Have you worked in an organization that embraces conflicts as a chance to develop? I have - and it was a great experience. Though an experience that craves trust from top to bottom, which is hard work in ALL organizations.
I work with a concept based on three types of group dynamics: liquidating, recurrent and developing relations and dynamics. This concept have proved it's worth in a number of organizations and is orginally conceptualized by a company called Scanlead, that I have been so priviledged to work with for more than ten years.
Basically most organizations have more or less all three types of behaviors, but interesting enough is what you can do if you KNOW what behavior is what. The first two kinds of dynamics is characterized with a stagnant behavior with very little focus on developing relations between the different parts of the organization. Someone is right, and someone is wrong. In both instances you have no real wish to embrace conflicts as a developing platform - if you listn (and I mean REALLY LISTEN) to your colleagues.
Though in a developing culture inside a company - you listen with the intent of understanding the other party's worry or apprehentions. You acknowledge that there is not one truth, but a possibility of investigating the other possibilities. In a lot of ways I see this also as a cultural thing, but that is a whole different topic for a another blog.
My point is: working in a culture and an organization that embraces a developing attitude towards conflicts will get ahead of the game. Well, they will even invent their own game. And this kind of company, culture or organization I would like to work in. How about you? Do you listen?
