In organizational communication two people almost never have the same amount of power.  when they talk it is usually from a place in the organizational structure where one is clearly higher in the hierarchy of decision making than the other.  At the same time our society emphasizes democratic values.  The result is that we often put people in a kind of double bind.

We often say that a person is entirely free to speak his or her mind, but we know full well who will make the decision and even that what a person has said could be held against himor her later on.  it is no wonder that organizational communication is so confused at times.  It is no favor to anyone to try to deceive them into thinking that they have more power than they actually have.  That only builds confusion and resentment.  Be sure to understand the level of power you hold and to communicate that clearly to others.

 

Part of any situational ecology (1) is the power hierarchy into which the situation fits.  If necessary, use an intermediary (6).  Structure the situation if you can so that you distribute ownership (7) as well as distribute tasks (8).  Especially if you are the one in the position of power, start cold, warm up (19), in order to give the other the most favorable situation for showing his or her competence.  Where others sense your power they are loikely to be cautious with you and so assume indirectness (38) and be vulnerable (43) enough to show your own humanity.