Our “Powers” of Influence: Referent, Expert, and Legitimate
Would you feel comfortable saying that you have powers? Technically, if you’re reading or hearing this you have the power to understand or communicate. As vague as it is to say that we have powers, it’s also true in the sense that we have the largely unrecognized power to influence others. The work environment of today, demands leaders who embody openness and deep consideration for how they influence others. The use of legitimate power, punishments & rewards in an organization fail to address our character traits, attractiveness, persuasiveness, or likability. Leaders in our modern multicultural workforce must consider their expert, referent, and legitimate bases of power that influence others in order to be most effective.
Expert Basis of Power
Matsushima defines expert power to be “Based on the belief that the power holder has special knowledge or expertise” (Matsushima, 2013). Easy examples of this are the IT and HR departments in the fulfillment center where I work. With 1,500 full-time employees, a strong sense of interdependence is felt by each department, in their own respects. Later in his article, the author explains how most people think that the most effective way to influence others is through solely using rewards, punishment, and legitimate power. Research shows that leaders who use a combination of their expert and referent power were most effective in influencing others (Matsushima, 2013). This encourages leaders to consider how others view their expertise or specific domain knowledge.
Referent basis of Power
One of Amazon’s 14 leadership principles is “Success and Scale Bring Broad Responsibilities” (Amazon’s Global Career Site, 2022). It emphasizes how we must do and be better for our customers, employees, and our planet as a whole. Since it’s a non-customer-facing environment, our dress code (among other policies) is very relaxed. My best friend used the term “Monster Ally” to describe the kitchen of hip downtown bar restaurants and I believe the same term can be said about Amazon fulfillment centers in general. This could be largely due to the heavily tattooed, punk, or gothic type employees. Nearly every holiday, culture, and affiliation are recognized in some way in this immensely diverse and fun workplace.
How others ‘refer’ to us in their minds is how I’ve come to remember my referent power. Do people refer to me as someone with powerful skills, character traits, or a gentle personality? Do I have any secret or known admirers and what is it they admire about me? How can I be likable?
When discussing values alignment and the current racial equity movement, De Etta indicates that organizational leaders are now unavoidably faced with multi-culturally centered questions (The Great Resignation Boils Down To Values, 2022). Moreso, how can we disregard our differences and create a positive influence on someone with whom we share so little in common? Being a fan of Batman, I like to think of finding commonality or ways to change someone’s behavior, sort of like detective work. It requires being a keen listener and investigating. Then, we can show that appreciation by saying something like “By the way, I want to thank you for…”.
Even allowing someone to vent or be angry with you could build your referent basis of power. In a lecture, Shawn King explains how he addressed an angry client with two simple questions; “How are you doing?” and “How can we help”. After stopping to affirm the client’s well-being on a personal level, a negative business matter was diffused (King, 2016).
It’s recommended to use gratitude, positive affirmations, positive reinforcements, and rewards in place of punishments but fear is also a powerful influencer/motivator we need to understand. I was getting my degree in Marketing when I first noticed how companies use scarcity, selective language, and even intimidation. Carefully avoiding naivety, I’ve grown to be appreciative but critical of advertising, social standards, and preconceived notions of many kinds.
In the late ’70s, the University of Kentucky furnished the report titled Authority, Power, Influence and Social Control: A Theoretical Synthesis which similarly argues the need for a reexamination of how leadership differentiates between these two concepts; Authority and Power (Grimes, 1978). As culture changes, our terminology in the workplace must as well.
At the end of his presentation about influence, Dan Norris emphasized that we should “Boldly reconsider some of the preconceived notions we have about influence” (Norris, 2012). Having the humility to adapt our own opinions, attitudes and behaviors first is most certainly needed in the pursuit of multicultural leadership.
A quote from my favorite author illustrates the degree to which we need to reconsider our influences. Alan Watts wrote “One is a great deal less anxious if one feels perfectly free to be anxious, and the same may be said of guilt.” For a deeper consideration of how others, leaders can benefit from considering how others refer to them.
Legitimate Power in a Family
I’d like to share a personal story that clearly demonstrates the practicality of questioning traditions and a legitimate-like power of influence. After returning from university, I courageously hosted my first Thanksgiving dinner at one of my first apartments. Of course, I had the traditional fare; turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, cranberry sauce, etc. Just as I was putting the turkey in the oven a friend asked me why I took the wings and legs off before cooking. I replied, “That’s how my mom showed me”. Everyone’s heard that “mother knows best” and that she has formal authority over you.
I later went and asked my mother why she did this. She replied with the same answer. We finally asked my grandmother why she did this. She said, “Our oven was too small to fit everything.” This was not the case at my apartment. We all laughed together about the silly tradition we had created. Timothy Leary once advised us to “Think for yourself, question authority”.
Conclusion
In business and in our personal lives when we take on leadership responsibilities and positions of authority or influence we must do so cautiously; people are easily influenced. Developing good work ethic, moral character, and expertise ought to take precedence when improving our ability to influence others. Effective multicultural leaders must consider their referent and expertise basis of power and influence to be most effective or receptive to their audience.
References
Matsushima, R. F. (2013, 03). How to improve your ability to influence others. Contract Management, 53, 8. Retrieved from https://csuglobal.idm.oclc.org/login?qurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.proquest.com%2Fmagazines%2Fhow-improve-your-ability-influence-others%2Fdocview%2F1503674025%2Fse-2%3Faccountid%3D38569
Amazon’s global career site. (2022). Amazon.Jobs. https://www.amazon.jobs/en/principles
The Great Resignation Boils Down To Values. (2022, April 28). YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vLBGnH6EjmU
King, Shawn (25 Feburary 2016) The Power of Influence | Shawn King | TEDxDalhousieU [Video] Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=44MeI3FeXn4
Grimes, A. J. (1978). Authority, Power, Influence and Social Control: A Theoretical Synthesis. Academy of Management Review, 3(4), 724–735. https://doi.org/10.5465/AMR.1978.4289263
Hear Yes! More Often With the Science of Influence: Dan Norris at TEDxSanAntonio 2012. (2013, January 30). YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6pxm8ziST_A
