Higher education system governance: an exploratory study of presidential decision making in the kentucky community and technical college system

Political Model

The political frame views organizations as arenas in which different groups compete for power and limited resources. At the center of political organizations is power to obtain preferred results, particularly in situations where members disagree. The power

of one person or group depends on the importance of their contribution to the organization and the extent to which that contribution is available from other sources (Birnbaum, 1988). Moreover, there are various forms of power or authority that may be more or less relevant in a particular situation. For instance, the president has power through his or her position, administrators have power through their access to procedures and budgets, and faculty have power related to their expertise or tradition. This power can be exercised in different ways depending on the situation and to the advantage of those positions.
Competition for resources creates conflict in organizations; however, the political model views conflict as a normative part of organizational life because individuals have different and often competing perspectives, needs, and values. What manifests is several communities because of differences in the preferences for organizational decision making (Birnbaum, 1988). No one community has enough power to dominate all of the other communities at the same time, so coalitions form among various groups to advance a particular agenda. Birnbaum argues that turmoil and instability are not the result of power and competition, but instead, that organizations maintain “quasi-stable dominant coalitions whose power serves to inhibit overt conflict” (p. 136). Moreover, people can belong to more than one coalition, each of which participates in different political processes. This cross-cutting of coalitions helps balance the location of power and thus, minimize the effects of political processes on the stability of the organization.
Because power can be concentrated in the wrong places in an organization or so dispersed that the organization cannot achieve its goals, Birnbaum (1988) suggests that leaders need political acumen and skill to advance their personal interests as well as those
of the organization. Often, this political acumen and skills involves forming coalitions and interest groups composed of various individuals with the same interests. Bargaining and negotiations among key players in organizational coalitions is essential to making decisions and achieving goals. As a result, physical presence and timing are important for leadership in political organizations.
Moreover, because power belongs to many positions and groups, leadership is exercised by many people in a political organization (Birnbaum, 1988). Representatives of coalitions must all be leaders in the sense that they are advancing that particular agenda and entering into negotiations with representatives of other coalitions. Still, the central figure of power is the president. So, this person must be skilled at analyzing differences in the interests of various groups and illustrating for the conflicting groups how their own interests are advanced by accepting a compromise. Finally, the president must identify the issues that political groups and coalitions should deal with in order to elicit support because participation is costly in terms of time, energy, and money.
Altogether, power and conflict permeate political organizations because of differences in what goals should be achieved and how best to achieve them with limited resources. Coalitions form as a result of these competing interests in order to advance a particular agenda. Because people belong to more than one coalition, and these coalitions participate in different political processes, there is a balance of power that prevents instability. Political leaders define for these coalitions the issues to deal with, and are also skilled at mediating so that conflicting groups can reach a compromise. The characteristics of political organizations permit involvement of multiple people though various forms of power that can bring about change and stability.