Introduction
Do you know your power? Have you ever thought: How can I have the most influence? Your power is your ability to influence others. The power of influence is generally thought of in terms of referent and expert power. We will dive into this in a moment. As an instructional designer, you have many opportunities to influence others. Building that level of influence starts well before the need to influence. Let’s think in terms of the two types of power you have within a project, referent and expert power. One of your biggest jobs as an I.D. is to build relationships with others and build trust. This is how you create referent power. Referent power is more effective in changing beliefs than expert power. Expert power is based on your knowledge and expertise, while referent power is based on who you know. Expert power’s effectiveness depends on how much the other person values your expertise and knowledge, but it can be more effective than referent power in changing behavior. As you see, either type of power requires intentional focus and work before they are needed.
Your top job as an I.D. is to build relationships and your expertise in the learning community.
Referent power refers to the use of one’s relationship to help influence.
Referent power refers to the use of one’s relationship with others to get outcomes. It is based on your relationships, and it is most effective when you are dealing with people who have a lot of power or status in their communities. Referent power can be used to persuade others by creating an environment where they are open to alternative ideas and trust your ability to perform.
Referent power is better at changing people’s beliefs. Think of this from the perspective of an I.D. Referent power can be very useful for influencing people to try a new approach to a training issue or utilizing a learning strategy they are not familiar with. Referent power is especially helpful when dispelling commonly held learning beliefs that are not
Expert power is based on your knowledge and expertise.
Expert power is based on your knowledge and expertise. It’s more effective than referent power in changing behavior, but it may be less effective when changing beliefs. Expert power is more effective than referent power in changing behavior, but it may be less effective when changing beliefs.
When you’re negotiating, it’s important to recognize how others perceive their own power — or lack of it — and how they will react to your offers.
When you’re negotiating (you do this in just about every conversation with stakeholders), it’s important to recognize how others perceive their own power — or lack of it — and how they will react to your offers. The two main types of power that can be used in negotiations are referent and expert.
Referent power comes from your relationship with others, so it’s more likely to work if the other person knows and trusts you. You have referent power when people see you as an expert on a topic because they respect what you say or think highly enough about who you are as a person that they want what’s best for both parties involved in the negotiation process. For example, if someone has been working at their job for over ten years, he may have referent influence over his coworkers who admire his work ethic and dedication; thus giving him more leverage during salary discussions because these workers would like nothing more than keep him happy (and therefore retain their jobs).
The best negotiators know how to balance referent and expert power in order to reach better outcomes.
Referent power is based on your relationship with others. Expert power is based on knowledge and expertise.
Referent Power
Referent power can be effective when you’re trying to change behavior, but it’s not as effective at changing beliefs.
Expert Power
Expert power is more effective than referent power in changing behavior because people are more willing to listen to experts than they are friends or family members who have no specialized knowledge in a particular area (e.g., negotiating).
Conclusion
In the end, it’s important to know what kind of power is most effective in different situations. You can use referent power to get people on your side and expert power to get them to change their behavior. However, when it comes time for them to change their beliefs or attitudes about something, it may be more effective if you appeal directly to their expertise instead of relying solely on your relationship with them. So next time you’re in a meeting and negotiating with someone at work or even just trying to convince them of something, keep these tips in mind!