Do you have a lot of back-channel conversations? They’re basically watercooler chats that don’t seem to make sense for the bigger vision of the company. They are usually people within the company who are pulling vital team members aside to converse about an upcoming project, etc. because they don’t feel comfortable talking to the boss or leadership team about it.

One of Bill’s CEOs has their team whispering in the shadows trying to figure out what was “the next thing” to get done. They were off to the side and not showing strong direction within the company. The problem? The CEO hated conflict and would do anything to avoid it.

The fix? Bill took time to discuss cultural values, childhood upbringing, and why it was such a pain point for this CEO to bring up the tough conversations. With a little bit of self-awareness and reflection, the CEO recognized some of their blindspots and was able to make the necessary changes to the company.

Conflict style discovery is a helpful exercise for any leader to help better manage the expectations their team might have of them. The tough and honest conversations are hard to do, but it will drastically reduce the side whispers within your company and you can finally get the whole team focused on pulling in the same direction.

Resources:

Scaling Up for Business Growth Workshop: Take the first step to mastering the Rockefeller Habits by attending one of our workshops.

Scaling Up Summits (Select Bill Gallagher as your coach during registration for a discount.)

Bill on YouTube

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Scaling Up is the best-selling business growth book by Verne Harnish and our team of coaches. My name is Bill Gallagher, host of the Scaling Up Business Podcast and a leading coach.

We help leadership teams with 4 Decisions around People, Strategy, Execution, and Cash, and the 5th Decision about what kind of leader you want to be. Our purpose is helping you Scale Up successfully and beat the odds of business growth success.

Tuesday’s Tips — Managing the Whispers and Side Conversations

Scaling Up Business with Bill Gallagher