People-what_the_heck_do_we_do_with

03/17/2022:

PEOPLE: What the heck do we do with them?

The problem -quite simply- is people.

As long as humankind survives as a species -both as individuals, as well as our various and bothersome economic, social, political, and ad hoc alliances- people will always be a headache that cannot often be ignored. At worst, people represent an uncomfortable potential danger that triggers all our individual and collective fight or flight response instincts.

As business leaders, how we deal with people matters, when the outcome it produces matters to us. When the outcome seems to have little direct impact on our own agenda, not so much.

To one extent or another, as adults, most of us have learned the art of self-control and self-editing to smooth the way toward achieving our own personal goals and desired outcomes. Nonetheless -deep down- there lies the enfant terrible: the unrealistic fantasy that perhaps others should just stay off of our highways, remain silent at our important meetings, and -at all costs- have the good manners to avoid working for or with us until such time as we absolutely need them to do our bidding.

I have often cited Walt Kelly’s famous Pogo parody of Oliver Hazard Perry’s historical battle report from, “We have met the enemy and they are ours”, to “We have met the enemy and he is us”. The Kelly quote perfectly underscores humankind's inclination to create our own problems with alarming regularity.

All too often, our unrealistic selves burst forth when we find ourselves in uncomfortable or potentially threatening situations. While most of us are wise enough to recognize our own dysfunctional inclinations, and perhaps curb our worst impulses, few of us are adept at stepping outside of ourselves sufficiently to positively resolve a conflict in which we -directly or indirectly- have a personal stake.

While attorneys can certainly advocate our legal and contractual issues, there are many business instances where an attorney’s presence would not only be unwelcomed, but also hideously expensive. How can an attorney’s legal skills alone be applied to issues identifying growth opportunities; assessing risk-reward outcomes; managing regulatory changes; leveraging technology; pursuing innovation; resolving security, hardware, software, and other operational issues; or -most of all- attracting and retaining the “right” talent?

Hint: you may attract people with money, but you won’t be able to keep them with it, alone. Money alone does not buy you loyalty.

Where CEOs and executive leadership see individual contributors as interchangeable parts that can be switched around at will, the approach is straight-forward: “My way or the highway”. Where that is not the preferred leadership approach, the CEO and his/her management team is left to their own devices to deal with the Gordian knot of human frailty, fear, and self-interest.

What CEOs and executive leaders need -in the end- are individuals who are technology savvy, process savvy, and people savvy whenever and wherever they need them. They need individuals who can facilitate competing needs for budget dollars, competing problem-solving approaches, and role-based constraints with skill and impartiality, keeping the overall best interest of the company always in mind.

Conflict analysis and dispute resolution techniques offer such a possibility. Its techniques and tenants are not rocket science, but they do require advocacy and consistency from the top.

Using dispute resolution techniques internally offers the business leader a framework that is easily adaptable to any internal conflict situation. It is ultimately less time-consuming and less destructive than ongoing and unresolved conflict. It is easily transferable to employees and staff to create a corporate culture of win-win outcomes.

The problem may be people, but so, too, is the solution.

© Mark Lefcowitz 2001 - 2024
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