Navigating Firestorms
As the war between Israel and Hamas grinds on, companies, universities and other public institutions are increasingly finding themselves caught in the maelstrom of the conflict’s politcs. This is nothing new today. COVID-19, George Floyd and Black Lives Matter, #MeToo, Trump-ism, Woke-ism, critical race theory, climate catastrophes, Roe-v-Wade – are only a partial listing of the parade of divisive moral disputes roiling our society and stopping businesses in their tracks. When these many divisions begin to coalesce around core political or value differences, they create firestorms that can take on a life of their own.
Every day, employees revolt, board members resign, donors rescind gifts, advertisers pull ads, and consumers boycott, while leaders are pressured to take public positions on impossibly divisive issues and companies face litigious blow back over what only yesterday seemed like righteous policies, such as DEI. In a world marked by relentless change, division, and unprecedented complexity, the dynamics of conflict have evolved into a defining force that can either propel organizations towards innovation and growth or plunge them into a vortex of chaos and decline.
In this new era of political weaponization of major events, the capacities to quell or channel tensions, open dialogue, and unite passionately riven groups has shot to the top of the list of essential leadership competencies. Gone are the days where shoot-from-the-hip, tell-it-like-it-is, take-it-or-leave it corporate kings could publicly pontificate without consequence –witness Elon Musk, Larry Page, and Kanye West. Today’s leaders and managers would do well to up their conflict-management game and garner greater conflict intelligence.
Don’t worry about sounding professional. Sound like you. There are over 1.5 billion websites out there, but your story is what’s going to separate this one from the rest. If you read the words back and don’t hear your own voice in your head, that’s a good sign you still have more work to do.