Navigating Office Politics: Insights from My 31-Year Career and a New Presentation

After serving a heavy chemical manufacturing industry in South Tamil Nadu for more than 31 years, I opted for voluntary retirement to start up my own Life Improvement Mind Engineering (LIME) from November 2011. I held vital positions in my former organization and worked as Executive Secretary to the Senior Vice President - the Unit Chief. I was involved in three wage settlements and five bonus settlements. In addition to my job, I managed three key departments - Administration, Public Relations, and Transport. As the person next to the Senior Vice President, I handled labor, unions, politicians, influential members of the local community, government officials, and most importantly, conflicts among Heads of Departments.

Office Politics Presentation

I have been considering creating a PowerPoint presentation on office politics, which is prevalent in almost all establishments, and I have now completed it for the information and benefit of my friends here. I am confident that sharing my experience on this subject will be beneficial to my friends.

Warm Regards,
Ganesh Ramachandran

A comprehensive and thorough study on office politics. It's really a good job. When I read through the material, I felt as if someone from my office had prepared this. Thanks for sharing such a vital source of knowledge.

Very well put together. One can clearly see that your years of experience in the corporate world have resulted in this wonderful piece. However, I am concerned about how many will actually follow. Bosses allow or permit others to play politics, knowing fully well that it is harmful and futile.

In the Indian context, where we try to build rapport first (relationship-oriented culture), it will make it all the more difficult to stop office politics. As you have rightly said, it should start with the boss himself or herself.

Thanks a lot for a wonderful presentation.

Regards,
Dr. M. DURGAMOHAN

Thank you, Doctor Durga. These few words clearly show your mind and experience. I am basically a psychologist and clinical hypnotherapist who has taken up Administration. The present-day cut-throat competition vying for position and remuneration paves the way for ugly politics. We cannot banish this altogether but guard ourselves against the onslaught.

Regards,
Ganesh Ramachandran

Oh! Thank you, Angelin. You have taken a few precious moments of yours to view my presentation and comment. I appreciate comments from people like you.

Regards,
Ganesh Ramachandran

Thank you very much for the wonderful PowerPoint presentation on office politics. However, the content is very boss-centric. It would be really nice to see the employee perspective in politics and how to avoid the pitfalls. Other than that, the presentation is great.

Thanks

Thank you very much for the wonderful PowerPoint presentation on office politics. However, I noticed that the content is very boss-centric. It would be beneficial to also include the employee perspective on office politics and how to avoid them. Other than that, the presentation is quite informative.

Managerial Focus on Office Politics

I have specifically prepared this for managers who have the ability and responsibility to control, contain, or even eliminate negative office politics. HR and admin executives, who are in leadership positions, play a crucial role in addressing this issue. It is common for those at lower levels to be impacted by office politics. I have also touched upon the employee's role from a management standpoint in the presentation.

Thank you for your positive feedback.

With warm regards,
Ganesh Ramachandran

Thank you for your feedback. In response to your query, here are some guiding behaviors for subordinates to avoid workplace politics:

1. **Focus on Professionalism:** Encourage subordinates to prioritize work responsibilities and maintain a high level of professionalism in all interactions.

2. **Transparent Communication:** Emphasize the importance of clear and open communication to minimize misunderstandings and conflicts.

3. **Team Collaboration:** Promote a collaborative work environment where team members support each other and work towards common goals.

4. **Conflict Resolution Skills:** Provide training on conflict resolution techniques to help subordinates address issues in a constructive manner.

5. **Ethical Conduct:** Stress the significance of ethical behavior and decision-making to prevent unethical practices in the workplace.

Regarding the insightful post by Ganesh Ramachandran, it's inspiring to hear about his extensive experience and his initiative to share knowledge on office politics. Such valuable insights can indeed benefit many individuals in navigating similar challenges.

Warm Regards

Those who appreciate my presentation are not ordinary people. They are highly educated, experienced, and occupy pivotal positions in various renowned organizations across the country. Hence, I value these appreciations very much and keep them close to my chest.

My work is honored this way by my friends. How nice of them, oh my respected fraternities!

Regards,
Ganesh Ramachandran

Navigating Office Politics

Wherever human minds are at work, there will be ego clashes, politics, skulduggery, gravedigging, and so on. As some of our learned friends have mentioned above, this has been in existence since time immemorial. If we are self-conscious, we can avoid getting into the cesspool called office politics and try to stay neutral.

I too have worked for over 40 years but always steered clear of office politics and came out unscathed. One has to be diplomatic and try to avoid getting trapped into groups.

Presentation was very good indeed. Good for the youngsters. For elders, they can reminisce and savor their own past!

Regards,

Now to top it all, I have received this post from you as a response. A person having put in 40 years of service not getting entangled in office politics... wow... I am really blessed to get acquainted with people like this. Very kind of you, Sir. Appreciation from a person of your stature... yes... I have done something great.

With warm regards,

Ganesh Ramachandran
Founder: Life Improvement Mind Engineering (LIME)

WEB: R.Ganesh | NLP Trainer | Counsellor | Hypnotherapist | Reiki Healer | Life Improvement Mind Engineering

Really superb, Sir, I am proud to be a member of CiteHR along with eminent personalities. I downloaded your presentation and shared it with all my colleagues. Thank you to CiteHR and special thanks to Shri Ganesh Ramachandran.

Thank you,

KBM Srinivas
Manager - Industrial Relations
L&T Ltd.

Hi Ganesh, the PPT is really good and it hits the bull's eye. Good efforts! Wishing you all the best in your new career and all success to LIME.

Dear Ganesh Sir, it is really a wonderful PPT. One of the best posts on CiteHR. It compelled me to ponder and introspect. I will keep and repeat it and try to practice as well. Thanks a lot!

Really good one, Ganesh ji. The matter was shared in simple words yet in an effective manner.

Excellent presentation. I don't know how much time it will take me to overcome office politics. At least from this presentation, I will be able to escape/avoid getting involved in office politics.

Thank you very much.

Regards,
Anand

Mr. G. Ramachandran, after a long time, I have come across excellent material. It's a complete package on office politics and solutions. It really touched my heart. You have a wide experience in human psychology within corporate culture. Thank you, sir.

I salute you for the excellent information shared from your experience. I have experienced most of the instances that you have mentioned in your presentation. I hope other HR/Administrative professionals have had similar experiences. I wish I had associated with you as your team member earlier; it would have been a learning opportunity for budding executives like me. Good luck with your LIME.

Regards,
M. Karthik
HR Professional

Thank you for sharing this valuable PowerPoint presentation. While reading through it, I felt that it resonated with my experiences in the office, particularly in relation to office politics. My suggestion regarding this issue is to frequently change employees' roles or responsibilities. In my opinion, the game of office politics often stems from individuals being stuck in old ways of thinking or performing the same tasks for an extended period.

Best regards,
Kasim

Your presentation is an excellent compendium about politics in organizations. The last 10 and odd slides are like icing on the cake, suggesting remedies for every shortcoming.

Perhaps the following additions might also benefit the readers.

Stephen Covey's Emotional Bank Account
Particularly the fifth deposit of "Loyalty to people not present" to avoid slander should be inculcated across the organization.

Citing a reference from the great Thirukkural, in the Adhikaram on 'avoiding slander', 10 gems can be found (Kural no 181 to 190). We will see one kural (couplet).

Kann ninru kann ara sollinum Sollarka Munn ninru pin nokka soll
Speaking harshly face to face is far better behavior than speaking at one's back.

Again, 'paiyanil sollamai' adhikaram mentions ten kurals (couplets). As a sample, the last one goes thus:

Solluga Sollin Payanudaiya; Sollarka Sollin Payanila Soll
Speak only useful words. Avoid useless and worthless words.

Some printer's devil has crept into the first two slides. Permit me to mention the small corrections. I am sure that the first half of the sentences gives the intended spelling or meaning.

Slide 1: Ugly Politics instead of Ugly Polytics
Slide 2: Everyone got their own Agenda instead of Everyone got there own Agenda

In slide 1, looking from a lighter vein, Polytics could be an even more dangerous version than Politics as Poly refers to multidimensional!

To conclude with a note to Mr. Ganesh Ramachandran -- You have really conveyed a very effective message to the readers. May your good work continue.

V.Raghunathan, Navi Mumbai

Good piece of thoughts, put together based on experience. Rulebook on Dos & Don'ts for the new bosses, no HR book teaches. My compliments for such a wonderful job.

Regards,
Rajesh Jha

Thank you so much for sharing this. Your effort has yielded the best outcome, and the way you have presented it is commendable. It's a well-thought-out, well-prepared presentation that should be studied and implemented by all employees as well as management. Hats off to your hard work, and it's very clear from the presentation that this is the pure outcome of your experience. Once again, thanks for sharing such an excellent presentation with us.

Thanks & Regards,
Swapna Pramod

Thank you, Swapna. No one can dismiss this as an empty eulogy, as you have simply poured out your thoughts. Such healthy and constructive comments really encourage me to come up with more such content.

Thanks and regards,
Ganesh Ramachandran
Founder: LIME

Your presentation is mind-blowing—it encompasses the politics of the office. The main culprit, as someone says, is the boss who intentionally creates this kind of environment, thinking that by doing so, they can truly lead the staff, which is false. I know a place where the divide and rule policy works: putting the incompetent in charge to destabilize the competent ones. It is sad, but what can be done except either playing the game or getting out, which is harder in tough economic times. Thanks again. Love it.

Your presentation on Office Politics is wonderful and contains tons of useful information that can be applied in the workplace. Each slide with pictures speaks for itself, bringing out such a presentation with great clarity and solutions to problems. I thank you for sharing such an enlightening presentation on Office Politics.

Regards,
Suresh