Re(a)putation anyone...

Continuing from my last post about politicking within organisation...an activity which requires building strong symbiotic relationships and entail exercising certain influence within the network of relationships. Refering to my earlier post, the currency of the practitioners of this art is credibility, which along with the competence and confidence invariably leads to reputation. As a matter of fact it is a two-way relationship...a strong and generally postitive reputation establishes one's reliability, generates trust and indicates the competence within the work environment. Without a favourable reputation, the ability to influence and consequently the ability to foster a positive political environment gets constrained.

Apart from the demonstrable indicators of a reputation like proficiency in a particular skill set or domain knowledge, there are myriad subtle and emphatic means of establishing and perpetuating one's reputation. Another interesting thing about reputation is that it is hardly dynamic and here perception almost becomes the reality. It is a trap that any self-conscious and even mildly politically aware organism within an organisation should be wary of. It is all very fine to be able to say "I give a damn"...but no one is an island, neither in professional set-up nor in personal lives. It is however much easier to build and maintain one's professional reputation without being viewed through the prisms of various stereotypes that are generally used by society at large.

Though maintaing certain reputation is important for every member of the organisation, it becomes mission critical for the leaders within the organisation. Through the chain of command these leaders have the formal authority to influence the decisions and working of the organisation, any adverse perception (which is as good as reality, especially in their case) can severely erode this ability, thereby creating a conflicting environment, jeoperdising the overall organisational objectives and invariably creating opportunities for politically vicious activities to germinate.

When the positions of leadership within an organisation gets filled by people through a genuine meritocratic process, the reputation of the individual concerned just needs to be maintained, which though is not a stupendous task, requires only attention and not any significant incremental effort...but there is always a grave risk of losing one's reputation if adequate attention is not given. However, for leaders who are inducted from outside the organisation...and it happens in many cases when an incumbent leader leaves without an indentified successor or a new business line needs to be developed...the leader has to work that much extra to build the reputation and maintain it subsequently. Unless, a careful cultivation of one's reputation is carried out, the leader loses the ability to influence people within the organisational network and subsequently compromise the authority that goes with the position.