Wait a minute. That whole idea is absurd. Conflict is at the least a distraction, and at worst severely destructive, in projects and in the everyday workplace.
Angry argument, arrogant bullying,
sarcastic name-calling are among the behaviors that contort organizational
cohesion and inhibit individual initiative.
Bystanders may try to intervene,
sometimes to be rewarded by becoming targets themselves, sometimes then stung
into purposeless and destructive exchanges that make things worse.
At the least, continuing
belligerence creates a tense atmosphere that severely reduces productivity and
induces misery. People dread going in to work in the morning, and work all day
with their heads down.
So mostly we make a practice of avoiding conflict. We phrase our
suggestions and responses in ways that make sure feathers aren’t ruffled. No
point in stirring up trouble. And when a bad idea is on the table, we just
leave it for someone else to point out the flaws. Why get into a hassle?
As a result, a lot of good
possibilities never get a real hearing, and a lot of faulty policies stumble and
collapse in full view of people who knew better from the beginning. Those kinds
of shortfalls create a loser culture, with a descending spiral of morale and
imagination.
Peace and quiet create a safe haven
for mediocrity and systemic failure. Management’s attempts at inspirational
pronouncements and exhortations are empty rhetoric; they fail to move the passive
mass from its dedication to safe routine.
This is fatal for organizational health, and certainly for project
management. The fundamental reason for project management is that complex,
risky innovations must be pulled off.
For a project that has any heft at
all, you need to gather good people, competent people, committed people,
passionate people. You can’t achieve something that’s never been done before if
all you have working on it are people disciplined to never stick their heads
up.
Actually, it’s not that hard to
find the right people. Just about everyone is capable of eager, imaginative, assertive
creative behavior, when they’re not inhibited by some kind of threat.
With a little effort and a modest
amount of imagination, anyone can get some really great brainstorms going. The
fun of knocking over barriers can be a mind-expanding exercise.
The true project leader understands
this.
An intense enjoyment results from
the meaningful, creative and productive employment of one’s knowledge and
experience in a brand-new enterprise. Doesn’t matter how it comes out. But, if
there also is a team achievement of a difficult and complex goal, one’s sense
of worth expands immensely.
The process demands conflict, if it is to succeed. You can’t
assemble such people in sufficient number to accomplish anything without
knowing they will refuse to march in lockstep.
Really good contributors are
superior because they have devoted themselves to excellence, have invested
effort in learning how to do what they do, have put in a lot of hours at
unrewarded labor to make sure they got where they had committed themselves to
go.
They don’t go along. They need to
be convinced. In the process, they must be heard. It can be an unlovely process
as it evolves, but its surface negative energy should not be misunderstood.
While these folks are good in outcome, they can be inelegant along the way.
So you stick with it. You, the
project manager, make sure they take it seriously. You don’t consider a
discussion complete until all key parties, whatever their communication
preferences, have fully and honestly invested their takes.
It will be conflicted. It will not be particularly pleasant to
undergo, or to witness. The competent project manager, though, will make sure
it happens. This is how they work their way to commitment. The alternative is a
pleasant journey to project failure.
Managing positive conflict requires
that, having surfaced the disagreement between or among creative people, the
leader guides it toward integration rather than personal combat.
It can be a nuanced management
demand, considering the personalities likely to be involved. It requires
advanced communication skills, which the competent project manager makes it
his/her business to practice to a high level.
The project manager knows that,
without that open disagreement (sometimes quite emotional), the shining new summit
will never be mounted. The contest of ideas must happen, but it must not
destroy. It must be guided to a productive outcome.
This is the ultimate challenge for
the professional project manager. It’s cultural and psychological, not
technical.
Embrace conflict. Encourage conflict. Demand conflict.
And, of
course, manage conflict.
Conflict will never be your most
enjoyable traveling companion, but it can be your best friend.
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