3 Things You Need to Know About Office Politics

Whether you like it or not, office politics are here to stay and they govern your career a lot more than you think. Some people are so averse to the thought of office politics they would let their whole career go down the drain than participate. Don’t be those people, just knowing these 3 things will give you a leg up.

3 Things About Office Politics

You can’t really escape office politics, no matter where you go they will be there in one form or another.

Know Who Has The Power

Power doesn’t necessarily mean the highest ranking. It means the person with the most influence in the office. It may be your boss, or it may be a fellow employee with a specific relationship to your boss. Find out who has the power and leverage that to your advantage. This person should be able to give you a leg up in the office, in your career and your position. You can even go a step further and find out their circle of influence and work inside that.

Know The Unwritten Rules

If there was a rule book, then office politics wouldn’t really exist. If you are new, you need to find out the unwritten rules. Essentially, you are trying to find out what behaviour is rewarded and which is not. It’s not always inside the corporate handbook, either. A great example is staying late. The “official” end of work maybe 5 PM, but you notice everyone staying later, this is an unwritten rule.

Know The Corporate Culture

You have heard this term many times. People often leave jobs or are let go due to not fitting into the “Corporate Culture”. Find out what it is, is the opposite sex viewed as lesser? Is the office very conservative? You need to tailor your behaviour to fit this culture. The squeaky wheel gets the grease and in this case, the grease would be having to find a new job.

Knowing just these three things about office politics will give you an advantage when you start a new job or career. Pay attention and leverage when you can. Want to start your own office? Contact DataTech today.