Office Politics

[Bertie Wooster]

It seems like that in every company in which I've worked "office politics" played a large part of the experience there. One type of office politics I've encountered is when an "in-group" forms (also called primary group in organizational psych.), where that particular group will socialize heavily outside the workplace, forming shared group experiences which they bring back into the workplace. It can uncomfortable and emotionally disruptive for a worker not lucky enough to be part of that "in-group" to spend hours every day surrounded by co-workers who are part of that "in-group" and can adversely affect overall cohesion and communication in the workplace.

Another common type of office politics I've encountered has to do with non-business related favoritism/unfavoritism by management. I'm guilty of this myself. 2 years ago, I worked in a publishing company, and I worked closely with this production coordinator. He had hired a female assistant and after a month or so she was there, I started going out with her.
Later, her boss, the production coordinator became dissatisfied with her work and reliability after she had been absent a couple of times (one of which was because she was out late with me) and asked me if I thought he should fire her. They both disliked each other. Instantly realizing I would miss her greatly, I told him she had a valid, legitemate sickness, and that I thought the quality of her work was excellent, whereupon he gave me a puzzled and suspicious look. Later, the company presdident asked me a for an honest appraisal of the people I worked with because there were going to be some changes in personnel. I must admit, I was a lot more supportive of the assistant than I was of the production coordinator. The production coordinator ended up being one of the people who had to leave, with his assistants, including the one I was going out with, now working for me. I found out later that the production coordinator knew what was going on between me and the assistant and since he knew, his friends there knew too, and so morale had deteriorated with some of the other people who worked for me. In retrospect, if I was neutral and business-oriented, things would have been a lot different, but instead I feel like I was the asshole to quite a few people there.

Friends of mine for other companies relate to me how "office politics" is either abundant and really annoying, or they're lucky and it's non-existent where they work.

In regards to office politics:


1) Is it a problem or annoying where you work?
2) What other common types are there?
3) Do you know effective ways to stay completely neutral and uninvolved in office politics?

[Trytostaydead]

Well, so far the only jobs I've had are undergraduate research related. So usually it's a very small tight-knit group, but there are definite favorites.

Within the clinical aspect, I was the favorite with the doctor literally exploding in a rage if anyone tried to put a slight against me. Within the laboratory, I was not the favorite as I wasn't a Masters, PhD or MD and therefore just the grunt.

But in terms of politics, my lab director and clinical director were best friends. For the lab, I didn't expect to get paid.. hell, I would've paid them just for the opportunity to work there (a premeds wet-dream). But my clinical director, I heard from another co-worker took my lab director into his office and started hollering and yelling at him on my behalf to pay me.

While I'm thankful for his efforts, I really do not want people doing that for me.

a) It sets the bar for me. That I have to perform at a certain expected level now.
b) It might create animosity making the boss do something he doesn't want to do.

In short, if best.. while friendships are great. I'd MUCH rather make my way through my OWN merit than people caddying for me. And I do that for my coworkers too. I won't do their work for them, but I'll make sure they succeed on their own power.

[Lord Pounder]

We have a several cliques where i work. It can literally be a three way war in the office. The 1st Clique comprises of the catholic members of my office, including my boss who hates me because i'm not, the second comprises of the lower level admin workers, thats my group if i where to consoder myself in one, which i don't. The last group comprises of our last CEO's favourites. The last group mostly are gone becasue in the course of a war between the catholic group and the CEO's group the CEO got fired and 3/4's of her clique subsequently resigned or where fired themselves.

This makes my life unbareable and in actual fact i hate my job, i job i'd otherwise love but for the petty bitching and sabotage.

Unfortunatley there is no way i've found to stay out of office politics, if you're in the office. The best thing you can do is pick a side and play it smart. The worst thing you can do is stay nuteral becasue then everyone will be after you as i found out when i worked in the Civil Service.