Abstract:
It has been said that power is inevitable and that each person exhibits a certain
amount of power over another. It is simply a natural part of life. In organizations,
although every employee exercises power, the superior is said to command greater power
over the subordinates.
Literature on communication and management defined power as the act of
influencing others and of making them do what they would not normally do. It may be
inherent in a person, termed as personal power, or may come from a person's position in
the company, known as positional power. On the other hand, communication provides
the means through which power is exercised, developed, maintained and enhanced. From
these is devised the term power communication, which is defined as communicating to
others one's power to induce them to act in certain ways. It is said to occur in all
directions of communication: upward, downward, and horizontal. Its manifestation,
however is said to be more evident in downward communication.
Power communication is viewed to have different effects on the organization.
Some theorists say that its existence in an organization is destructive. On the other hand,
others stated that power communication is positive. Still, some people believe that power
communication in itself is neither negative nor positive. Therefore, this paper's aim was
to answer the question: What is the perceived effect of power communication on
organizational effectiveness?
To answer this question, a descriptive design was adapted. With this design, the
researcher was able to describe the perceptions of the employees of Zeneca Pharma
Philippines, Inc. Zeneca is an international bioscience group that boasts of making
innovative medicines that addresses serious health problems such as cancer and heart
disease. The respondents were divided into the managers and the employees to give a
clearer view and understanding of the perceived effects. The tools used for data
gathering included the survey questionnaire for the managers and the employees, and the
interview schedule for the country manager. Frequency and percentages were the tools
used for data analysis. These tools described the patterns that emerged regarding the
effects.
from the respondents, it was discovered that power communication does not
intimidate nor does it lessen the creativity and the initiative of the employees. If its
effects on the employees are not negative, then it seems to have a high potential to be
positive to the company. However, its potential is not fully realized because the superior
seems hesitant in practicing power communication. Its use seems to be limited to
improving performance and initiating change. Significantly, although power
communication is perceived to be positive, it also presents a risk that the subordinate
might become dependent on the superior.
