Council Post: Leveraging Workplace Conflict To Create Growth Opportunities

Leen Kawas
5 min readJun 21, 2024

--

Leen Kawas | Entrepreneur, Inventor, Innovator and Leader | Managing General Partner at Propel Bio Partners.

Effective workplace collaboration brings team members’ individual talents and diverse perspectives together. Focused on a mutual goal, they brainstorm ideas that can spark creative innovations. This true synergy can serve as a foundation for future breakthroughs.

However, the collaborative process isn’t always smooth sailing. Team members sometimes engage in heated disagreements that threaten to derail progress on a common goal. Many people view these confrontations as distracting and counterproductive. In my view, however, they can help an organization more effectively achieve key objectives.

Desirable Healthy Workplace Conflict

In fact, some types of workplace conflict are quite healthy. For example, holding regular debates on preset topics encourages a free flow of ideas. Participants engage in lively discussion (and even disagreement) that’s backed up by proven facts. When team members consistently flex their intellectual muscles, they’re well-equipped to engage in big-picture thinking and devise creative solutions. Therefore, they’re likely to be more effective when brainstorming their way through a challenging problem.

In my view, fostering improved team collaboration is a real “win-win.” For example, let’s say a large group is tasked with solving a complex problem or designing a multi-component system. By dividing the group into individual teams, and incentivizing each team to be the first to bring a solution, everybody wins.

First, the company can move forward on its goals. In addition, the winning team takes its problem-solving skills to the next level. When they are faced with a new challenge, they bring their aggregate knowledge with them, elevating their performance accordingly.

When there is a conflict, there is a need to align and explore it further, realigning the team at large. Make sure you’re taking the opportunity to incorporate ideas. When you do this, as a leader, it makes your team feel heard and more committed to the mission of the corporation. Additionally, it also makes the team more comfortable bringing forward their disagreements and new thoughts.

How Teams (And Companies) Can Benefit From Conflict

Surprisingly, companies that embrace conflict can realize multiple benefits from this method of engagement. That’s why I encourage my team to bring any topic to the tablez-even if I know it’s likely to bring strong opinions on both sides.

Heightened Creative Mindset

First, heated conflict often becomes the spark for creativity. Two opposing parties each bring their own perspective to the table. When they each take time to comprehend the other’s viewpoint, they can visualize an optimal outcome. Once both parties see what’s possible, they’re in a good position to help transform the image into reality.

Naturally, highly creative people thrive in an environment of mutual respect. Team members should feel that they can voice their “out of the box” ideas and solutions without feeling embarrassed or ridiculed. On my team, that’s a non-negotiable ground rule.

Improved Problem-Solving Skills

Solving a complex problem is a fine art unto itself. Typically, these multi-factorial issues don’t have readily available solutions. Constraints and nuances often abound, seemingly keeping an optimal outcome out of reach.

Exiting this frustrating standoff requires constructive conflict. First, team members should view each disagreement as a problem-solving opportunity. With this framework in place, team members can freely propose ideas and strategies that are unconventional at best. Ultimately, viable ideas (and a workable solution) will likely come forth.

Enhanced Leadership Capabilities

Engaging in productive workplace conflict can help hone team members’ leadership skills. Specifically, employees who take every opportunity to learn conflict management strategies exhibit an increased emotional intelligence.

Stated another way, these future leaders are focused on other team members’ well-being along with organizational growth. In my opinion, these actions position the proactive team member as a good candidate for promotion.

On my own team, a team member’s growing conflict management skills tell me that employee is committed to the organization’s success-and that certainly gets my attention. I’ll provide that team member with additional opportunities to flex their leadership muscles in diverse ways.

Navigating Through Workplace Conflicts

Disagreements will inevitably arise between team members with a commitment to the company’s growth-but perhaps with differing opinions on how to realize that goal. During a heated discussion, treating everyone with respect and honesty is key. This enables team members to address the core issues rather than engage in mutual name-calling and disparagement. Now, the team can come together to find solutions.

Here’s how I personally view workplace conflict. “Don’t turn away from conflict. Use it as a way you can build the relationship as long as there’s respect and understanding that the goal is mutual. A lot of people want to win an argument. What we want to achieve as a team is getting to the right answer.”

To resolve an active conflict, here’s a technique I find very effective. “I think reminding people that the goal is shared…[There are] good ideas on both sides. Let’s slow down and write down the points from this side and the points from that side. Sometimes, two people are saying the exact same thing-but they missed the beginning or the end.”

Avoiding Conflict Isn’t The Answer

Many team members and managers are uncomfortable with conflict. Therefore, they often go to great lengths to avoid these highly charged interactions. Conflict avoidance tactics can include a series of meetings, PowerPoint presentations, ongoing email threads and similar engagement tools.

Although these events seem to move the process forward, everyone is spending long hours spinning their wheels. Seemingly involved team members don’t follow up on their action items. Frustrated managers schedule more meetings to track participants’ progress. This fruitless exercise is both maddening and expensive.

Productive conflict will move the needle in the right direction. First, team members should engage with a mutual goal in mind. By objectively examining each side’s arguments, and acknowledging the common ground, all parties are well-positioned to make forward progress. Once refocused on the goal, and with a solution ironed out, they can formulate an action plan to accomplish their objective.

Forbes Business Council is the foremost growth and networking organization for business owners and leaders. Do I qualify?

Originally published at https://www.forbes.com.

--

--