POLITIK KANTOR EXPERT: INI SKILL YANG LU BUTUH DI 2026‼️ | #KULI 60 Glenn Karela

Summary

The episode argues that office politics is an unavoidable part of organizational life—not necessarily unethical, but a set of influence and survival skills that can be used constructively or destructively. Glenn Karela says strong work alone may not be enough: employees also need visibility, relationships, and a clear understanding of how decisions and influence actually work.

Core Frameworks and Playbooks

• Three “currencies” of influence: access, trust, and perception

  • Access: Proximity to decision-makers, early information, and strategic discussions. Formal title does not always determine access.
  • Trust: Built through repeated interactions and alignment with others’ interests.
  • Perception: What colleagues and leaders believe you are known for. It is shaped by visibility and communication, as well as results.

• Map the organization’s informal power structure

  • Look beyond the org chart to identify who influences decisions, connects stakeholders, and has the decision-maker’s confidence.
  • Karela describes roles such as a top decision authority (“puppet master”), an operator who carries out their intent, decision-makers, and connectors or decision-shapers.
  • Practical signals include who is regularly included in meetings, whose views are referenced, who has access to leaders, and who connects otherwise competing groups.

• Use diplomacy and positioning rather than passive neutrality

  • Maintain professional relationships across factions without unnecessarily attacking either side.
  • Stay focused on deliverables when internal conflict intensifies, while adjusting visibility and engagement to the situation.
  • Neutrality is not the same as passivity: employees should understand what is happening and actively protect their professional reputation.

• Manage visibility and reputation

  • Make contributions legible to decision-makers: communicate outcomes, demonstrate expertise, and build a consistent professional identity.
  • The discussion calls this impression management, perception management, and reputation engineering. The constructive version is to make real contributions visible—not to substitute storytelling for competence.
  • The hosts and guest emphasize that communication and narrative-building should be balanced with actual performance.

• Watch for signs that your influence or role is weakening

  • You stop being invited to meetings you previously attended.
  • Your responsibilities or access to strategic discussions shrink.
  • Reporting requirements increase while your authority decreases.
  • Communication becomes more formal or distant.
  • Karela frames exclusion and sidelining as possible “containment” tactics. Employees should verify what is happening rather than dismissing these signs or assuming the cause.

Examples and Observations

• A director proposing a major transformation in an established company may need a connector to build support before formally presenting the idea. The formal meeting may serve mainly to legitimize a decision already discussed informally.
• A person without a senior title may still wield influence because they have a trusted relationship with a leader or early access to information.
• In a reputation attack, an opponent may spread a narrative or exaggerate small mistakes before an appraisal or promotion decision. The episode warns that formal reviews may not be the first point at which perceptions are formed.
• A toxic manager may remain protected by alliances, sponsors, or structural shielding, while employees below them become vulnerable to blame.
• In family businesses, disputes among relatives over leadership or succession can create competing power centers, leaving employees unsure whose direction to follow.

Actionable Recommendations

• When joining a new organization, learn both the formal reporting structure and the informal decision network.
• Observe meeting participation, working relationships, and who is consulted before decisions are announced.
• Build trust through regular, credible interactions; do not assume closeness to a leader guarantees protection.
• Keep a clear record of responsibilities, outcomes, and relevant decisions, and communicate your work appropriately.
• If access or responsibilities change, ask constructive questions and seek clarity rather than waiting passively.
• Develop a clear, difficult-to-misunderstand professional identity: know what function you serve and why the organization needs it.
• Treat political awareness as a way to navigate risk—not as a license to manipulate or undermine colleagues.

2026 Outlook Presented in the Episode

Karela’s closing segment offers a forecast, not verified business data. He characterizes 2026 as a year of “selection”: organizations may prioritize roles that are clearly tied to decisions, income, or stability.

He predicts:

• More pragmatic decisions about structure, roles, and business priorities.
• Gradual, team-by-team reductions rather than necessarily one dramatic wave of layoffs.
• Increased vulnerability for roles seen as too generalist, no longer critical, or difficult to justify.
• Risk for managers caught between senior leadership and their teams, and for founders who delay difficult decisions.
• Internal shifts in leadership, strategy, or structure as a major career risk—especially for people without an alternative role or clear value proposition.
• Greater importance of functional clarity, managing perception, and readiness to reposition.

The forecast mentions external pressure from targets, investors, holding-company direction, or efficiency demands, but provides no specific figures, targets, or timelines beyond 2026.

Metrics and KPIs

• No revenue, margin, CAC, LTV, churn, growth-rate, or other quantified business KPIs are discussed.
• The episode’s indicators are qualitative: access to strategic discussions, scope of work, authority, meeting participation, role clarity, and perceived replaceability.

Presenters and Sources

• Guest: Glenn Karela, described in the episode as a corporate political consultant and tarot reader who uses tarot as a supporting tool in his consultations.
• Program/source: Kumpul Leaders, in the episode identified as #KULI 60.
• The hosts’ names are not clearly identifiable in the supplied subtitles.