12. Politics: Power in Action Political behaviour: activities that are not required as part of one’s formal role in the organization, but that influence, or attempt to influence, the distribution of advantages and disadvantages within the organization.
13. Politics is a fact of life in organizations. People who ignore this fact of life do so at their own peril.
14. One of the most important factors leading to politics within organizations is the realization that most of the ‘facts’ that are used to make decisions and allocate resources are open to misinterpretation.
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17. The Ethics of Behaving Politically Question 1: Is the political action motivated by self serving interests to the exclusion of the organization’s goals? Ethical Yes Unethical No Question 3: Is the political activity fair and equitable? No Yes Unethical Question 2: Does the political action respect the rights of the individuals affected? Yes Unethical No