Constructive Conflict

When considering the idea of inquiry, constructive conflict is recommended as it includes:

  1. Vigorous debate: By having a vigorous debate, the leader allows challenges to views and responses by asking tough questions and provoking ‘productive’ thinking.

  2. Preventive defensiveness: While we want a vigorous and thoughtful debate, we want to use wording, modulation, tone, and the like to encourage participation by all by expressing that you may be ‘playing devil’s advocate’ to challenge an idea from a team member. This exchange allows other members to think more thoughtfully about their responses and become more prepared to defend their approaches with factual stances that add value to the discussion.

    Image of constructive conflict as a mechanismm for decision making

  3. Dissolve or disrupt natural coalitions: This technique in constructive conflict is the need to break up coalitions where the leader will require team members from different interests to work in teams to come up with solutions. This helps avoid the idea of loyalties to different parties to consider the ideas of others and builds trust, mutual respect, and collaboration across the team.

  4. Shifting roles: One of the more interesting techniques addressed in this approach to decision making is the idea of taking members out of their ‘swim-lane’ where they may have built a nice little comfortable area in which they fill a niche or aren’t pushed to do more. By shifting them from the role or groove that they may have settled into, the leader challenges to put themselves in the position of the chief executive or manager and consider the options that are available to them to cultivate a kind of ‘kaizan’ approach to decision making. I think it’s also important to target complacent or uninterested parties for this type of activity as it challenges them to become engaged with the rest of the team, we see this with many younger members that struggle with the idea that they’re in a position that they don’t belong in and may suffer from imposter phenomenon and while this may not resolve that, it can help the leader identify potential opportunities to help this team member grow and become more comfortable with their team in the same manner as team building exercises.