Harnessing the Power of Informal Groups

We normally view organisations as being split into formal groups such as marketing, operations, sales, etc. To this formal structure we can add cross-functional project teams created for specific purposes. This represents the way formal power assets are divided within the organisation.

However, underlying this is an informal structure — groups of people with something in common. They could share common sporting interests, educational background, or even the fact they all smoke. These informal groups can have a massive impact on the decision-making processes, yet this is an often neglected part of influence. If you can harness the power of informal groups, you can make significant strides in developing your success.

To spot an informal group, you need to look for people who have things in common. They only become a group when they recognise this commonality in each other. If they do, and they start to get together, they will begin to form an identity. At this point, they start to function as a group, provided they keep communicating. As such, they have power (i.e. the aggregation of all their individual assets). At this stage their influence is only potential, what they need is a common issue to mobilise them into action and to overcome the other influences which could be pulling on each individual. For instance, those with an MBA may get together on a regular basis however, they could be mobilised into action to influence HR to make an MBA a minimum requirement for promotion to senior management.

If the group has a strong sense of identity, and that identity is being threatened or an opportunity arises to bring benefit to the group as a whole, they will kick into action. Your challenge now is to notice the informal groups around you, understand how you connect with them and how you can influence them more effectively.

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