Political Skill at Work: Revised and Updated

Political skill is a characteristic that can facilitate good things for individuals and their organizations. Yes, it is possible that political skill can be used and to get away with self-serving acts at the expense of others, but contrary to the stereotypical perceptions of being political, political skill is about more than manipulation. In fact, political skill enables people to build trust and forge positive relationships, and leaders often need it to influence others and access resources critical to their teams' success.

This edition has been revised and updated with more than 15 years of additional research on political skill, as well as new examples that demonstrate why, in today's organizations, career success depends more on political skill than on almost any other characteristic.

Gerald R. Ferris (Ph.D.) is the Marie Krafft Professor of Management, Professor of Psychology, and Professor of Sport Management at Florida State University. He has research interests in the areas of interpersonal and political influence in organizations, performance evaluation, and strategic human resources management, has published over 225 articles in scholarly journals, and has authored or edited nearly 40 books. He served as editor of the annual series, Research in Personnel and Human Resources Management, from its origin in 1981 until 2003. Ferris is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Heneman Career Achievement Award and the Thomas A. Mahoney Mentoring Award, both from the Human Resources Division of the Academy of Management.

Pamela L. Perrewé (Ph.D.) is the Robert O. Lawton Distinguished Professor, the Haywood and Betty Taylor Eminent Scholar of Business Administration, Professor of Sport Management, and Distinguished Research Professor at Florida State University. She has published over 140 journal articles in scholarly journals, and is the lead editor of an annual research series entitled, Research in Occupational Stress and Well Being. She has fellow status with Southern Management Association, the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, the Association for Psychological Science, and the American Psychological Association.

B. Parker Ellen III (Ph.D.) is an Assistant Professor of Management and Organizational Development in the D'Amore-McKim School of Business at Northeastern University. His research centers on social influence in organizations and has been published in some of the top journals in management. Prior to academia, he served in a number of management roles for a privately held organization with more than 50 offices across the United States. In addition to his primary management responsibilities, he spent the final two years of his professional career co-directing the firm-wide training program for mid-career professionals.

Charn P. McAllister (Ph.D.) is Assistant Professor of Management in the W. A. Franke College of Business at Northern Arizona University. His research interests include political skill, interpersonal mistreatment, and stress, and has been published in a number of top management journals. A graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point, he served as an officer in the U.S. Army. After training as an OH-58D Kiowa Warrior pilot, he served in various leadership positions from platoon leader to Air Cavalry Troop Commander.

Darren C. Treadway (Ph.D.) is currently a Visiting Professor of Business Administration at Daemen College. His research interests include social influence processes in organizations, with particular reference to organizational politics, political skill, workplace bullying, and leadership. He has authored more than 50 academic articles and has been awarded several best paper awards. He currently serves as chief specialty editor of Frontiers on Psychology: Organizational Psychology and co-edited the Politics in Organizations: Theory and Research Considerations research volume.