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AUTHORITY VERSUS POWER
This is a great topic as the lines can get blurred here easily.
A lot of folks think that they are one and the same and in most cases they can be.
Authority comes from being assigned a certain responsibility or capability to take action or make a decision if that authority is assigned to you by a job role, or by a boss/manager saying that is your responsibility. Essentially you have the privilege to "say what goes" by exercising your authority to set direction. However, just because you are authorized does not mean you have the influence to make people do what you need them to do. You must have the right balance of Power to support and exercise your Authority.
Power is a bit more of a grey area as there are different levels of power as stated in the French & Raven Five Bases of Power that come from within two groups Position and Personal.
- Positional Power can be Legitimate as in job role, elected representatives as in President, monarchy as in kings, and you only have that power as long as you are in that position and you can wield immense Authority but only while you hold that position. And, in some cases you risk only having that level of influence under that role in certain situations.
-Positional Power can be Coercive meaning if you are taller and bigger you could influence someone under threat. And if you happen to be in a legitimate role as in a Parent, or King or Military ruler then you would wield a huge amount of influence under threat of punishment. However you could also use Reward Power as part of your position to further influence and get certain people to behave a certain way and do the things you want them to do.
-Positional Power can also be Informational, meaning, "he who knows holds all of the cards" and if you are the only one who has certain key important information or knows how to do something or has control over access to that information that can hold immense power. Ever heard of the statement "Knowledge is Power"? Journalists can be in a position to have that kind of power, our scientists, including our technical programmers and developers. That kind of power demands responsibility as they are in a position to distort or withhold certain kinds of information.
Personal Power is more about being seen as an Expert or in having Referent Power.
-Expert Power is being in a position of knowledge and expertise to where people turn to you for assistance, direction, and having the reputation behind being good at what you do.
-Referent Power is more about people knowing who you are and just liking you for what you represent. Most celebrities fall under that. In today's social media influenced society the everyday person can work to achieve referent power based on their usage of social media tools and connecting on what people deem important at the time. Most families link together using Referent Power based on the relationship they have with each other, and you can see family dynamics change within these groups under the different types of power they use to keep the family together (or tear them apart in some cases).
When you try to combine Authority to Power, the only way to truly support your authority is by properly exercising one or more combination of different levels of Power. A good example is a position of bouncer at a well known dance club. Just by that position alone you have the authority to allow paying guests into the club. If anyone acts out of line you have the authority to not let them into the club under your Positional Power. You can also wield Coercive Power if need be, or, Reward Power for those special guests not on the list. You can even mix in some Personal Power if you are considered a nice person who is fair and personable at the door thereby increasing your Referent Power and boosting patronage to that club. Just realize that your level of influence can be determined in many ways under the type of power you use. For example if you as a bouncer of the club you have a small physical stature and rather thin you might have a tougher time being taken seriously, however that can be easily managed if you balance your Authority with proper use of Positional and Personal Power.
From a project perspective as PM you must ensure you have the Authority as supported by the Project Charter. A PM as a matter of course is responsible for the success of the project, however without proper Authority over how the resources or budget is to be managed or how to make critical decisions on the project your ability to be successful is severely hampered setting you up for failure as your success will be measured in this project. With proper Authority from there you can utilize your levels of Power accordingly.
