The American Management Association announced in 2019 that office politics cost a productivity loss of more than $100 billion in the United States alone.

The Manager Magazin describes office politics as opposition within work context, not related to the subject matter: Namely the ‘Hidden Agenda’

A hidden agenda is always a pursuit of a personal motive driven by wishes, fears, and emotions.

In my opinion, hidden agendas are one of the biggest threats to a healthy culture. They can result in, unwillingness to cooperate, distrust, information withholding, reluctance, disengagement, demotivation, and fear of being exploited just to name a few.

𝗔 𝗳𝗲𝘄 𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝘄𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝗿, 𝗮𝗰𝗰𝗼𝗿𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝗜𝗻𝗰.𝗰𝗼𝗺:
👉Someone with a hidden agenda constantly revisits a certain subject. If a topic keeps resurfacing, be suspicious. Ask yourself whether the conversation was intentionally steered that way or if it came up naturally.
👉Someone with a hidden agenda cycles through different tactics with the same end in mind. If you’re getting a sense that they are working hard to sell you or push you to do something, there is a good chance they are.
👉There is a disingenuous vibe about people that follow a hidden agenda
👉People with hidden agendas have oversized reactions to certain suggestions
👉After talking with them, you have a bad feeling and feel poorly about the interaction.
Trust your gut! We are well attuned to elusiveness in a person.

𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗰𝗹𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝗮 𝗛𝗶𝗱𝗱𝗲𝗻 𝗔𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗮?

Tina Nunno Vice President and Gartner Fellow recommends two ways to disclose a hidden agenda:
1️⃣ Ask open-ended questions to find out what their agenda is. It can be a simple ‘Can you tell me more?’.
2️⃣ Watch out for patterns and describe for yourself what you think is really important to them to gain more clarity about their intentions.

𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽
Be aware that just one person can intoxicate an entire system. It is imperative to establish a culture that leaves no room for hidden agendas since they directly impact performance. This requires having people with integrity and good intention, especially in leadership positions to grow or cultivate a culture in which everybody can thrive.