Great Teamwork Comes From Conflict

Creativity comes from a conflict of ideas.
 -Donatella Versace

Humans dislike conflict. Some of us go to great lengths to avoid conflict at all costs. Too often we think it is destructive, or at least counter-productive. We often assume that disagreement means that there is discord. But the reality is that conflict is vital toward creating exceptional solutions and performance. Effective conflict also creates understanding and mutual cooperation along the way. Conflict is vital in business, as well as life. Conflict is the most important phase of communication, and it is when communication can be most productive. It is when resolutions occur and solutions are created.

Ideally speaking, conflict within a team arises when there is a difference in ideas. This is certainly ideal because a team with a balanced member culture will have varying or even conflicting ideas on how to approach and solve challenges. What is not ideal is when all team members always initially agree on all issues. That suggests that the team is not fully considering and testing all available scenarios, options and approaches.

Below is a great YouTube video called “The Secrets to High Performing Teams”, summarizing research performed by Assistant Professor Kristin Behfar at the University of California, Irvine. The video was produced by and hosted at http://www.docuthesis.com/. It is a magnificent piece for anyone that is a part of a team or leads a team in life or business (that means most of us).

Great Teamwork Comes From Conflict

The Business Value of Developing Trust

Trust is one of the primary essentials to the success of any team.

Outstanding teams will inevitably deliver exceptional performance when the element of trust is present and strong within the culture. Trust is, of course, the belief that those who you depend on in your team will meet your expectations. When trust is present, your team members will work effectively together, share information freely, share challenges and mistakes, admit lack of knowledge, and commit themselves to the success of the team. It’s easier to build trust when working in the same physical environment because you will be exposed to many visual clues. Researchers say that people often take less than four minutes to make a trust judgment based on someone’s voice, body language, and words. However, in today’s business arena, there are times where a team is functioning remotely and developing trust can never be forgotten or pushed to the wayside.

When people fail to work well together, it is often because there is no trust. When there is no trust, there is fear and suspicion, and these are a major deterrent to innovation and results. Without trust, the best and brightest ideas never surface. Even worse, when there is fear and suspicion, commitment goes away. Commitment and fear are almost mutually exclusive.

Trust can never be mandated, as it must always be earned. There must be honest, complete, and open communication delivered in a way that fosters mutual respect. Your employees must feel free to ask questions with the confidence they will receive support and the necessary information. Each employee must also feel free to openly express his or her thoughts and feelings. There can be no hidden agendas or clandestine activities. An effective leader must become an expert at ensuring that everyone is kept informed and feels that they are in on things.

In his book, Building Productive Teams, Glenn Varney introduces what he calls the Trust Cycle as a means of showing how leadership can prevent cynicism and establish trust. The Trust Cycle shows “Trust is developed from adequate to total information so that the individual can influence or make decisions, which builds more trust.”

There are many factors and behaviors that build trust, and even though developing trust is a very individual experience, research has shown there are some common factors which help create an environment of trust. Trust can be enhanced when a leader focuses on building strong relationships with and among the team. Review the following categories and concepts as it relates to your department, team, or business unit. What can you do to build stronger relationship and deeper trust within your team? How will it impact the overall results?

Results: All team members are focused on and produce results, exceed customers expectations, meet delivery times, and measurable results are documented.

Integrity: Team members can be trusted to mean what they say when they say it, show commitment to the team, do what they say they will do, communication is essential, and behavior is in the best interest of the team.

Change: Team members are willing to change and adapt, open to other view points, and are flexible.

Empathy: Putting yourself in a team member’s shoes and showing care and concern are culturally sensitive, and sensitive to the impact of all decisions.

Trust is difficult to gain, but easily lost. Building trust requires consistent and ongoing commitment from management. It requires executive sponsorship in the form of authentic leadership. There is no room for missteps.

The results are worth it.

The Business Value of Developing Trust

Good Listeners are Hard to Find

Have you had a conversation recently with someone whose attention appeared to be somewhere else and not really listening to you? Did you ever have a conversation with someone where you really felt like the person you were talking with was engaged in the conversation and was really interested in what you were saying? These are two very different experiences aren’t they?
 
We know when we are being paid attention to. The other person’s body language, eye contact, and tone of voice are focused and inviting and surrounding distractions seem irrelevant. Every one of us can remember a meaningful conversation and what it felt like to “be heard.” Being heard is something everyone thrives on. We all want to be heard, and we all want our issues to be validated. This is especially so for members of your team or staff. This is double-especially so for customers.
 

Emails, voice mails, text messages, and the limit of 140 characters on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter are the very common forms of today’s communication. Technology has given us the ability to share ideas with anyone, at anytime, and anywhere in the world. Our global environment requires this technology to be successful, and it will foster continued innovation and efficiency.
 
However, the true essence of business is built around people and the future innovations that people can and will inspire. It seems these days that the technology we’re surrounded by exists for the purpose of inspiring communication and collaboration. Communication and collaboration is what usually needs to efficiency, innovation, and overall success.
 
While I am quick to admit that the advances to communications and the speed at which we can communicate are necessary, I also see that it often adds to our dysfunction. Our society has become inundated by communication overload, and so we take departures from good manners in trying to absorb and address it all.
 
Take a step back and evaluate your listening ability and techniques. Do any of the following apply to you?
• Check and answer email while talking on the phone (personally or professionally).

• Respond to texts while in a meeting or at your child’s soccer game.

• Watch your children IM or text while doing homework or at the dinner table.

• Spend time updating your Facebook wall instead of reaching out to someone meaningful and having a real conversation.

• Engage in a conversation with an employee, while you shuffle papers and respond to a receptionist call that Mr. Smith is on line two.

If we are honest with ourselves, we are all guilty of one if not many of these listening infractions. We get caught up in the crazy and scattered pace of life. Let’s take a step back and remind ourselves that good listening is essential to effective communication, and here are some simple habits that can improve our listening ability:

Take time to listen. Stop, take a deep breath to clear your mind, and really listen to an employee sharing ideas or to how your son’s day at school unfolded.

Be attentive. Put the world on hold and pay 100% attention to the person talking with you. They believe what they have to say is important and so should you.

Listen with an open mind. Don’t be judgmental. Listen to everything the person is communicating and before judging the value of the information, ask questions to better understand the scope and depth.

Listen for feelings. People repeat those things that are important to them. Listen to what is said but also to how it is said. Feelings often speak much louder than words.

Listen for retention. While listening, summarize the highlights of the conversation in your mind so you can play it back to the person with whom you are talking. It will help you implement the important details later, and it will send the important message that you were really listening.

Finally, listen to others like you want to be listened to … you will be astounded as to how much more you will get accomplished and learn if you stop and really listen. And, you will be amazed how much you miss if you don’t!

Good Listeners are Hard to Find