How Business wields power?

 

If you are in a business you are already familiar with few instruments of power you are wielding to get ahead in your activities. This blog post serves as a primer on the types of power a business has and how such power is manifested.

There are five types of power: hard power, soft power, smart power, stealth power and cosmic power. Each type of power is explained below along with the modes through which such power is wielded.

Hard Power

Generally this type of power is exercised by a strong business entity or a business that perceives it to be a strong one over others in a particular industry. Hard power ranges between political to economic spectrums. The following are instruments used for making hard power felt across the board:

1. Price-cutting: Blanket instrument targeting several businesses in one go

2. Pressure Tactic: Selective instrument targeting a single weakling in a group

3. Follow Me: Patronising other businesses to toe the line

4. Threats: Real hard-ball penetrating into the nerves of competitors and instilling fear of failure

5. Sanctions: Hitting the bull-eye of a specific business where it hurts

Soft Power

This type of power is demoed by a business that is not necessarily strong but has certain advantages over its competitors. Soft power uses instruments within political to social spectrum. The following are methods used for making soft power felt across the board:

1. Business Policy: Use of social engineering and political gamesmanship to achieve business goals

2. Networking: Building contacts and alliances in civil society members such as government think tanks, Non-Governmental organizations, consumer societies and vested interests to achieve one-upmanship

3. Image building: Progressively building the image of “holier than thou” and “in moral high plain “ to achieve business goals

4. Media cover: Getting the media to defend the business in the first place ; hogging media and using trial by media to its own advantages

Smart Power

When you combine hard and soft power effectively you get smart power. Hence this type of power uses instruments ranging from political to economic to social spectrum. Smart power can be exercised by a strong business as well as a week one provided that the instruments used are selected to suit the situation in hand. Hence, smart power is limited by the situation rather than the instruments per se. In addition to instruments listed under hard power and soft power above, businesses use information or more precisely misinformation in exercising smart power.

Stealth Power

Business opts for stealth power when it is faced with a situation where hard power, soft power or smart power cannot be used effectively. Although stealth power uses instruments ranging in political, economic and social spectrum it does so via surprise and under cover of darkness. Here are some of the noted instruments of stealth power:

1. Bribery: Sop the Cerberus is time-tested method of getting through business objectives

2. Corruption: Putting opposing parties under obligation

3. Espionage: It is the Mossad motto: By way of Deception

4. Black-mailing: While arm twisting is hard power the same thing done in stealth is black mailing

5. Stage Setting: Getting competitors to walk into a trap and lose profits is a key stage setting method

Cosmic Power

Even though businesses have immense source of cosmic power they hardly use any of it. Cosmic power arises from internal strengths: Here are few examples of cosmic power:

1. Brands : Think of Microsoft

2. Presentation: Form of Coco-Cola bottle during the World War II

3. Logos: Swastika of Nazi Germany

4. Mottos: Apt statement impressing all: “In God we Trust” says the greenback

5. Mission & Vision statements: Careful wording makes a business noteworthy

6. Lifestyle: It is the name of the new successful business game in cosmics

7. Charisma: Business charisma is nothing personal nor is linked to the founders only. Waldorf Astoria hotel group has this in plenty.

Muthu Ashraff

Cosmic Adviser

Mobile : +94 777 265677

E-mail : cosmicgems@gmail.com

Web : http://www.cosmicgemslanka.com

Blog : http://cosmicgemslanka.com/blog/