CREATING CONFLICT AND BUILDING CONSENSUS

Posted under Uncategorized on March 21st, 2008 by with no responses 

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In decision-making, leaders walk a tightrope to balance healthy levels of conflict and consensus. Too much conflict degenerates into antagonism and infighting. Too much consensus and no one ventures forth criticism of ill-informed choices. A leader has the responsibility to preside over an organization’s mixture of conflict and consensus. Both the quality of a decision and its ease of implementation are at stake.

In his article, “Why Leaders Don’t Take Yes for an Answer,” Michael A. Roberto shares his thoughts on managing the decision-making process.

CREATING CONFLICT

The first step for a leader to invite conflict into the decision-making process involves actively seeking the participation of others. A surprising number of leaders make decisions in a vacuum. Confidently relying on their own wisdom and instincts, they bypass the expertise and feedback of teammates. In doing so, their decisions fall prey to blind spots, biases, or gaps in knowledge.

In the second step of creating conflict, leaders must set the tone of communication so that dissenting opinions may be freely expressed and assumptions may be openly questioned. Vigorous and candid debate exposes weaknesses in a decision. Yet, many leaders surround themselves with bobble-headed managers who are certain not to contradict their directives. In such a climate, dissenters are chided for not being “team players.” On the contrary, a wise leader prizes people who fearlessly challenge the process and will include them in the inner circle of their decision-making team.

As a final role of creating conflict, leaders make sure all parties respect one another during the debate of ideas. When egos enter the picture, conflict can become combustible. Leaders stay above the emotional fray. They allow ideas to have interplay without allowing them to divide the team. They maintain control of debate, and they do not tolerate hectoring or bullying.

BUILDING CONSENSUS

As with creating conflict, consensus begins with inclusion. Key players left in the dark during the decision-making process will have a difficult time embracing the chosen course of action. Leaders do not relinquish final authority in decision-making, but they do dignify their co-workers by consulting them for advice.

Once a decision has been reached, a leader must switch the focus from generating healthy conflict to building consensus around the decision. In this step, team members must be convinced to emotionally accept the grounds of a decision—regardless of personal feelings. “Consensus does not mean unanimity, widespread agreement on all facets of a decision, or complete approval by a majority of organization members,” writes Roberto. “Consensus does mean that people…have accepted the final choice, even though they may not be completely satisfied with it.”

Leaders must have the relational dexterity to bring people, originally at odds with a decision, into consensus. To this end, a leader may invest extra time with influential dissenters to ensure their support. It’s crucial for a leader to secure an unqualified commitment during these meetings. No one on the team can be allowed to withhold support of a project on account of their personal stance against it. When the final decision is made, everyone must demonstrate the loyalty and team spirit to be on board.

Michael Roberto’s article, “Why Great Leaders Don’t Take Yes for an Answer,”

 

EXPECTATIONS
“What we see depends mainly on what we look for.”
~ John Lubbock
“To expect defeat is nine-tenths of defeat itself.”
~ Henry Louis Mencken

“Our circumstances answer to our expectations and the demand of our natures.”
~ Henry David Thoreau

TO PONDER
DREAMS

What happens to a dream deferred?
Does it dry up
Like a raisin in the sun?
Or fester like a sore–
And then run?
Does it stink like rotten meat?
Or crust and sugar over–
like a syrupy sweet?
Maybe it just sags
like a heavy load.
Or does it explode?

~ Langston Hughes

On this day...

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