Influence is the Key to Workplace Success
20 October 2011
Men and women must understand influence to get ahead in their workplaces, a ground-breaking new study has found.
The study, Personal Influence at Work: Diversity Perspectives, was conducted by UGM Consulting, in association with Women on Boards, between August and October 2011. The 904 male and female respondents answered 30 questions exploring six categories of career-critical skills and behaviours.
The group self-reporting a high understanding of influence (65 per cent of the sample) scored higher across all remaining questions than their low understanding influence colleagues.
Understanding influence proved to be a pivotal factor affecting all other responses. For example, 89 per cent of the high understanding group said they were clear on deliverables while only 74 per cent (15 per cent fewer) of the low understanding group said the same. In nearly half of the questions, the difference between the groups was substantial - greater than 20 per cent, with the largest difference being 47 per cent.
Dr Grant Robertson of UGM Consulting, the research-lead for the study, commented that these findings demonstrating the pivotal role of understanding influence weren’t expected. However, they do make good sense.
“We knew that personal influence is a vital part of getting things done at work, so we wanted to uncover the actual sources of this influence. We asked about things like setting goals and aligning efforts with strategy. We also checked on specific skills that we’d already identified in our earlier work, such as getting speaking turns in meetings and having a sense of making meaningful contributions. Some of these, we thought, might be just loosely connected to influence. But the big surprise was how deep the impact of understanding influence runs. Those who understand influence also seem much more likely to use a vital set of influence-related skills and behaviours. These skills are absolutely fundamental to getting ahead in today’s workplace. This was the most profound finding and the implications are huge.”
The study took a particularly close look at gender and generational differences. The largest difference between men and women was the extent to which they believe their contribution is valued and recognised in a way that positively affects their career progression (77 per cent for men versus only 57 per cent for women).
Dr Margaret Byrne of UGM Consulting, an experienced practitioner and researcher in the diversity field, picked up on the key gender difference.
"Overall we found that both men and women are setting goals, aligning and prioritising work, exercising similar influence and contributing to a similar extent. This makes the 20 per cent difference in perceptions that their contributions are valued stand out. Since we know that recognition heavily affects both performance and appraisal, it’s a concern that almost a quarter of men feel their contributions are not acknowledged. But the fact that almost half the women feel the same way is quite alarming It seems near-equality on most other items does not translate to the all-important equality of recognition and progression."
Other important findings from the study include:
- Fewer than half the respondents (43 per cent) have written short term (one year) goals and plans, and barely more than half the respondents (57 per cent) believe they will achieve their short term aspirations.
- Substantially more women (70 per cent) maximise career development opportunities than men (55 per cent), but equal numbers (79 per cent) of both groups feel suitably qualified for the next step in their careers.
- In an increasingly networked world, surprisingly few (46 per cent) people have and maintain large professional networks, even though many name professional connections as an important factor in progress at work. The likelihood of having such a network seems to increase with age.
- Workloads are heavy with 53 per cent of respondents unable to deliver without overextending themselves or compromising quality – a real concern.
Ruth Medd, Chair of Women on Boards, said the UGM report was highly significant because it provided some robust data illuminating what’s going on and going wrong inside Australian organisations. She commented that all too often people simply draw on anecdote and conjecture. “Well-designed research helps us to target exactly those interventions most likely to make a difference.”
Click here to read the full report
Women on Boards and UGM Consulting are tackling the problem of weak influence skills head-on with a one-day interactive program designed to address the influence-related issues identified in this ground breaking study. Wired for Influence workshops will be held in Perth (8 November), Sydney (29 November) and Melbourne (1 December). Further details and to register: www.womenonboards.org.au
Interviews:
Dr Grant Robertson, Principal Consultant, UGM Consulting.
Phone: 0421 999 934
Ruth Medd, Chair, Women on Boards
Phone: 0419 407 231
Register
