Discussion 1: Negotiation

Many employers struggle to get individuals with the expertise and experience to suit their companies. Similarly, candidates need to worry of how they will negotiate their starting salary since they might price themselves out of the market when seeking for new jobs. According to the scenario of the recent college graduate, he or she should consider the following steps when negotiating for a higher starting salary. First, the graduate should research and know his/her value. It is important to know the going rate for the position in a consulting company and the particular geographic area. The graduate should do research on sites such as Glassdoor or Payscale to avoid being controlled during negotiation. Second, the graduate should ignore what he/she previously made. Precisely, he/she should not use the previous salary as a base. He/she should look at the primary objective value to the company and mention the salary based on the evidence uncovered during the research. Third, he/she should always think beyond the base salary. Besides, since negotiation involved numbers, the graduate should anticipate his/her negotiation to be more than just a base salary.

Fourth, the graduate should shoot high but prepare for a possible rejection by the employer. You should not be afraid to ask what you prefer before the employers make his/her initial offer. Also, when making your offer, you should consider the salary range you are looking for. It is recommended that you ask on the high end of that range. Fifth, you should provide an explanation for the requested figure. The graduate should justify why he/she is worth to be paid the requested salary. Lastly, you should maintain confident cues throughout the interaction process with the interview panel. You should keep your posture open and maintain eye contact. Also, the graduate should speak genuinely to make him/herself sound professional.
Discussion 2: Power

According to the article “French and Raven’s Five Forms of Power,” power is divided into five different forms that include coercive, reward, legitimate, referent and expert power. First, coercive power entails forcing a person to do what he/she does not want. It can involve threats or physical harm. Second, reward power means asking people to do something and give them what they want. It mainly includes promise. Third, legitimate power is primarily employed by individuals such as kings, policemen, and managers since it invested in a role. Fourth, referent power encompasses power that makes a person want to be like you. Individuals would like to be associated with celebrities or social leader. Lastly, expert power is the ability to have knowledge and skill that are being admired by someone.

What is your primary form of power you tend to use most frequently? How is power different from politics? How is power different from politics?

My primary form of power that I will prefer to use frequently is expert power. I would like to use my knowledge, skills and experience for the benefit of the company. Since companies require specialization, I will be able to provide them with my expertise in the relevant field.

Power is the ability to have an influence on an individual. Also, it is the opportunity to build and nudge history in a different way. In an organization, people with power will always make things happen the way they want.  On the other hand, politics entails the use of power to influence the behavior of another person. Therefore, organizations will tend to use politics to obtain their preferred outcome in circumstances where there is uncertainty about choices.

Provide an example of how you have used the different 5 forms of power or heard or seen someone else using them. Were these forms of power used appropriately considering the situation you described? Please explain why or why not?

In the company I am currently working, the CEO has legitimate power over his employees. He runs the day to day operations of the company by ensuring that employees comply and obey his demands. In the same organization, the human resource managers possess reward power. They have the ability to provide promotions, raise salaries and train new employees. It is unfortunate that the management in the same organization use coercive power in a situation when the productivity of the company reduces. Employees are always threatened that they will be demoted or fired when they do not raise their performance.

On the other hand, I possess expert power that has helped me to understand the situation in the organization and suggest a possible solution to the problems. Through my expertise, the organization and employees have put their trust and respect on me. Lastly, the supervisors have gained referent power by giving employees more opportunities as a result of good performance. Also, supervisors allow employees to complete projects on their own making them admire their treatment. Out of the five forms of power, coercive power was not used appropriately. It involved a lot of threats hence causing unhealthy behaviors and dissatisfaction in the workplace. Employees were not contented with that kind of power since it brought uncertainty about their jobs. However, the other four forms of power were used appropriately, and they enhanced a healthy relationship with the management.