Jeff McLanahan
Contributing Writer
American Residential Services

As we work together, there will always be times when we simply do not get along with each other.  This is human nature.  We all think differently.  But when these times occur, we need to have the courage to address our concerns with those we disagree with.  Unfortunately, most people go out of their way to avoid these types of discussions until the issues blows up.

These discussions are somewhat easier to have with people who work for us than those that do not.  But in most jobs, we have others that support us in one way or another.  For example, the relationship between HVAC Sales and HVAC Installation teams.

As a member of the Installation team, the Sales team plays a large role in your success.  There is an old saying, “Nothing happens until something gets sold.”  But any Installer with any tenure in the industry has a long list of issues on jobs that can be attributed directly to something the Sales team could have addressed when the system was sold.  Is the Installation team able to have productive discussions with the Sales team?  Do they point out the issues and collaborate to correct them for future sales or do they create their own workarounds, complain to one another, and avoid having the discussion?

In my experience, avoiding this conflict is generally the path taken, and not just in this example, but in most situations.  For the most part, people keep things to themselves (or among their teams) and do not “rock the boat.”

In the book The Five Dysfunctions of a Team, Patrick Lencioni lists the five key issues that impact teams and decrease their performance, team effectiveness and morale.  One of these five dysfunctions is a fear of conflict.

At this point you may be asking yourself, “Isn’t conflict bad for teams?”  There is conflict that can be detrimental, but Lencioni suggests that most conflict in a business setting can be healthy.  Healthy conflict allows teams to identify problems, collaborate on resolutions, and when done properly, holds people accountable.  He goes on to say that the biggest challenge is creating an environment that allows for healthy conflict.

How do you create this environment?

You might start by having a part of your regular meeting devoted to identifying issues.  Reiterate to the group to concentrate on the issue versus a specific person.  If/when someone begins discussing a specific person, redirect them right away back to the issue.  Remember this meeting is to identify issues that are having a negative impact on the business in some form or fashion.  Concentrating on a person instead of an issue will only make people defensive and unwilling to bring forth future issues for fear of being singled out themselves.

Allow for healthy debate on the best way or ways to address an issue, but in the end make sure the team collaborates on a way to go forward.  Ensure that everyone is aware of the new operating procedure and are held accountable to following it.

Creating this safe and productive environment will take some time and it will most certainly take effort.  Afterall, if it was easy, everyone would do it.