How to Get the Better of Your Boss

The following post appeared in The Economic Times Corporate Dossier of April 8, 2011 under the title, ‘Get the better of the boss.’ http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/features/corporate-dossier/get-the-better-of-the-boss/articleshow/7904690.cms?curpg=1

This is a launch that many of us abort even before we start the countdown. We convince ourselves that we don’t have the wherewithal to steer the relationship with the boss to our advantage. Bosses seem to have everything loaded in their favour. They have the might of the organisation in their muscles. However repugnant their behaviour, they always attract a few invertebrates who can bend, curl, and crawl with ease.  Because of their position they also have connections with other powerful people elsewhere. Bosses can block our exit points or smoke us out, whichever they fancy.

Our despair is well founded. We are like Sania Mirza trying to stand up to Serena Williams. We have the good wishes of kind spectators. Underdogs always do. Unfortunately, that doesn’t alter the outcome.

The simple, painful truth is that we can’t persuade the boss if we have no power.  We may have the support of logic and evidence, but she can dismiss our pleas with a disdainful wave of her hand because she knows that she can do without us. We are as dispensable as paper plates.  

There are three ways in which people generally respond to this unequal power distribution.  They may sell their souls cheap and butter the boss up. Or they may grit their teeth, blame their sins in their previous birth, and work like galley slaves feeding largely on dreams of future glory.  Or they may gang up and stand up to the bully.

The first way is disgusting, demeaning. Certainly when others indulge in it! But there are always successful nobodies specializing in flattery and driving BMWs.

We see examples of the other two approaches playing out in the Arab world. People put up with horrible dictators for years, absolutely convinced that there is no way to dislodge them; then, the same ordinary folks band together and oust their lords and masters.  Trade unions among workers and ‘associations’ among professionals are the corporate counterparts of such coalitions.  You can easily break any number of twigs, but not a bunch of twigs, as the wise old man in the fable demonstrated to his squabbling children.

Coalitions of the weak against their boss are effective, but often lead to violence, even bloodshed. The stronger party prevails. The risk for subordinates in such a standoff is that a fearsome coalition may disintegrate when least expected. The boss may buy off some of the key members and smash the coalition’s legs. After all ‘divide and rule’ is one of the oldest and foolproof recipes of tyrants down centuries. It is as effective in a small company as in a vast empire.

Is there a better way? There is. It is to build up your personal power around the contribution you make to the organization. Your contribution should be such that the boss depends on it and would hesitate to do anything that might jeopardise it.  You don’t need to flaunt it or threaten to withdraw it. That would be gross. It would also be foolish because threats (such as waving a resignation letter) may not work the way you anticipate. If you hold your boss against the wall, he may crack. But don’t be surprised if you provoke him to such a degree that he blurts out, “Okay, get the hell out of this place.” Your departure will hurt him, but it will hurt you too because you lose when you walk out.

Any threat has to be subtle and unstated.  An implied threat is far more powerful than a declared threat. If, for whatever reason, the boss doesn’t take the declared threat seriously, you will have to carry out the threat or lose face and lose any little hold you’ve had over him. That would be like a kidnapper killing the hostage. The moment the hostage is dead, the kidnapper’s power deserts him. His power comes from others’ uncertainty about what he might do.

The two lead actors in the popular American TV drama, ‘New York Undercover’ are said to have demanded that its writer-producer, Dick Wolf, give them a big raise. When he refused, they boycotted the set to pressure him. Apparently they had been inspired by the six stars in the fabulously successful ‘Friends,’ who had stuck together and renegotiated their salaries. The ‘New York Undercover’ leads, however, had vastly overestimated their power. When the boycott stared him in the face, Dick Wolf announced to reporters:  "We're holding auditions for replacements. If the guys don't show up Monday morning, we've got a new script in place. And it starts with a double funeral." The guys did show up sheepishly.  If Wolf offered them a raise later, it was out of pity, not out of respect.

Personal power is soft, unobtrusive. At its finest, it is somewhat like the influence a child has over her parents and grandparents. They dare not do anything that would risk losing her or her affection.