Conflict Makes High-Performing Teams

This post was originally published on November 12, 2020, on Instagram as part of Her Growth Collective.

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I love building high-performing teams. They come in all shapes and sizes. They can include employees, contractors, vendors, and volunteers. The one thing all high performing teams have in common is conflict.

Surprised? Early in my first master’s program I learned about Bruce Tuckman’s stages of team formation. They include (in order): Forming, Storming, Norming, and Performing. Back then it just sounded like easy points on a test but this model has proven itself time and again over my career.

Conflict is the thing that stops most teams from becoming high-performing. In some cases the team runs into conflict and it becomes highly apparent that one member of the team lacks respect for their fellow teammates. That is a relatively straightforward problem to solve in most cases. Replace the bad egg and the team can get back to the business of building relationships and establishing norms.

What I actually see blocking the most teams from really performing is the incessant need to avoid conflict at all costs. Cut off team conflict and the team stops growing. Working through conflict helps teams establish cultural norms, boundaries, and communication styles. It also helps them build trust in one another.

In either situation, a team that cannot move through the Storming (i.e. conflict) stage cannot reach the Performing stage and will rely heavily on process and micromanagement to get anything done.

There is no need to manufacture conflict. Give a new team time and something is bound to come up. As the leader, it’s your job to help the team work through the conflict so that they can come out stronger on the other side.

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This post is written in partnership with #HerGrowthCollective, encouraging women to walk the path of self-development together.