The hidden power (but it’s there)

The Power That Can’t Be Seen (But Is There)

Understanding Power: An Organizational Necessity

In many facilitation processes conducted in teams and organizations, it's common to come across someone who, in the face of criticism or group tension, throws out a seemingly innocent phrase:

“I don’t have any power. I’m just one more. I don’t decide anything here.”

Phrases like this, more common than they seem, reveal something deeper. Behind them, there's often a learning history shaped by environments where power was used in an authoritarian way, suppressing initiative and silencing individual voices. But they also reflect a dangerous disconnection: believing that power resides only in visible roles.

In reality, those who believe they have no power are often the ones most at risk of misusing it — precisely because they don’t recognize it. They haven’t learned that power is not always chosen, not always visible, and not limited to formal positions.

 

Understanding Power: An Organizational Necessity

An organization that seeks to evolve toward a more effective, empathic, and adaptive culture needs to create spaces where power — its forms and effects — can be openly explored. This is an essential part of the work developed at Fabrika, especially during the Awareness and Training programs.

From a systemic perspective, every organization functions as a living social system, where power is not an individual trait but a relational dynamic that runs through both formal and informal daily processes.

So, talking about power is not an ideological act — it’s a tool for collective awareness. That’s why Fabrika works with at least four key forms of power that appear in any team or organization:

1. Power as Capacity

This is the “power to” — to act, to transform, to create, to contribute. It exists in every person and becomes a source of innovation and collaboration when used in service of a shared purpose.
But it can also turn into “power over” — the power to impose, control, or silence others.

The same capacity can fuel collective momentum… or trigger conflict.
The difference lies in how it’s used and with what intention.

2. Power as Function

This is power associated with a formal position within the organizational structure.
It is assigned to make the system work — but it does not belong to the person, only to the role, which is always temporary.

This power is legitimate only when used to fulfill the team’s agreed objectives.
Confusing role-based power with personal power is one of the main causes of abuse and mistrust in organizations.

3. Power as Identity

This power stems from belonging to social groups with more systemic power — for example, being male, white, upper-middle class, university-educated, or speaking the dominant language.
This is not a chosen power, but it exists — and often operates unconsciously.

Recognizing this kind of power — even if it wasn’t asked for — is essential to avoid falling into exclusive or unequal practices.

4. Power in Networks

This is the power distributed among people who mutually recognize and support each other. Here, no one imposes or dominates — every voice matters.

This kind of power emerges when people commit to a shared purpose and use their capacity to care for and add value to the system — while feeling seen and supported by it.
It’s the kind of power that fuels the most effective teams: committed, creative, and grounded in a strong sense of belonging.

So What Can We Do With All This?

Recognizing your own power is the first step toward a more conscious and healthy organizational culture.
It’s not just about sharing power, but about using well the power you already have — whether visible or not.

Three questions can help spark this reflection in any team:

• What power do I have — even if I don’t name it?

• How am I using it — or failing to use it?

• What effect does it have on the people I work with?

Because even when power is not used intentionally, it still has consequences.
The first step is noticing it.

Talking About Power Is Uncomfortable. But Not Talking About It Is Worse.

Power is still a taboo topic in many organizations.
There’s fear that opening the conversation might create conflict.
But silence around power is fertile ground for abuse, inequality, and distrust.

At Fabrika, power is explored through a relational, cultural, and systemic lens, focusing on how it is generated, how it is distributed, and how it is used in daily processes like communication, decision-making, role assignment, conflict management, recognition, and more.

This approach helps teams develop a Facilitative and Transformative Leadership (FT) style — one capable of embracing difference, creating safe spaces, and promoting conscious participation.
Because when every voice counts, power becomes a tool for the common good.

 

True Leadership Is Knowing How to Use Power to Care and Transform

Everyone in an organization has power — even if it’s hard to see.
Denying or ignoring it doesn’t make it disappear — it just makes it harder to see, harder to care for, and easier to misuse.

That’s why in the cultural transition processes led by Fabrika, one of the key proposals is to review the formal and informal rules by which power is exercised in the organization.

Only then can we build teams where effectiveness doesn’t come at the cost of well-being, and efficiency doesn’t override participation.

Because it’s not just about having power.
It’s about knowing how to use it.
Consciously. Carefully. Collectively.