When problem resolution or change is required, there are often conflicting parties. I truly believe that this will occur less often than most people believe; nevertheless, you will run into people who will not immediately support the needed change or solution.
Listening to the conflictor is crucial, and ideally this is done as part of the planning process, prior to meeting with the senior executive. A story and a plan for solving the problem is very powerful if you have taken the time to work with affected managers and other personnel, in advance, to see if agreement can be reached. Key lessons:
- You learn from the other manager or employee the major issues or resistance points.
- Ideally, you can both agree to a plan to solve the problem
- If agreement is not reached, you have given an honorable notice to the other person that further conversation and conflict on the problem area will occur.
The last point bears further discussion. I have seen in action the “sneak attack” mode of plan presentation. In this scenario, the person with a plan has not discussed this with anyone, except the executive or manager. You are affected and are called in to give your assessment of the “plan”. As you hear the presentation, the plan generally involves major changes to your or your group, with little or no change to the person who is presenting the plan. I do not advocate this method. I believe, as the planner, that it is imperative that you take the burden of discussing the solutions with your peers and try to resolve it first. Then, when presented in a more general meeting, the person who is alerted to the potential conflict will generally respect you more for at least allowing them to prepare. The level of resistance will be far lower and the teamwork of the group increased.
No comments:
Post a Comment