How to Coach Yourself and Others Influencing, Inter Personal and Leadership Skills | Page 141

6. Use and Effectiveness of
Influence Strategies
Kipnis, Schmidt & Wilkinson (1980) generated an instrument to measure the frequency
with which specific influence strategies are used by various people within organizations
(the POIS or Profile of Organizational Influence Strategies)

They identified two types of strategies
1. Hard Tactics (listed in order of frequency):
1. Legitimating:

The agent seeks to establish the legitimacy of a request or
to verify that he has the authority to make it.
He says that a request or proposal is consistent with a
prior agreement or contract.

2. Coalitions:

The agent enlists the aid of others or uses the support of
others as a way to influence the target person to do
something.
He gets others to explain why they support a proposed
activity or change that they want you to support or help
implement.

3. Pressure:

The agent uses demands, threats, frequent checking, or
persistent reminders to influence the target person.
He tries to pressure you to carry out a request.

2. Soft Tactics (listed in order of frequency):
1. Ingratiation

The agent uses praise and flattery before or during an
attempt to influence.
He praises your skill or knowledge when asking to do
something.

2. Exchange

The agent offers something the target person wants,
or offers to reciprocate at a later time if the target will
do as requested.
He offers to do something for you in exchang