When a bunch of people work together, conflict is inevitable.
And yes, conflict is uncomfortable.
It makes people uneasy. It spoils moods. It disrupts harmony.
But, it cannot be avoided. Especially not in teams.
Ignoring a conflict is also not sustainable in the long term.
When we don’t allow ways for dissent to be voiced it leads to two things:
- Passive-aggressive behaviors
- Disengagement from the team
However uncomfortable it makes us, conflict is always part of a team.
When used well, conflict is a good thing for team performance and can lead to better outcomes from a team.
It may not seem so, but lack of conflict may be worse than not having conflict. Lack of conflict can only mean one of the below:
- People are disengaged or don’t care about the team outcomes
- There is too much fear or lack of psychological safety in the team for people to voice honest opinions
But while lack of conflict is bad it does not mean that any type of conflict helps the team. When a conflict does occur it needs to be managed in a way that it productively benefits both the team and the team members.
If we gave people more creative ways to express disagreements and differences of opinion it allows for conflict to be channelized.
What could that look like?
- Create ground rules around ways to disagree without compromising respect.
- Create psychological safety so people can express dissent without getting penalized for it.
- Create a system where everyone feels heard.
Some of the advantages of constructive work conflict often are:
- Well thought out outcomes: When all opinions are voiced and heard it allows for all pros and cons of a situation to be analyzed and decisions that come from such conversations are well thought through.
- Learning from each other: Exploring someone else opinion allows team members to learn different perspectives and approaches.
- Encourages diverse thoughts and fosters inclusivity: When people feel heard it allows for respect and better relationships in organizations.