Sandra is renowned for her insightful approach to coaching leaders and leadership teams. With years of experience as an organisational psychologist and master coach, she brings breadth and depth to her work. She combines robust psychological theory with a practical approach to individual and team development.
In today’s fast-paced and ever-evolving workplace, power dynamics often go unspoken, yet they shape everything from leadership to culture. In Reclaiming Power: Leadership, Followership, and the Dynamics That Shape Organisational Culture, Dr. Sandra Wilson explores how power flows through organisations at every level, not just from the top down, but also through relationships, followership, and the unspoken emotional undercurrents that influence decisions and behaviors.
Let’s talk about power
It’s a word that carries weight, sometimes literally, often metaphorically. A classic definition frames power as “the ability to marshal human, informational, or material resources to get something done.” It’s accurate, but it only scratches the surface. Power isn’t just about control or hierarchy; it isn’t the sole property of those with titles or corner offices. It exists at every level of an organisation. It flows top-down, bottom-up, and sideways, embedded in relationships, choices, and unspoken dynamics.
Yet, many of us shy away from the word. Power often conjures images of domination or coercion. We’re comfortable saying we want to “achieve,” but hesitant to admit we want power. Why? Because in many organisational cultures, power is the “secret truth”, everybody knows it exists, but few are willing to talk about it.
The human side of power
Power itself isn’t inherently good or bad. It’s neutral, a tool. And like any tool, its impact depends on how it’s used. When wielded with fairness, transparency, and empathy, power becomes a force for good, enabling collaboration, driving change, and creating space for others to step into their own potential.
Leadership, in its truest form, is not about asserting dominance; it’s about recognising and navigating the complex emotional and relational landscapes of the people we lead. From a young age, we internalise beliefs about control, worth, and influence. These beliefs don’t vanish when we step into the workplace; they quietly shape how we lead, follow, and adapt to change.
A leader who understands this, who sees that people don’t just operate within systems but also interpret and feel them, can inspire performance, cultivate trust, and create a culture where people thrive, not just comply.
What we don't say at work
Organisations hum with unspoken emotional undercurrents. People don’t just bring skills to work; they bring their stories, fears, aspirations, and histories. And when the pressure’s on, these undercurrents rise to the surface. Leadership isn’t just about strategy; it’s about emotional intelligence, social intelligence, and relational intelligence. It’s about tuning into what’s unsaid.
In organisations, employees talk easily to one another about power, who has it, how centralised it is, whether it’s misused. But these conversations often stay in the shadows, away from formal channels. Power is present in every organisation, but without open dialogue, we risk reinforcing silence, mistrust, and disengagement.
Leaders must be willing to own their power, not as a badge of rank, but as a responsibility. They must use it thoughtfully to minimise harm and maximise impact. When leaders share power and create space for others to do the same, they lay the groundwork for meaningful change.
Power is more than authority
Unlike physical power, which can be measured in watts or joules, human power is messy and multidimensional. It stems not just from role or rank, but from relationships, personality, knowledge, and self-perception. A leader may have authority, but without self-awareness or the trust of their team, they may find themselves powerless.
External power comes from tangible assets: resources, networks, influence, and the ability to impose consequences. Internal power, on the other hand, comes from within: confidence, experience, self-worth, and clarity of purpose. Effective leadership requires both.
But we often overlook the other half of the equation: followership.
The power of followership
Followership isn’t weakness. It’s not passive or subordinate. It’s a dynamic, active role that shapes and sustains leadership. Leaders and followers co-create the culture of an organisation. The relationship is reciprocal, with each influencing the other in a continual exchange of power, perception, and possibility.
Throughout my career, I’ve witnessed the evolution of leadership styles, from command-and-control to collaboration and co-creation. This shift reflects a broader cultural awakening: Leadership is not just about the leader. It’s a phenomenon constructed as much in the minds of the followers as in the deeds of the leader.
Effective leadership includes being responsible, effective, and psychologically attuned. To do this, leaders must cultivate diverse sources of power and use them with integrity.
Culture change begins with power shifts
Culture isn’t a poster on a wall. It’s the lived experience of people in an organisation: how they relate, how they make decisions, how they handle conflict, and how they respond to those they serve. Power dynamics underpin all of this.
In many organisations, efforts to “empower” employees remain vague and abstract. Leaders say they want engagement but struggle to define what empowerment really means in practice. True empowerment involves a redistribution of power, which requires not just a change in systems, but in mindsets.
I’ve seen organisations embrace coaching cultures as a way to shift these dynamics. A coaching culture is one where leaders engage others through enquiry, reflection, and collaboration, not just direction. It assumes that no one has all the answers and that, through collective insight, better outcomes emerge.
Reimagining power
Power can be expansive, generative, and transformative. Here are three useful frameworks for thinking about power:
Power with: collaborative strength built through solidarity, mutual support, and shared goals.
Power to: the capacity of individuals to shape their world and take meaningful action.
Power within: a deep sense of self-worth and awareness that fuels personal growth and resilience.
Final thoughts
Leadership and followership are not opposites; they are co-creators of the cultures we inhabit. When we begin to understand power not as a zero-sum game, but as a dynamic, shared resource, we open the door to a different kind of organisational life, one grounded in trust, mutual respect, and the courage to lead and follow authentically.
Let’s not be afraid to talk about power. Let’s learn to use it well.
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Read more from Dr. Sandra Wilson
Dr. Sandra Wilson, Business Coach, Mentor and Consultant
With over 35 years experience in organisation development, Sandra is a dedicated researcher of human behaviour both at an individual and systemic level. She defines her work as helping people get out of their own way, passionately believing in the untapped potential and limitless resources within every individual. Her mission is to support people in living richer, more fulfulling lives, both professionally and personally. Sandra works internationally as a consultant, teacher, coach, mentor and supervisor advocating for rigourouse development processes without rigid formulas.
