 |
At Work with The ReadyAre you ready to reinvent your organization? Author: Rodney Evans and Sam Spurlin
Rodney Evans and Sam Spurlin have helped teams around the world adopt more modern ways of working and on At Work with The Ready theyre sharing the inside scoop with you, too. Whether youre struggling with a carousel of ineffective meetings, annual strategy sessions that go nowhere, or decision-making churn that never ceases, theyve seen it all and are here to help. In each episode, they'll break down common workplace challenges and show you the movesboth big and smallto start making real, lasting change. (Formerly Brave New Work with Aaron Dignan and Rodney Evans) Language: en Genres: Business, Entrepreneurship, Management Contact email: Get it Feed URL: Get it iTunes ID: Get it Trailer: |
Listen Now...
48. Office Politics: The Fun and Frustration of Palace Intrigue
Episode 18
Monday, 4 May, 2026
Office politics doesn't happen because people are scheming. It happens because no one wrote anything down. In the absence of clear ways of working, the preferences of the most powerful people fill the vacuum and suddenly half your attention is spent learning whose attachment format to use rather than doing the actual work. In this episode, Rodney and Sam dig into one of the most universal and underdiagnosed org patterns: the political operating system. They explore why politics can feel more fun than good process, why "influence without authority" is just pandering with better branding, and how to start replacing implicit norms with something more durable than whoever's in the room at that moment. -------------------------------- Ready to change your organization? Let's talk. Get our newsletter: Sign up here. Follow us: LinkedIn Instagram -------------------------------- Mentioned references: The Ready’s OS Canvas: https://www.theready.com/os-canvas Essential Intent: BNW Ep. 90 with Greg McKeown Even/Overs: BNW Ep. 44 Dual Transformation: AWWTR Ep. 43 Andrea Robb Action Meeting Episode: BNW Ep. 80 with Sam Spurlin Directly Responsible Individual (DRI) User Manual to Me: BNW Ep. 159 00:00 Intro + Check-In: What’s a skill you rarely get to show off? 03:08 The Pattern: We cater to those in power when there’s no org clarity 05:17 Leveraging relationships to do work feels good in the moment 09:12 Discerning what’s best for a leader vs. best for the work 13:11 Experience navigating CEO preference 17:06 Politics is more fun than building a good OS 20:12 Leaders come and go, and take their preferences with them 22:08 Politicking wastes organizational attention 27:00 Short term politics at odds with long term value 31:32 Andrea Robb’s organizing principles 34:23 Leadership politics keeps you from the truth 37:10 Example navigating a leader during an offsite 41:33 Change #1: Don’t depend on only one person 43:55 Change #2: Get a new set of eyes to challenge assumptions 46:34 Change #3: Write. It. Down. 48:44 Wrap up: Leave us a review! Sound engineering and design by Taylor Marvin of Coupe Studios.
