Should organizations encourage disagreement?

Not long ago I joined a LinkedIn group of government professionals.  It is not a profession I am unfamiliar with as I have provided training for teams within the department for the last 16 years.  I had hoped to stir up some conversation to better understand their needs and challenges.  My posts certainly encouraged conversation; what initially surprised me was the level of hostility expressed by some.   If my posting was not easily applicable it provoked anger as if I were somehow invading their sacred space.

My initial reaction was to not waste my time where my efforts were unappreciated.   Then I realized my experience is not dissimilar to the efforts of employees who “cross boundaries”.  These boundaries might be organizational, generational or even geographical.  We put up walls to protect ourselves because we fear the unknown.  Small children have none of this dysfunction.  They are not confined by color, gender, religious beliefs, political party or popular culture.  They have no need to hide, pretend, defend, feign interest or contend for position.  They are a product of the present.

One morning upon reading the groups updates I noticed that a single member had taken it upon herself to decide that “I should go”.  I would be impressed if she had taken the time to use the transparency of this venue to poll the members, solicit feedback and express the collective opinion of the group, but instead she has elected to attempt to use coercive power to “Bully” me which is exactly why I had chosen to join the group in the first place.

Anyone who has worked with me over the last 16 years knows that I am a tremendous advocate of both front line and leadership alike.  The area I believe to be incompatible with peak performance is any culture that allows a very small group of people to impose their beliefs on others with impunity.  I don’t think this is fair for the employees or the public.

There are processes by which leaders and managers can address disruptive and de-energizing behavior but they are incredibly time-consuming, inordinately litigious and unpleasant for everyone.  I have many very good friends and managers I admire within this particular group.  I have also been subjected to some of the most unpleasant, disrespectful, inconsiderate people I have ever had the displeasure of meeting.  The disturbing part is that these re-energize have no compunction about behaving badly wherever and whenever they please regardless of the negative influence on anyone else.

This is not endemic to this particular group; there are those whose sense of entitlement is an infection in every profession.  They function in an organization the same way a cancer behaves in a living organism, consuming irreplaceable time, energy and resources.

Some organizations respond to these invasive and destructive species with enhanced regulation and “improved” policy.  This is what I would describe as the chemotherapy* approach to management.  Although this approach may curb the influence of “cancerous” individuals it may also suppress creativity, innovation and even simple kindness.

I have studied this problem for many, many years.  I used to believe the answer was in training leaders or using outside experts but I no longer believe those to be the most effective solutions.  The answer to bullying behavior, whether it is with an 8-year-old on a playground, 320-pound professional athlete, “entitled” public employee, or overbearing manager is through the Power of Peers.

Peer influence is incredibly powerful.  It shapes businesses, communities, services and even countries.   It does not need to be mean spirited or disrespectful in any way but it requires that we do not turn away when others are being mistreated.  The solution to bad behavior is the loving light of awareness.  We all behave badly sometimes and we should feel safe to occasionally go “off the rails”, but people whose path is firmly fixed on fear need to find a new way or another place.

I will close with the final scene from A Few Good Men. I copied this description from a movie review. “Two privates were pronounced NOT GUILTY on counts of murder but GUILTY on counts of behavior unfit for a Marine. One private said to the other we didn’t do anything wrong we were ordered a code red, the other responded we were wrong, “WE WERE SUPPOSED TO BE FIGHTING FOR THOSE WHO CAN’T FIGHT FOR THEMSELVES….”

Peer Power is not just about fighting for people who can’t fight for themselves but fighting for the best that is in ourselves.  I choose this challenge because at this moment it is the best thing I can think of to do that is help-full.  Change takes time, take your time to create a Positive Peer Pull to creating the best workplace possible.

*Traditional chemotherapeutic agents act by killing cells that divide rapidly, one of the main properties of most cancer cells.