In the New Economy, many of the basics of traditional business get turned upside down: Bureaucracy gets banished, meetings get reinvented, memos get abolished. But if you think that the rise of fast-paced competition means the demise of organizational politics, well, think again. “Politics is simply how power gets worked out on a practical, day-to-day basis,” says John Eldred, 56, a teacher and a consultant. “People in organizations demonstrate power in every conversation, every decision, and every interaction.”

For 11 years, Eldred has taught “Mastering Organizational Politics and Power,” a popular course that is part of the University of Pennsylvania’s master’s program in organizational dynamics. He recently added a second course, “Politics of the Virtual Organization.” He works with students and with clients of his consulting firm – Transition One Associates, in Ambler, Pennsylvania – who include managers from labor unions and family businesses as well as from such companies as Bell Atlantic, MCI, and Comcast. “The more change there is, the more the political quotient goes up,” says Eldred. “I try to help people live amid competing agendas and imperfect information. Politics is not about defeating others; it’s really about tapping into possibilities for action that solve problems.”

In an interview with Fast Company, Eldred shared his strategies for becoming a political activist at work.

Isn’t the promise of the new economy that we can all just get down to work?

The biggest political mistake is to assume that organizational politics doesn’t exist. It’s often a question of language. When we win on an issue, we call it leadership. When we lose, we call it politics. Practicing politics simply means increasing your options for effective results.

Does politics change in an era of grassroots leadership and distributed organizations?

Only in that it becomes more important. We’re all in free-agent mode now. Work is not so much about “managing” people as it is about guaranteeing the performance of peers and peer organizations on whom you depend. You need skills in dealing with conflicting agendas, shifting power grids, and environmental forces for which you have only partial information.

But the ultimate form of politics is what I call “intrapsychic” politics: That involves knowing who you are, what your goals are, and how to handle yourself in the midst of conflict. That kind of knowledge helps you decide which battles are worth fighting.

Is politics still about power?

Politics is a practice. Dealing well with it requires preparation and learned skills. My students keep a weekly journal of moments in their own lives that have a high political quotient, so they can examine their actions and reactions. What political mistakes did they make? Where did they shut down conversation, and where did they open options for themselves?