Side conversations are a part of doing business in any decision-making environment, however the benefits can quickly be lost when managed incorrectly. In this article Gardner and Peterson outlining the challenges of managing side conversations, highlight the difference between side conversations that are conducted properly versus improperly, and demonstrate how each affects decision making. Following the presentation of these challenges, Gardner and Peterson offer steps for how to prevent side conversations from undermining a team’s ability to make decisions. These steps fall into three categories: preparation for side conversations to happen, maintaining trust, and integrating the product of side conversations back into the main decision-making conversation.
My wife was the president of a local non-profit organization at the time this article was assigned, and all of the challenges and steps were immediately relevant as her organization was being ripped apart through side conversations. Political maneuvering, inappropriate alliances and personal marginalization were commonplace. Rules of engagement were never a topic, and most side conversations amounted to venting about others. Based on my reading of this article it would appear that side conversations in my department are handled quite well, by comparison. When all facts are not available at once or decisions can’t be made in the span of a meeting our issues can and will progress constructively between meetings through side conversations. But the takeaway for me and the area I know my organization can improve is to establish clear rules of engagement. One place to start is not to assume people know how to conduct side conversations or know how to effectively determine what is off-limits. Gardner and Peterson point to this as a primary source of improper conduct with side conversations. Based on people’s professional titles, years of experience, degrees of expertise, etc. it is often assumed people of stature are naturally predisposed to conduct side conversations. This is false.
LO 2: Demonstrate the ability to assess complex organizational environments and achieve communication goals
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