Executive Summary

The purpose of this paper is to research and discuss about the existence of power and
how it is used in an organisation. The topic explores about how different people can
utilize power according to the diversified environment and situations that are faced.
This paper includes interviews from two managers that work in different industries to
observe and compare their respective perspectives about the topic. For a more broad
discussion, this paper will also discuss about forms of power such as formal and
informal power, and how the absence of power can change the behavior of an
individual or a group. The paper will also discuss about the presence of power and
how the managers utilize these power in their daily work task. It is a display of what
the power allows the managers to do and how they actually apply these powers in
practical use.

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Table of Contents

Topic Page Number

Executive Summary 1

Table of Contents 2

Introduction 3-4

1. Definition of Power 5

2. Presence of Power 6-7

3. Impact of Power 8-9

4. Absence of Power 10 - 11

Conclusion 12

Appendix 13

Interview Transcript 13

Interviewee 1 13 - 18

Interviewee 2 18 - 22

Reflective Essay 22

1. Thasneem 22

2. Leong Hiew Yong 22 - 23

3. Carlos Emmanuel Argado 23

4. Pushpika 23 - 24

5. Hao Wen 24 - 25

Reference List 26 - 27

Introduction
Power is defined as factors derived from a person’s skills, attributes, and connection
(Rabe, 1962). The article further mentioned that within a company, power is something

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that is not given but must be achieved. A study by Chen, Lopez-Gelormino, & Shaw
(2001) mentioned that power is a very important factor for organisations in Asia. The
study further mentioned that employees in Asian companies are motivated to aim for
high managerial positions as it offers more power. On the other hand, the more power
a person receives comes with a higher commitment that has to be given. Without
power, goals and targets can not be achieved in a company (Hay & Hartel, 2000). The
article further mentioned that power is the key to lead other people and strive for
achievements. Hence performing companies have better control of power and
managerial structure. Power within an organisation can be used to bring good
changes, or on the other hand be exercised for individual interest. Therefore, the
possession of power would reflect a person’s true character with the responsibility that
is given as well. A good leader would use power to instruct team building to bring
organisational transformation (Blount, 2017). Moreover, good leaders would influence
followers through leading by becoming a good role model. It is also mentioned by
Chen, et al. that managers must make employees feel that they are part of the group.
Furthermore, employee satisfaction is positively correlated with the company’s
performance.

For the purpose of supporting evidence, this paper conducted interviews with
two different managers. The first source is Mr. Goleador, a Regional Head that has 20
subordinates in Ericsson, a multinational Technology & Telecommunication company
based in Sweden with over 35,000 employees around the world. The second source
is Chew Yinxie, who handles 5 subordinates in Internspoon, a Consultancy &
Recruitment company based in Malaysia. The two interviews are real examples of
managerial power within a company.

As mentioned by one of the respondents, “Everyone can be a leader and has

power over something. Managers must give their subordinates good mentorship on
how to exercise power so that they will be ready when the time comes for people to
become managers.”

This paper will discuss about how power is used within an organisation, what
impact it gives, and how its absence would affect the organisation behaviour.

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 1. Definition of Power
“Power is the ability to manage something relative to time and schedules in
order to accomplish your goals” says the regional head of Ericsson when asked what
power means to him. However, Dowding (2012) defines in two different ways.
According to that article power can be defined as social power and political power.

Social power is the collective power of a team or group of people where they
achieve aims or goals that were unattainable individually. This type of power can be
seen from from a small scale example such a team in university or a football team to
a larger scale example such as a police force team or a government party. This type
of power is also called infrastructural or collective power where the power depends on

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a group, on legitimacy and consent as explained by Haldén (2014). This power only
exists due to the collective efforts of all the members of the group and therefore a
certain level of trust required within the group to maintain and manage the power the
group consists. The loss of trust within the group can disintegrate the power the group
possesses and therefore trust is a significant component of social power.

Political power is defined by Dowding (2012) as one having power over another.
However, it also mentions that having power over someone is a subset of having the
power to attain one's goals and this may be done with the help of having power over
someone else. The power over someone is an advantage to the person that possesses
the power and often a disadvantage to the person on the receiving end of this authority.
This type of power is usually associated with politicians, and corporate bosses that
use their power for their own benefit. This is however not always true. For example, in
the military it can be seen that power over others is used to help and benefit the country
that they serve.

2. Presence of Power
The presence of power has been known to give employees a sense of
responsibility and and also enforces them to make decisions as well as stay motivated.
Empowering employees are the common terms mentioned by both the two
respondents that are managers. However, each of the respondent takes on different
forms of empowerment methods as can be seen in their response. One of the
respondents empowers the team by “allowing employees to make decision on a
guideline” which is giving the employees a sense of ownership of their work. On the
other hand, the other respondent would paint the end goal picture for his team so that
they can “follow the goal of the project, but also “break it down into smaller parts” so
that it doesn’t overwhelm them. However, Bhatnagar and Sharma (2002) stated in
their study that empowerment and delegation are very similar. The employees and
management also have very different views on what empowering and delegation
means whereby employees want more autonomy but management tries to keep
control through various systems and processes.

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 Power can be seen to be executed in the managers day-to-day tasks where
they decide what would be the best course of action to take depending on the task.
These tasks are mainly delegation whereby tasks are given to the employees. Both
the managers take charge of their team members by delegating tasks to their
members, example given would be both managers said the same about their work of
“assigning task and responsibilities” and “break down the work procedures” for their
subordinates.

On a slightly different note, managers also take on the accountability of their

teams because they are given the power to alter the attitudes and actions of their team
members. One of the respondents stated that “with power comes great
responsibilities” and that responsibility comes with being able to “to do more for the
company and add value into daily operations”. The same could be said for the other
respondent that has to “make sure that everything is on set before the deadline”,
showing his responsibility to ensure that their projects are on time. The managers are
able to empower their employees more than just delegating by actually giving them
the power to make certain decisions based on their “ level of skill and knowledge of
the employee” and the more proficient they are at that area, the more power is given
as noted by one of the respondents.

The presence of power can be the influence to change the perspectives and
values of the team in order to push and enhance the effort towards achieving the goals
(Rus, van Knippenberg, & Wisse, 2012). However, power can be seen to do more than
just delegate when power can be transferred and shared with the involved team
members. Presence of power for an individual can be very crucial as their level of
performance and creativity when they have stable power are higher compared to low
power individuals (Sligte, De Dreu, & Nijstad, 2011).

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 3. Impact of Power
According to Malkoc (2012), powerful individuals are associated with
motivation, intention and action as they focus more on “rewards and opportunities” and
demonstrate the likelihood of achieving goals. As a leader, possessing power that
encourages personal growth is essential to challenge limitations within themselves.
They are then able to set attainable goals in measure of their strengths and
weaknesses to better themselves in improving processes and decision making. This
is further aligned with one of the respondent’s response quoted as below:

“When there is power, I will be able to set my own goals and make them adjustable to
any situation. Power improves the time needed for processes and decision making..
And when I set my own goal and it is achievable and enough to push my limits at the
same time, the motivation level would be higher in a way that it improves
performance…”

The response above is further supported by Liu, Liu & Wu (2010), stating that
people with power “trust their own judgements” and thus are motivated to deliver
results effectively in order to remain control over their “desirable resources”. In short,
leaders having power over their personal growth and progress will be more assertive
and motivated to perform better for the organization.

Moreover, power in teams can be segmented into formal and informal power.
Formal power associates with the actual control on desirable resources (Greer,
Bunderen & Yu, 2017) and also comes with authorized ability to direct and manage

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your team with higher flexibility. This is further elaborated by another respondent as
quoted below:

“...if you have power, you can direct your team towards the goal you want to be
achieved. You are in control of the team… receiving orders from customers and
directing your team based on their capabilities.... Because we have the power, we can
freely manage our team based on our styles…”

Formal power in leaders also allows them to “process information selectively”

which helps provide more focused and organized directions when leading the team
(Malkoc, 2012). With that being said, formal power provides a guideline for the team
to operate within their proficiency and with maximum effectiveness.

On the contrary, informal power associates with social interaction between

leader and members in a team (Greer, Bunderen & Yu, 2017). Informal power is as
salient as formal power as it signifies the bond, trust and foundation of the entire team.
This is further supported by a quotation by one of the respondents:

“It is important to have social conversation with your teammates, encourage them,
know your responsibility. At the same time, know your position.”

In terms of “knowing your position”, executing informal power will reduce conflict
creation. Although power do increase the capability to subsist disagreement between
members (Malkoc, 2012), conflicts are prone to occur when there are complications in
cooperating when allocation of resources within a team are unpleasant (Greer,
Bunderen & Yu, 2017). Thus, informal power helps team to communicate on a
personal level and through these social interactions comes mutual respect for each
member’s role and responsibility.

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 4. Absence of Power
Power is defined solely as being able to get things done in the way you want it
to get done. Powerlessness on the contrary, is not being able to do or get things
accomplished in accordance to your preference. It is also defined as a lack of
autonomy and participation. Using organizational power appropriately can significantly
help an organization and its leaders to improve. According to Rosabeth Moss Kanter
(1979), Power is efficient in organisations as it develops from two aspects which are;
ability to get cooperation for necessary work and access to support, information and
required resources to carry out tasks. Power is usually sought in organisations to
assess and control departments, for personal security reasons, to solve interpersonal
conflicts and much more. The more the disorganization or conflict in an organization,
the more powerless, employees will feel and the desire to gain power will be sought
after.

According to theorists, the experience of being powerless involves a three

stage process: reactance, helplessness and work alienation. In the first stage of
powerlessness,the employee tries to gain desired or expected control. (Brehm &
Brehm, 1981) says that reactance is an initial response to the perceived cause of
frustration. In organisations with strict control systems, the likelihood of gaining control
as a mere employee is very low. This is further aligned with one of the respondent’s
response quoted as below:

“...When powerless, I will feel held back, but it is not something that would stop me. I
would take the time to build trust between my partners to a point where I will be able
to make decisions that are in line with them. Yet as this is still a partnership business,
it is still new and mutual, reporting to them is still an essential element to build trust…”

In the second stage of powerlessness, the employee experiences helplessness

when he learns that such efforts to gain desired power or control is pointless and then
give up. Seligman (1975) defines helplessness as the condition that usually happens
when an individual understands that the outcome will not change regardless of his

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behaviour or opinion. This is further supported with one of the respondent’s response
quoted:

“...People receiving orders will only ever be “yes man”. They do achieve goals at work
for the organization, but never goals at work for themselves...”

“Work alienation” is the third and final stage of powerlessness. The employee
desires nothing but what the power structure has to offer. (Kanungo, 1979; Seeman,
1975) states that work alienation is a psychological manner of the employee's
separation from the workplace through lack work involvement. This is further
supported by the respondent as quoted below:

“...When there is no power towards achieving work goals basically means I am under
the control of someone else. Lacking the power and intention to set goals for myself
do feel unfair sometimes as the person might not understand my limits as well as I
do…”

On the contrary, excessive use of formal power dampens motivation and

creativity while powerlessness prolongs decision-making. This is further aligned with
one of the respondent’s response as quoted:

“...Without power, there will be no progression in the company. Operations will always
be pending for approval to an extent that it slows down the productivity of the
employees…”

Therefore, a delicate balance must be struck between the two extremes of

power: excess and lack of formal power, as both are inevitably damaging to a
organisation.

Conclusion
To summarize, power is an instrument that has a significant role in a company.
Without power, the decision making towards achieving goals and targets can be
interfered. Too much power can lead for a person to seek self dominance, on the other

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hand lack of power can lead to employees within the organisation not being united.
The presence of power is best when it is used for the best interest of the collective
group of people (Chen, et al.). Based on the two interviews conducted, both
respondents mentioned that power is a very important factor to a company’s success.
As mentioned by one of the respondents, the existence of power enables an individual
to set the objectives and the methods to achieve it. The use of power also enables a
person to trust their own judgement and make adjustments when things do not go as
planned (Dunn, 2002). Hence, a company’s success is determined on how power is
distributed and applied to reach an agreement between managers and employees.

(2449 words)

Appendix

Interview Transcript

Interviewee 1
Profile of manager:
Name: Ochraninho El Goleador
Age : 34
Gender: Male
Level of education: Bachelor in telecommunication
Job position : Telecommunication Engineer - regional head

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Number of direct reports: 20 people
Company profile : [Ericsson] from Sweden, 35k people, operating all over the
world
Type of business/ organisation: Technology & Telecommunication
Duration of current job: 3 years, worked in Huawei Indonesia previously

Interview Questions:
1. What does power mean to you? What does being a leader mean?
Power means being able to manage which is the most important thing.
Being able to manage is related to time and schedule. With that you can
make sure and monitor whether or not you have accomplished what you
are supposed to do.

Being a leader: you are given the ability to empower people around you,
improve things to make the team better. You are able to envision yourself
leading and directing a team, taking charge on where the team is
heading towards.

2. Can you give me an example when you can use power in the
company/ day-to-day operation/ day-to-day management tasks?
How do you feel about it?
When having to meet a deadline, we work based on SLA. We have to
deliver what is required from the operator (e.g.: deliver within 14 days), I
would have to make sure that everything is on set before the deadline. I
also have the job to make sure that my team members know the
schedule that has been set.

3. Can you give me an example when you are powerless in the

operation/ day-to-day management tasks How do you feel about it?
I started my career from the bottom. At that time, my bosses told
me to do whatever your boss tells you to do. (coercive power) If you
do so, there will come a time where you are ready to take over and

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 become a leader. We can copy the good things about your leaders, like
how they work, their attitude. Luckily, I had a very good leader at my
time. He was a very good example showing me how to be a leader
that I am today(referent power). I also continued what my boss has
started.

4. What would you do if there is something wrong but you have less
power?
When I was young and I saw something wrong in a project, I would easily
get angry and I would tell my boss about everything that is not according
to what you want. But now when you are a leader, you have a better
network and a broader perspective. You are more towards the solution
of solving the problems, you see and analyze the situation to take actions
instead of complaining.
5. What are the impacts of having and/or not having power towards
achieving the work goals/ KPIs, for example, providing superior
customer service?
I actually only got promoted to the managerial level 2 years ago. From
what I have seen and experienced, if you have power, you can direct
your team towards the goal you want to be achieved. You are in control
of the team (for example, receiving orders from customers and directing
your team based on their capabilities). Because we have the power, we
can freely manage our team based on our styles.

6. Abusing power
This is something that still occurs in companies. Some managers are so
obsessed with getting the job done, they use their power to command
their subordinates to work overtime (for example working 6 days a
week). I do not like that kind of style. It is not appropriate to use your
power to take out other people’s time. As we have the power, we have
the control to finish the work on time without any overtime. As managers,
we know our schedule and timeline, therefore we have to be able to
manage a good work-life balance.

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 However, if abusing power is already a part of your personality, you can
not change it. “If you give someone power, then you know his or her true
personality.”

7. When you are powerless, what can you do?

Other than just following orders, you can give input. However, if you are
close with your boss your input can become bias. Even though your
boss does not normally listen to other people’s opinions, you may be
heard if you are close.

8. How do you empower your employees?

As a leader, tell your subordinates to follow the goal of the project, and
break it into smaller parts. Make it to achievable points to make it easier
to work with. Instead of just giving a lot of work that may stress out your
subordinate, it is better to break down the work procedure.

Some employees do not believe in themselves to finish a job. Therefore,

leaders have to be able to empower their subordinates. Leaders can
show that they have been in the same position in the past and it is okay
to make mistakes. Encourage your subordinates step by step.
9. Do you think power is an important element for the growth of the
company? Why?
In my opinion, I do not think it is that important, achievements are more
important. Executives and investors are more interested in the results
and outcome rather than seeing people gain more power.

Leader is not a position, in some place everyone is a leader (e.g.: in your

community, people may look up to you). It is not about the title but the
amount of contribution you give to a company.

10. As a telecommunication engineer, what are other skills required

other than technical skills?
Everyone wants a boss that knows what he is doing. Being a leader in a
telecommunication company, we need to have a good mix of technical

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 and managerial skills. Some of your subordinates may have better
technical skills than you. You as a leader must be able to lead and guide
them. As a leader we must have a good vision and know how to motivate
your subordinates.

11. How would you encourage students nowadays to become

leaders?
In the working level, you have a lot of competitors, there will be at least
20 candidates with the same qualifications. You have to get noticed by
your boss. You must do something different and extraordinary among
those 20 people.
After you graduate, prepare something that you are really expert at. You
have to have a weapon (example: technical skills, social skills, language
skills, etc.). Even with having those skills, it is still not enough, you have
to get noticed. Show that you make progress in the work.
To make people work for you, you have to make them comfortable
working with you. Have a human to human relationship and make them
more engaged as boss and subordinate. Talk about your personal lives,
increase your chemistry.

12. Legitimate power (managerial), charismatic (to be able to

influence), or moral (ethics)?
It is important to have social conversation with your teammates,
encourage them (charismatic), know your responsibility. At the same
time, know your position (legitimate).

13. Your comments regarding diversity in the workplace?

expectation of expatriates are higher than locals. Among discussion
with my friends, we have to respect the locals as we have to work more
than the locals. Whenever there are no complaints, it is good for us. But,
we are the ones who get blamed first if something goes wrong as we
are trusted to do the more important things.

14. Do you think you are being treated fairly as an expatriate?

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 they hire expatriates as a consultant, so it is fair that they expect you to
do more work.
As It’s good if your bosses expect more from you. It makes you improve
year by year. Furthermore, we work by 1 year contracts. Having higher
expectations makes you more motivated to achieve more. Handling
cases also makes you more experienced.

15. What are leaders in their high position looking for?

Things on how to make workers comfortable by having human to human
relationship.
16. How do you motivate your subordinates?
Become a role model for them, lead by example, show the ways to get
things done not simply by only explaining the theory.

Interviewee 2
Profile of Manager:
Name: Chew Yinxie
Age: 30
Gender: Female
Level of Education:Degree in Accounting and Finance
Job Position: Manager
Number of direct reports: 3 (Partners & Investors)
Company profile: Internspoon, based in Malaysia
Type of business: Consultancy and recruitment for internships
Duration of current job: 1 year

Interview Questions:
Q1. What does power mean to you?
- power can be view differently in 3 ways, namely managerial power, leadership
power and executive power.

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 - For my role as a manager, my power revolves around managerial and
leadership. It is managerial in a sense that I have to manage my employees,
delegate and evaluate tasks.
- As for leadership is more toward guiding and leading the team and owning the
authority to make decision on a daily operation basis.

Q2. Can you give me an example when you use power in the company/ day-to-
day operation/ day-to-day management tasks? How do you feel about it?
- An example for my execution of power happens mostly during day-to-day
operations where I have to make decisions that drives my team and company.
This includes assigning task and responsibilities to my team and sometimes
transferring decision making authority over to them.
- I emphasizes a lot of employee empowerment whereby I believe that allowing
them to constitute certain decisions will strive the company’s progress. I allow
employees to make decision on a guideline whereby the decision made has to
be logically, it could be a simple answer such as yes or no as well. It all depends
on the level of skill and knowledge of the employee. Obviously the more they
know, the more decision power will be given.
- A simple example would be allowing the employee to decide which university
to target and the ways to successfully make the collaboration happen. Or make
any suggestions that suits their needs.
- With power comes great responsibilities as well. It does feel heavy sometimes
to be the decision maker yet on the contrary, it does allow me to do more for
the company and add value into daily operations. There are times when I am
uncertain about the decision due to the insufficient of knowledge, thus research
and seek for consultations.
- On the sidenote, it also allows me to have the power to input assertion and
confidence onto my employee’s decision for further empowerment.
- Some people might interpret power as a burden and avoid it. They might also
fear offending other people with their decision, but when it comes to making
decision for the company, the company will always have to come first.

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Q3. Can you give me an example when you are powerless in the company/
day-to-day operation/ day-to-day management tasks? How do you feel about
it?
- Without power, there will be no progression on the company.
- Operations will always be pending on approval to an extent it slows down the
productivity of the employees.
- For example, when it comes to bigger collaborations or any event and situation
that will need the investors and partner’s involvement, I would keep inform and
arrange a discussion with them for the decision making process as a form of
respect. They might have different opinions or goals that will contribute to the
final decision which will bring the company to the next level..
- When powerless, I will feel held back, but it is not something that would stop
me. I would take the time to build trust between my partners to a point where I
will be able to make decisions that are in line with them. Yet as this is still a
partnership business, it is still new and mutual, reporting to them is still an
essential element to build trust. → applying referent/expert power to gain more
power to make decisions.
- I am blessed to say that I have never encountered any partner or investor
making any decision without my acknowledgement. They understand the
essence of a partnership. Although each of us hold a different power in the
company, keeping each other in the loop has always been a norm.
- Never really been completely powerless, only partially. As I have a say on
operations, (expert power) that gives me certain amount of power. Other
decision that requires discussions, I still have a say but the final say does not
lie with me.

Q4. What are the impacts of having and/or not having power towards achieving
the work goals/KPIs, for example, providing superior customer service?
- When there is power, I will be able to set my own goals and make them
adjustable to any situation. Power improves the time needed for processes and
decision making.(makes decision making process faster) It also exert an
amount of responsibility on myself to do better in achieving my goals. And when

18
 I set my own goal and it is achievable and enough to push my limits at the same
time, the motivation level would be higher in a way that it improves performance
- When there is no power towards achieving work goals basically means I am
are under the control of someone else. Lacking the power and intention to set
goals for myself do feel unfair sometimes as the person might not understand
my limits as well as I do. Although they might be of good intention, to set higher
goals so I would perform more aggressively, but the risk of stress and burnout
is there. Sometimes people might underestimate my abilities when having
power over me. With that, I would do more than what is expected as surprise
and proof of my true ability within my organization.
- As mentioned before, not having the power might be a good thing for some
people as the pressure is not on their shoulders. The consequence is perceived
lower for the one executing the task but not the one in power. On the down side,
people receiving orders will only ever be “yes man”. They do achieve goals at
work for the organization, but never goals at work for themselves.

Q5. Do you think power is an important element for the growth of company?
Why?
- Yes it is important for the company
- As mentioned previously, without power means no authority calling the shots
on where the company should expand, how to expand and when to reach the
goals.
- Power provide a sense of direction for companies and keep them on the right
track.
- Some companies strive because their division of power within the
organization allows the company to function as efficiently as possible.

Q6. Out of the 8 power, which one do you relate to?

- Legitimate, experience and referral
- In terms of legitimate power, my position as a manager basically inputs the
power on me. It allows me to run and make decisions for the company. My
power will determine the status of the company. If the company is not doing
very well, I will look back at the decision I made.

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 - In terms of experience power, I would say it is because I have been in the
workforce for more than 6 years. I am able to share my experience with my
coworkers for them to learn and possibly influence them on operations. Through
my path in consultancy, I do understand the need and also the lack of interns
in a lot of companies and therefore these experiences with my former clients
gave me the advantage of understanding the concerns and issues faced. With
that, I will be able to add value to them through Internspoon. I view this as my
main source of power.
- In terms of referral power is mainly due to the mismatch of the degree I hold
and my current responsibilities as a manager focusing mainly on marketing and
operations. I would say I hold power here through talking to a lot of companies,
universities and even students.
- A simple example would be that companies are rarely caught up with the
syllables taught in universities, which is an important factor to look into when
hiring interns. I do possess referral power over them as when I interact with
student, I know more than a lot of companies will ever know.
- With this, I will be able to provide recommendations to companies and also to
students who are looking for companies with specific criterias. (generate leads)
- To combat any doubts, I did a lot of references and research. I have people I
am able to contact when I face difficulties in marketing. Following proven
strategies and applying it definitely help as well.

Reflective Essay

1. Thasneem
For this group report, Hiew Yong, Carlos and Hao wen were very kind enough to
conduct the interviews. Our tasks are assigned according to what we wanted. We had
the freedom to choose what we wanted to work on and we all had a deadline to meet.
We divided the tasks according to the questions and I chose to write about absence
of power.It was pretty straightforward and we managed to help each other out when
we had further queries!

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2. Leong Hiew Yong
Throughout these few weeks of working with Carlos, Hao Wen, Thasneem and
Pushpika, I am very appreciative on how cooperating and supporting they are. It was
never a hassle to have a group meeting or discussion. Everyone was very committed
and finished their own parts on the given deadline agreed by all of us. We also helped
each other to check on their parts to make sure all sections are of standards as we
have similar goals in achieving the best results possible as well. Through them I have
learnt to be more patient and understand how crucial it is to listen to everyone’s opinion
before coming to a conclusion. In short, it was an amazing experience working
alongside with them and hopefully we get to collaborate in the future.

3. Carlos Emmanuel Argado

My group essay discussed about four main topics. Definition & existence of power,
impact of power, and the effect of the lack of power within an organisation. I was given
the task by the group to make the introduction and conclusion and conduct an interview
with one of the sources used for the report. I had the job to make sure that the transcript
of the interview can be understood by others. Moreover, I had to read and understand
the content of the report that my group mates have made. I think that my group
selected the right and important topics to highlight this report. It did not take long for
me to understand the points that my group mates meant for me to summarize. In
addition, all people are very responsive in the group whenever needed. I think that
everyone contributed equally in making this report final and there were no free riders.
I really do hope that our group’s effort will give us the best result.

4. Pushpika
For this specific report, the group I was allocated consisting of Hiew Yong, Hao Wen,
Carlos and Thasneem had a really good balance with little to no conflict allowing the
assignment to be carried out smoothly. The work that each of us had to do was
allocated evenly to ensure everyone does their fair share to contribute to the
assignment. As for me as an individual, I was able to learn alot about power through
this assignment and how it can be imposed on others and how it may be imposed on

21
myself as well. I was further able to learn the importance of teamwork through my team
members. I enjoyed working with my team members while learning the different
aspects of teamwork and collaboration.

5. Hao Wen
Through the process of completion of our group report, our team of 5 has seamlessly
worked together without much hiccup along the way. The task was allocated to each
member quickly at the first meeting with our group and the plans took place almost
immediately. Hiew Yong being the most efficient and the leader of the team did an
interview very soon after our meeting. Carlos and I did the second interview a week
after. After getting both interviews done, our team quickly established a deadline in
which we had to finish our delegated parts by. Thanseem and Pushpika finished their
part quickly even though they had other assignments due in the same week. It rings
the importance of teamwork and delegation of tasks in a group assignment. Personally
I feel that our team was very efficient and effective. We set clear guidelines and clear
tasks for ourselves and made sure we met them on time. This is one of the most
successful teamwork that I've experienced so far as a second year student. Each of
the members were punctual and responsible which has definitely made the
assignment a smooth sailing.

22
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 ASSIGNMENT 2
Power in Asia
Tutor: Dr Patricia Lau

Tutorial Day & Time: Tuesday, 10AM

Group Member:
1. Carlos Emmanuel Argado (2921 5730)
2. Leong Hiew Yong (2900 7992)
3. Yap Hao Wen
4. Pushpika Thushan Mendis (2754 7183)
5. Thasneem Binte Mohamed Haniffa (2992 3484)

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