In Taking Advantage Of Your Office Politics, Opii shares tips on becoming team player in corporate world
For the author of Taking Advantage Of Your Office Politics (second edition), Mary Taiwo Opii, office politics is not something to be avoided or misused, but must be embraced and pursued consciously, skillfully and ethically.
To many people, she observed the phrase; “Office Politics” is a taboo and something to be avoided in the corporate world.
But to Opii, office politics is about making authentic connections, building relationships and being diplomatic.
Divided into eight chapters, she revealed that the purpose of the book is to help everyone, especially the new entrant to the corporate world, master the art of positive office politics and use it to their advantage.
She recalled, “when I wrote the first edition of this book, I thought I had seen all there was about office politics. How wrong I was! As I progressed in my career journey and moved to a bigger organization, I came in contact with the word “Bureaucracy” for the first time and wondered what it meant.
“The term bureaucracy literally means “the powers that be,” or “corridors of power,” but in my new workplace, the word was used derogatorily to mean negative office politics or power tussle.”
Describing office politics as an unfortunate workplace reality, she recounted, “I had the opportunity to experience high tensioned politics that threatened the existence of the organization. The tension was so high that the Board had to step in and tried to bring sanity by sending all the management staff, including yours truly away on suspension.
“None of the measures taken by the Board to restore order worked, and in the end, an eleven-man management team was dissolved and everyone was fired.”
In dealing with a difficult boss, she proffered ten solutions: Leaning to manage the boss; changing ones perspective; understanding that the boss is not going to change; knowing that it does not matter if one likes the boss; documenting everything; everyone is someone’s difficult person; finding someone outside the work environment to talk with; remembering that you have the power and using the power of prayer.
Specifically in chapter three, she differentiated between negative and positive politics.
She said negative office politics often results from someone’s insecurities or fear while positive office politics means building relationships, being diplomatic, collaborating with others, playing fair and being an effective team player in a modern work environment.
She submitted, “it is often too easy to fall into a vicious circle in which playing dirty seems to be rewarded and encouraged as an acceptable way of doing business. However, the more productive strategy could be to assume goodwill and try to understand the other person’s issues or fears.”
In his forward to the book, MD/ CEO Interswitch, Mitchell Elegbe noted, “we have always associated the phrase ‘office politics’ with something negative and a taboo. I am quite impressed by the rich content of the book and I seriously recommend it for corporate organisations and individuals. It is a must-read for you if you desire to have a positive impact in your life and career.”
A graduate of Ambrose Ali University Ekpoma, Edo State, where she bagged Hons. Degree in Law, Opii was called to the Nigerian Bar in 2003.
In 2015, she obtained a postgraduate diploma from Angelia Ruskin University UK. Currently, she is studying with Africa Civic Engagement Academy (ACEA), a course organised by the University of Georgia, USA’ to raise seasoned leaders from across African countries.
Founder of Benjamin Legacy Foundation, a non-profit that focuses on youths and women empowerment, Mary is also married and blessed with children.
