Viewing Conflict As An Opportunity During Organizational Change

“Leaders do not avoid, repress, or deny conflict, but rather see it as an opportunity.”

Warren Bennis (1925 – ), American scholar, writer

Bridging the gap between organizational factions is a tough challenge — but one that most leaders face when leading organizational change. Here are four steps for bringing disparate parties together:

Action

1. Get consensus on the problem. Avoid getting into the solution right away since it's likely the source of the disagreement. Ask what success will look like a year from now. Test assumptions about what needs to be accomplished. Then, use these initial discussions to bring people together around a compelling goal while leaving open how it will be achieved.

2. Identify multiple solutions. Bring the group together to brainstorm ideas. Encourage all ideas without judgment or analysis.

3. Assign cross-faction teams to assess solutions to help break down divisions while laying out the benefits and costs of each solution.

4. Get quick wins. Take one or two of the ideas developed by the teams and implement them right away. These shared successes will build momentum for future collaboration.

There are likely other dynamics that constrain bipartisan collaboration during organizational change. These simple steps might not always be possible in highly polarized environments…but they are worth a try.

Adapted from Ron Ashkenas and the Harvard Business Review.