4 ways to harness the power of conflict in your team

Max Lucado, US author and minister, once said “conflict is inevitable, but combat is optional”. And, workplace teams are certainly no exception.

Just think, how often have you experienced conflict within a team at work? Research shows that approximately one in three people have had a dispute with a team member or their line manager at work.[1]

The inevitability of conflict within teams shouldn’t be surprising though; teamwork in business demands the co-operation of people who have their own personal agendas, interests, needs and preferences for ways of working. For team leaders, this means there’s often the nightmare possibility that conflict will blow up, consume people’s energy and sink team performance.

But, should conflict in a team always be something to worry about? Or is there a potential upside?