Skip to ContentGo to accessibility pageKeyboard shortcuts menu
OpenStax Logo
Organizational Behavior

Critical Thinking Case

Organizational BehaviorCritical Thinking Case

The Ohio Connection

Janey worked as an executive assistant to a product manager at her company: Ohio Connection. Overall, she loved her job; she was happy to work with a company that provided great benefits, and she and found enjoyment in her day-to-day work. She had the same product manager boss for years, but last year, her manager left Ohio Connection and retired. Recently her new manager has been treating her unfairly and showcasing bullying behavior.

Yesterday, Janey came into work, and her boss decided to use their power as her manager and her “superior” to demand that she stay late to cover for him, correct reports that he had made mistakes on, and would not pay her overtime. She was going to be late to pick up her son from soccer practice if she stayed late; she told him this, and he was not happy.

Over subsequent days, her boss consistently would make comments about her performance, even though she had always had good remarks on reviews, and created a very negative work environment. The next time she was asked to stay late, she complied for fear of losing her job or having other negative impacts on her job. Janey’s situation was not ideal, but she didn’t feel she had a choice.

Questions:
  1. What type of power did Janey’s boss employ to get her to do the things that he wanted her to do?
  2. What negative consequences are apparent in this situation and other situations where power is not balanced in the workplace?
  3. What steps should Janey take do to counteract the power struggle that is occurring with her new manager?

Sources: A. Morin, “How to Prevent a Workplace Bully from taking Your Power,” Inc., June 25, 2018, https://www.inc.com/amy-morin/how-to-prevent-a-workplace-bully-from-taking-your-power.html; V. Giang, “The 7 Types Of Power That Shape The Workplace,” Business Insider, July 31, 2013, https://www.businessinsider.com/the-7-types-of-power-that-shape-the-workplace-2013-7; B. Weinstein, “10 Tips for Dealing with a Bully Boss,” CIO, accessed October 13, 2018, https://www.cio.com.au/article/198499/10_tips_dealing_bully_boss/.

PreviousNext
Order a print copy
Citation/Attribution

This book may not be used in the training of large language models or otherwise be ingested into large language models or generative AI offerings without OpenStax's permission.

Want to cite, share, or modify this book? This book uses the Creative Commons Attribution License and you must attribute OpenStax.

Attribution information
  • If you are redistributing all or part of this book in a print format, then you must include on every physical page the following attribution:
    Access for free at https://openstax.org/books/organizational-behavior/pages/1-introduction
  • If you are redistributing all or part of this book in a digital format, then you must include on every digital page view the following attribution:
    Access for free at https://openstax.org/books/organizational-behavior/pages/1-introduction
Citation information

© Jan 9, 2024 OpenStax. Textbook content produced by OpenStax is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License . The OpenStax name, OpenStax logo, OpenStax book covers, OpenStax CNX name, and OpenStax CNX logo are not subject to the Creative Commons license and may not be reproduced without the prior and express written consent of Rice University.