Us Versus Them

Jim, a communications engineer at a major telecommunications company, works from his laptop computer to troubleshoot and resolve customer issues. As long as he has his computer, the solutions can come quickly. Without it, he must call a peer and help him or her investigate a switch he or she s not familiar with, which could take hours—while customers remain without service or with unresolved problems.

“Why would you be without your computer?” I asked Jim. “Well,” he said, “if I don’t have it, for sure the techie boys do.”

His description of the technical department was purposefully tart, reflecting a sour relationship between Jim’s call center and the company’s technical department. According to Jim, the technical department is comprised mostly of young males “bursting with computer knowledge and attitude” who feel that they are overworked, underpaid, and very overqualified. “They all think they should be at Microsoft designing and testing the newest software available and making boatloads of money, not babysitting end users and working on antiquated equipment.”

In Jim’s call center, if you tell someone your laptop is being serviced, you will likely get a standard, sly response: “Oh yeah, what did you do to it now?” According to those at the call center, the technical department never found computer problems to be system-related or due to malfunctioning hardware. Instead, problems were always found to be user-related. When people took their laptops in for repair, they got humiliated with the “techie boys’” litany of questions: “Well, what did you do to it this time? Surf the Internet on some unauthorized sites? Add more ‘system-hog’ extras? Do your taxes again? Open another e-mail virus?”

“I’d sooner face a root canal, grand jury indictment, or an IRS audit than the ridicule from the techie boys,” Jim said. “They get their chuckles watching me explain the symptoms while they interrogate me on where I have been or what I have done to ‘their’ piece of equipment.”

Jim admits that he sometimes just tolerates the computer problems so that he does not have to face the technical department. Consequently, the quality of customer service can be affected, and—since he must do all his status reports and time sheets on the computer—he has to spend several hours in the evening at home getting current when his computer is slow or out for repair.

Jim and his call center and the technical department are involved in an internal conflict that damages the quality of customer service, employee morale, and productivity. While the language of the conflict—the “us-versus-them” destructive comments—is just a symptom of a larger problem, such language also feeds the problem. Comments that group people together and label them—whether by department, level of management, race, age, or socioeconomic status—can limit and divide organizations while at the same time build a false sense of camaraderie. These destructive comments sound like

• “Where do those people in finance come up with these ridiculous forms, Mars?”

• “Did you see the latest from the marketing department? They must think our customers are stupid.”

• “This e-mail proves it. The people at the top are clueless when it comes to understanding what we’re up against.”

• “Working with Jerry’s team is like walking through a minefield. I’d rather do it myself.”

• “Oh, of course, when one of the executive team flies, it’s first class. But for us peons, it’s the back of the bus.”

Linda Potter, senior vice president and chief financial officer (CFO) of SunTrust Bank’s Central Group in Atlanta, makes it a point to frequently say, “We’re all in this together,” and believes that us-versus-them mentalities may even indicate a lack of commitment. “Once you choose to work for a company, then you’ve chosen to be on the same team as everyone else,” she said. “If you begin to speak of us versus them, then you may need to reevaluate whether you are truly committed to the company.”

A leader who wants to break down the silos in his or her organization needs to help people see how different teams, departments, or divisions interrelate and help to make the whole organization thrive. Groups cannot see themselves as an entity that is not part of a greater whole. Consider putting together a committee of representatives from all the organization’s different entities and have them devise strategies for how each group can help the others get their work done. Use language that exhibits a spirit of cooperation and understanding instead of divisiveness. Follow these five principles:

1. Lose the champ mentality. Competition within companies can be effective, but be careful when the “win-lose” mentality carries over to who gets what resources, budgetary dollars, status, and so on. Talk openly about departmental discrepancies in senior management meetings and company forums. Educate everyone about the scope of the business, bottom-line issues, the competition, and how and why decisions are made.

2. Ask and ask again. Keep the information flowing by beginning or ending every meeting or conference call with questions that beg answers: “What’s on your mind?” “What keeps you up at night?” “What do you need to know that you don’t?” “What other questions do you have?” Making a habit of such questions also will encourage others to question what they do not understand.

3. Plug the gap. Sharing information is critical even in the smallest of organizations, but do not get caught in information overload. Establish an e-mail trail or tag teams that relay information such as product updates, company news, and so on. Hold departments responsible for updating others, and create communications guidelines.

4. Partner up. Employees expect bosses to establish strong connections with other leaders in the company, and yet many managers neglect these peer relationships. Nurture and build networks of strong alliances within the organization. Invite a colleague to your weekly meeting for an informal update on his or her area. Schedule informal 30-minute, agenda-free conversations with peers to talk about challenges and ideas. Make these partnerships a priority.

5. Do not go away mad. It is not always easy for leaders to buy into an idea they believe is unnecessary or half-baked for “the greater good.” Instead of encouraging senior management to vent, most CEOs want to keep moving. If you do not make time for tough conversations when the team is together, what could have been aired and dealt with in the meeting will end up in a snide e-mail or water-cooler conversation. Do not allow people to pretend to agree. Take the time to air disagreements. Work to get comfortable with conflict, and engage everyone.