Silos, Politics, and Turf Wars

“There is perhaps no greater cause of professional anxiety and turnover than employees fighting with people in their own organization.”

Have you ever felt at home or at work that you are at war against the very people who you thought were supposed to be on your side?! This issue of “internal fighting” is at the heart of the book Silos, Politics, and Turf Wars by Patrick Lencioni.

Too often organizations are greatly hindered or even sometimes destroyed by people who seem at times to be unwilling to work together. Insecurity, a lack of trust, dishonesty, different objectives, and an unwillingness to share information plagues our places of work and just about every group of people. If we can figure out how to eliminate these silos, we can begin to reach our potential as organizations. The author of this book offers some good insights in to how we can solve this great epidemic.

Unifying Purpose

“If everything is important, then nothing is.”

Perhaps the number one way to start eliminating infighting and silos is to create a common purpose. Do people know why they come to work every day? Do they understand what the ultimate goal of the organization is? Do they know how they can contribute? Too often people are uncertain what is most important and thus they create their own priorities based on their personal beliefs. When this happens, (multiplied by numerous individuals, departments, divisions, etc.) we can understand why there is so much fighting and confusion. Leaders must create a vision with common goals and objectives that can unite and unify their teams. When everyone has the same end in mind with a clear sense of purpose, working together becomes much easier.

Create a Crisis

“A crisis brings out the best in companies.”

The author notes how often in the event of an emergency, people work well together. Very little infighting, resistance, arguments, etc. tend to occur when someone’s life is in immediate jeopardy for example because people want to do all they can to help save the life. Similarly the author encourages leaders to find a way to ensure members of an organization feel a sense of urgency in reaching goals and obtaining results. When organizations can create mechanisms that cause discomfort and “emergency” situations, silos are greatly eliminated.

Make a contribution

“That is why you are here, so that you contribute across the board.”

Finally, team members must understand that their overall objective is to make an overall contribution to the vision of the organization. Simply helping yourself or your department at the expense of sacrificing performance toward the main objective is unacceptable. Leaders must stress that group members are a part of the team to make an overall positive impact on the group. Too often leaders reward individuals who help themselves or their departments succeed but in the process hurt progress toward the ultimate goal. Ensuring that rewards are based on overall contribution to the organization’s purpose is critical.

One final important point from the author is that most people want to work well together—people do not enjoy the battles!! Leaders often inaccurately believe their team members are to blame or that they actually do not want to work together, but this rarely is the case. Often the main reason why team members do not work well together is because leaders in the organization are failing to follow some or all of the simple suggestions above.

As we unify our teams around a common purpose, create a crisis, and teach and reward contribution, our ability to eliminate internal fighting and silos within our organizations will greatly increase. And in turn, our ability to lead and be successful will grow. Good luck!!

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