Any outcome is better than staying the sameWhen I work with groups, we are all in the same room. I usually start each session by sharing that my idea of a worst-case scenario is when nothing changes. Conflict resolution almost always invites doing something differently. Earlier this week, I caught up with a client with I had done some 1:1 coaching with back in the Fall. At the time, her team was caught up in significant interpersonal conflict. Here’s the background: she was leading a team as a significant deadline approached. The project was complex, there were competing priorities regarding other projects and they were short one person as their boss was away that week. She asked for help. Some other colleagues agreed to jump in. The next week, she worked remotely from her in-laws’ place, which she had always planned to do. Her colleagues concluded that she passed her work off so she could go on vacation without saying so. She said that was absolutely not the case. It exploded.
She was shut out by her team and her boss didn’t want to hear anything about it. And she tried, many times. Here’s the update she shared with me: she quit. You can’t bridge interpersonal conflict on your own, especially if leadership is not willing or able to emphasize the value of collaboration over ostracization. My client recognized that the status quo was not an option for her. This isn’t the sort of change I invite at client sessions, but it’s a clear example of why maintaining the status quo is undesirable. Her former employer will now incur the costs, financial and otherwise, of hiring a replacement. They will bear a knowledge gap on that complex project which is still ongoing. The remaining team will bear the burden of additional work while roles are reassigned and someone new gets up to speed. The employer, their client, and her colleagues are each impacted by that loss. Think about if you were that employer – was staying the same really worth it?
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