge from the position occupied by a person in the organization or from an individual’s characteristics and skills. The former is known as positional power, while the latter is known as personal power. Show Power plays a critical part in the workplace. It is important to achieve tasks, fulfill targets and standards, provide satisfaction to employees and achieve profitability. A leader or manager can use either of the two kinds of power mentioned earlier or a combination of both to achieve the greatest impact. However, at times, the kind of power to be used, i.e. positional power or personal power is determined by the specific situations or contexts. In this article, we will present a definition of the two terms, positional power and personal power. In addition, we will explain how the terms are different from one another. Definitions and meaningsPositional powerA leader acquires positional power from their status or position in the organization, i.e. it is the authority provided to a person because of the rank they occupy within the organizational structure or hierarchy. People with positional power are bound by the rules and regulations that have been established by the organization or institution to which they belong. The main aim of this kind of power is to make sure that people work together with one another to achieve the goals of the organization. Positional power makes sure that people work in a specific way and towards the same objectives. Leaders with positional power have the authority to hire and fire people, offer them rewards or punishments and provide instructions and directions to all those who are working under them. Positional power is awarded to a person because of their rank or title in an organization. Hence, as it is based on external factors, it is possible to take it away from individuals. Personal powerTo be highly effective leaders, one needs something more than just a designation or a title. It needs personal power, which is the power given to an individual because of their personal skills and competencies. It is the power awarded to individuals by others, and is not formally assigned by the organization. Personal power is linked to a person’s integrity and their readiness to live up to their promises. It is essentially a form of power that inspires and motivates other people to be fully involved in achieving the goals and objectives of the organization.. Personal power emerges from the personal characteristics of a person; hence, it is internal in nature, and emerges from internal features of a person, such as credibility, intelligence, skills and experience, self-confidence, etc. Therefore, it cannot be taken away from a person. Differences between positional power and personal powerThe main difference between positional power and personal power is given below: 1. MeaningPositional power refers to the power or authority that is assigned to a person because of their position or rank in an organization. On the other hand, personal power is obtained by individuals because of the recognition of their followers. 2. Depends onPositional power depends on external factors as it is awarded to a person because of their rank or title in an organizational hierarchy. Personal power, however, is of an internal nature because it stems from the personal characteristics and qualities of an individual, for example their expertise, skills, knowledge and intelligence. 3. Basis of authorityA person with positional power is supposed to instruct and guide all those who are under them to fulfill their tasks in accordance with the rules and regulations of the organization. They impose their authority through commands and directives. An individual with personal power, however, is able to motivate and inspire others to achieve their targets. These people are able to influence others by forming relationships with them. Instead of just making sure that specified outcomes are achieved, a leader with personal power influences the hearts and minds of people. 4. PermanenceAs the organization awards positional power, it is also capable of taking it away from the individual by firing them. Hence, positional power is only temporary, as long as the person remains assigned in a higher rank in the organization. On the other hand, personal power emerges due to the internal characteristics of a person and cannot be taken away. 5. Social skillsPositional power is not based on the personal and social skills of leaders, whereas personal power depends to a large extent on the personal and social skills of the leaders. Positional power vs personal power – tabular comparisonA comparison of positional power and personal power in tabular for is presented below:
Conclusion – positional power vs personal powerThe main difference between positional power and personal power is that positional power is possessed by a person because of his/her rank or title in the organization, whereas personal power is a result of the individual’s personal qualities and skills, because of which they manage to acquire a large number of followers. However, an important point to note is that the two kinds of power are not separate from one another, but are just two distinct ways of influencing. There are many leaders who become visible because of their personal power, after which the organization awards formal authority to them so as to offer them a platform to continue to inspire people to achieve their goals. Similarly, there are many people who go up in an organizational hierarchy because of their skills and then keep on growing by using the authority that they receive from their position. People with positional power need to exhibit personal power to make sure that they continue to influence all those working under them. They need to continue to develop their leadership skills to maintain the power that has been vested to them by the organization.
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.
For positional power to be exercised effectively, the person wielding it must be deemed to have earned it legitimately. An example of legitimate power is that held by a company's CEO.
Knowledge is power. Expert power is derived from possessing knowledge or expertise in a particular area. Such people are highly valued by organizations for their problem solving skills. People who have expert power perform critical tasks and are therefore deemed indispensable.
The opinions, ideas and decisions of people with expert power are held in high regard by other employees and hence greatly influence their actions. Possession of expert power is normally a stepping stone to other sources of power such as legitimate power. For example, a person who holds expert power can be promoted to senior management, thereby giving him legitimate power.
Referent power is derived from the interpersonal relationships that a person cultivates with other people in the organization. People possess reference power when others respect and like them. Referent power arises from charisma, as the charismatic person influences others via the admiration, respect and trust others have for her.
Referent power is also derived from personal connections that a person has with key people in the organization's hierarchy, such as the CEO. It's the perception of the personal relationships that she has that generates her power over others.
Coercive power is derived from a person's ability to influence others via threats, punishments or sanctions. A junior staff member may work late to meet a deadline to avoid disciplinary action from his boss. Coercive power is, therefore, a person's ability to punish, fire or reprimand another employee. Coercive power helps control the behavior of employees by ensuring that they adhere to the organization's policies and norms.
Reward power arises from the ability of a person to influence the allocation of incentives in an organization. These incentives include salary increments, positive appraisals and promotions. In an organization, people who wield reward power tend to influence the actions of other employees.
Reward power, if used well, greatly motivates employees. But if it's applied through favoritism, reward power can greatly demoralize employees and diminish their output. |