This chapter is made up of six distinct parts, but half of the material is concerned with elements found in the model of power in organizations (Exhibit 10.2) That is, parts 1 (power) to 3 (contingencies) in your lecture outline. The rest of the chapter deals with the power of social networks, influence and politics.

In the first major parts (1 & 2), the sources of power are described. In each case, some excellent examples are given to help you remember them. At this point I’m assuming you haven’t skipped the really short section that defines power. You will need a firm understanding of power for reasons I’ll explain later. Getting back to the sources, there are two which reside within the person: expert and referent. That means it doesn’t really matter what position someone holds, or which company they work for, it follows them around. That’s the stuff careers are made of!

Part three of the chapter introduces you to contingencies. There are four of these. The substitutability contingency has four aspects to it. While networking isn’t a contingency, it’s thrown in this part of the chapter nonetheless. Contingencies only serve to increase or decrease one’s level of power. These are not sources. It’s helpful if you think of them as volume controls, or throttles on a motorbike (no mopeds, or scooters please).

The power of social network part (4) deals with a very important aspect of power – the people part. Essentially, the more friends you have, the more people you know, and the more goodwill you’ve cultivated within that network, the more power is at your disposal. That kind of makes sense doesn’t it? This could be the most practical (dare I say useful) part of the entire chapter.

The last major parts (5 & 6), take up about thirteen pages – so you know it’s important. Just how many influence tactics are there? Lucky for you only eight are discussed in this chapter. On the other hand, a lot of other stuff related to influence is discussed as well such as, consequences (effects) and contingencies. The good news part is that you’ve probably used many of these tactics yourself, so remembering them should be that much easier for you.