Customer Reviews

Political Savvy: Systematic Approaches to Leadership Behind the Scenes

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At last, a thoroughly researched, user-friendly, step- by- step guide to becoming a political savvy manager. Political savvy, according to the author, is the art of "ethically building a critical mass of support for an idea you care about." Other books describe and explain the problems created by political behavior at work. This one tells executives what to do, starting tomorrow morning, to overcome these problems and make constructive change happen." It's the book Machavelli might have written if his Prince had been an ethical straight-shooter committed to doing good works. A "must read" for every principled executive with a positive agenda, an open mind, some analytic skills, and enough self-discipline to think first and act later.

According to Dr. Deluca, political savvy is a learnable skill. Learning is a two-step process. The first is to adopt a "savvy" attitude. Consciously decide that you want to become an able, ethical player. Don't be afraid to lead. The second is to learn and practice some time-tested rules for "working the human system" to bring about positive change.

The first part of the book deals with step one--attitude adjustment. Deluca contends that "the savvy attitude is the single most important ingredient in becoming politically savvy." Two "blind spots" block many otherwise highly motivated executives from meeting this test. One is the `moral block; the other is "the rational block"

The moral block is the widely-held belief that there is something inherently wrong with "playing politics" at work. De Luca explains why this belief is unfounded. He points out that political behavior can be bad or good, depending on why and how it's used. Influencing the organization is what most managers are hired to do. Executives with savvy attitudes explicitly recognize this responsibility. They put the organization's interest first, operate above-board, and make every effort to avoid anything that smacks of manipulation.

The rational block is the widely held belief that a sound technical argument supported by facts and logic should carry the day. Clinging to this belief in the face of mountains of contrary evidence is unproductive. It is established science that different people perceive the world differently. One well-intended manager's perfectly rational proposal may appear to another as a politically motivated fairy tale." Equally, important, different people have different personal and professional agendas. Recognizing differences and molding individual agendas to better align them with company priorities is an essential management task.

The remainder of the book describes and explains how savvy managers "work the human system" to gain support for the ideas they care about. It begins with a easy-to-follow case study that clears up any residual ambiguity about what it means to become politically savvy and showcases the basic tools and skills used by master players. The following chapters build on this material. They describe how to systematically map and analyze the political landscape, develop supporting coalitions, formulate strategy, sidestep hazards, link agendas, and use group settings to build momentum for the desired change. Every topic is presented as though the author really wants readers to understand and act on insights and expertise that he has gained from nearly twenty years of studying and teaching about organization politics. When you read it, you'll quickly understand why Political Savvy is used by leading business schools and major corporations to teach managers how become more effective leaders.

At Fordham, for some years we have wanted to teach our MBA students how to become influential managers who are recognized for their ability to work within the system to help their organizations make good things happen. We held off because no textbook was available. Joel Deluca's book fills this need. Our students swear by it. So will you.

Mr. DeLuca has written a wonderfully insightful manual for success in the work place. A lightning fast and enjoyable read, this book will soften the battle scarred heart of even the most jaded and cynical Dilbert fans. The topic is the politics of the workplace, which is undoubtedly the leading cause of employee dissatisfaction everywhere. Joel DeLuca provides a wonderful case for recognizing human nature, and making a positive change in one's outlook to cherish the irrationality of the human organization that presently causes so much frustration and angst for the vast majority. I believe this book will be most beneficial to those who are experienced with, and distrustful of, organizational politics. I could tell you that I wish I read this book years ago, but I'm not sure that it would have had the same impact on my life had I not already seen office politics at its worst. This book provides some practical relief from the pressure of organizational politics, as well as a toolkit to help the reader participate in the workings in a proactive and benevolent way. This book is the culmination of a very sincere scientific investigation, presented in a manner that is not overly academic. Enjoy.

Come on, be honest. What really comes to your mind when you hear that someone has a lot of 'political savvy'? Someone sitting in a smoke-filled room making important decisions with a handful of high-rollers? A snake-oil salesman who could sell anything based on his ability to manipulate more gullible people? Someone to avoid because you don't want to become tainted? And anyway you just shouldn't have to mess with that stuff!

Joel DeLuca offers this definition: "Political Savvy: Ethically building a critical mass of support for an idea you care about." Then he notes what he excludes and what he includes in his definition. It excludes striving for power in a general way, but includes seeking influence in a specific situation. It includes caring about an idea - an interesting combination of emotion and intellect. He adds, "It's hard to overstate that the starting point for the Savvy [people] is caring about something bigger than themselves."

The book carries the subtitle, "Systematic Approaches to Leadership Behind-the-Scenes." I suppose that I always knew that effective leaders had some amount of political savvy. They seemed to know who to talk to, and how and when to talk to them. DeLuca believes you can gain in political savvy in a systematic way. He is clear about the role of results when he writes, "Leadership in the near term is making things happen. In the long term, leadership is developing people. The ultimate responsibility of a leader is not just to make things happen today but to increase the organization's capacity to make things happen tomorrow. The best leaders accomplish this by developing others to become leaders." The role of the leader includes attention to the sustainability of the organization and the development of the next generation.

For an organization to survive, it must take care of business. Helping develop others includes increasing their understanding of how organizations actually do take care of business. DeLuca offers this definition: "Organization Politics: How power and interest play out in the organization." Thus, politics is not inherently negative or positive, it just is. He also highlight two common blocks people encounter. The Moral Block carries an implication that 'organizational politics' equates to 'manipulation' and thus creates an ethical barrier. The Rational Block says that we should not need to descend to such means - the idea's obvious strengths should be enough. DeLuca counters that the Politically Savvy person accepts that organizational politics is just another fact of life.

Now here we have two provocative ideas: organizational politics is not a sort of necessary evil to tolerate; and you can be politically savvy and ethical at the same time. Well, that makes an interesting theory, but how might those of us who are 'savvy-impaired' make that systematic progress? DeLuca offers several ideas which he sets out in the form of a mini-case study. An important decision-making meeting is pending. You know certain things about the people involved, their connections with one another, their priorities and potentially show-stopping concerns.

So what strategy does he offer to get the decision to go your way? He offers a scheme to visually map out who is leaning how strongly and in which direction, and who holds sway over whom. Making this information explicit allows you to construct a strategy to ensure that not only do you take the right steps, but you take them in the most productive sequence. He stresses 'agenda linking' (showing how the ends you want support the ends that someone else wants) and following the path of relationships (where people talk to people who trust them). The goal, after all, is to create a base of support. "An ethical alliance - which is the opposite of a manipulative conspiracy - has several benefits: convergent validity, task legitimacy, enhanced ethicalness, and maneuverability." We want it to be clear that we are acting in the best interests of the organization as we see them and not fomenting a mutiny.

Do I feel more savvy now, having read his book (and even attended a one-day seminar)? Well, yes, a little bit. I certainly have new things to consider as I try to move the organizations with which I'm involved. Most of all, I know that my preferred political style needs work. I need to develop a more active approach with a more positive attitude toward politics. (I almost wrote 'mere politics' - I'm learning!)

I have just retired after 32 years in a major Fortune 10 company and I have to commend Joel DeLuca on the excellence of his book. I think the tools he provides are of outstanding practical value and highly useable on a day to day basis. But I think his emphasis on the ethical nature of savvy work is critical. His description of Machs or Machiavellis who seek power only for its own sake to advance themselves, is extremely realistic, convincing and a challenge to principle people to take back organization politics from the pecking order obsessives and make organizations own awowed purpose a central guiding light. I loved the story of the Elephant trap dug for a Mack who usually stole the glory for everyone else's hard work....more elephant trap stories please....the Mack only fell in the pit, if she behaved unethically....cheered me up enormously.

In its first edition this has been by far one of the most popular books with my MBA students. DeLuca presents useful and practical approaches to becoming and ethical political player in organizations. Too long the subject has been viewed as dirty, taboo. DeLuca brings politics out of the closet and gives readers practical tools for understanding their own political styles and how to work ethically and effectively with others. I eagerly await the second edition.

Deluca helps us see the political landscape of organizational life very clearly and positively. The key for all of us to understand, which Deluca points out expertly in this book, is that "political" is not a four-letter word - and is not necessarily synonomous with "devious", "selfish" or "deceitful"! It's O.K to want to have influence - most of us do! The key is what is your motivation and how you go about it. Most of us have good intentions that our organizations would applaud, but we are appallingly lacking in the ability to carry through. Political Savvy is a wonderful lesson in understanding that organizations are inhabited by people - and with a little strategizing and planning, we have the ability to influence them - and, therefore,become "impact players" in our organizations!

This book touches the wellspring of success in relationships in corporate entities. The blend of understanding dynamics and learning practical skills makes this book one I will return to many times for personal grounding and for teaching others in my work.

Even the best managers can sometimes feel frustrated at an inability to get things done in their organization. All too often they attribute "office politics" as the excuse for their failure. If you have every felt like this, or know someone else who is going through it, read "Political Savvy" by Joel DeLuca, Ph.D.

Through a series of case studies coupled with easy to understand explanations, DeLuca explains the ins and outs of office politics. DeLuca attributes names to types of people we may encounter such as Protector, Speculator, Advisor or Machiavellian. "Machs" are the bosses who rule by intimidation and believe life is a game to be won or lost at any cost.

The highlight of the book is the Organization Politics Map, which shows how you can evaluate folks within the organizations as supporters or non?supporters; in other words, you can figure out who's for you and who's against you. As DeLuca points out, many successful and insightful managers do this intuitively, the map simply makes the process accessible and explicit.

Dr, DeLuca also provides a handy summary at the close of the book about how to become a politically savvy. His two guiding principles are "Choose to be an active, ethical player" and "Work the human system." Good advice for anyone who cares about gaining influence the right way! I recommend this book highly.

Political Savy is a "must read" for anyone who has ever thought or been told that office "politics" are bad and to be avoided at all costs! Dr. Deluca provides wonderful insight into managing the "machs" and the bosses, that most of us in large organizations have encountered, who must win at all costs. By providing the rationality of the actors in organizational dramas, the book provides practical, easy-to-use methods that enable the reader to increase the probability of creating "win/win" situations that are ethical and satisfying

The book is a permanent tool on my office bookshelf and I have given a copy to one of my friends and another to one of my co-workers!

This is a great tool to have as you build out your toolchest for corporate career growth. The style is a little dense at times. One eye-opening bit of advise was to not think of "politics" as a four-letter word. This admonishment sets the tone for a very practical and pragmatic approach to leadership through indirect influence. A good train read.