Fighting Well and Great Cultures

My observation is that successful teams really find a way to fight well as a constructive norm. They learn how to sort things out together. They do not politically, passively grin at each other, while they know darn well the battles are left to the people that work for them. There is a famous Lencioni video about “one team” that illustrates this brilliantly.

There is a well worn Harvard Business article that is often referred to in this context (published 1997). The authors found that teams with minimal interpersonal conflict were able to separate substantive issues from those based on personalities… “They managed to disagree over questions of strategic significance and still get along with one another. How did they do that? After analyzing our observations of the teams’ behavior, we found that their companies used the same six tactics for managing interpersonal conflict. Team members:

worked with more, rather than less, information and debated on the basis of facts;

developed multiple alternatives to enrich the level of debate;

shared commonly agreed-upon goals;

injected humor into the decision process;

maintained a balanced power structure;

resolved issues without forcing consensus.”

While the above principles remain solid, I wonder if they are sufficient 25 plus years later?

My experience is that these are optimized when supported by adhering to the values of self-accountability, respect, psychological safety and abundance. How come?

The best team members look at issues by asking themselves first, “what can I do about this?” They are self-accountable and see blame as waste. They do not point fingers or act like victims.

They are respectful by seeing the other person and perspective. They are humble to know there is always something to learn and understand through the lens of others. They are compassionate and able to harness their egos. They attack issues and never get personal.

They appreciate that excellence can only emerge in an environment of psychological safety; where everyone is able to bring their best to the path forward. They embrace authenticity, resist perfection, learn fast and openly offer/ask for help.

They are abundant, and per Adam Grant’s research, are givers more than matchers or takers. They look for what’s best in advancing human value and purpose over lining their own pockets.

Yes, the 1997 information is helpful AND ideally we keep evolving. The attribute of “fighting well” is and always will be necessary, constructive and when productive, even energizing. Fighting poorly and destructively leads to burn- out and decay.

Fight well! Embrace the six principles and four values. It’s that easy, and yet that hard.

Think Big, Start Small, Act Now,

Lorne

One Millennial View: While one might assume that a workspace with zero fighting is ideal, I’d like to think that if there’s never any verbal spatting, that’s a sign of a lack of passion.

- Garrett

Fighting Well and Great Cultures

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