POSITIVE
DISSENT
LOOKING TO BOOST INNOVATION AND COLLABORATION?
ENCOURAGE YOUR EMPLOYEES TO DISAGREE MORE OFTEN.
In August 2014, electric carmaker Tesla
recruited 30 hackers, full time. Why?
They wanted subject-matter experts to
poke holes in their network security, so
they could repair and improve an already
industry-leading product.
Along the same lines, medical researcher
Alice Stewart – who made the link in
the 1950s between the then-routine practice
of X-raying pregnant women and
childhood cancers – regularly worked in
tandem with a statistician named George
Neil. Neil’s sole job was to attempt to disprove
Stewart’s theories. When he couldn’t,
she knew she was on to something.
This practice of actively seeking and
considering opposing points of view is
not only an important tool for decisionmaking,
it’s critical for innovation. In
practical terms, if an organization is trying
to disrupt the market with its goods
or services, that innovative offering can
only evolve out of a culture that’s enthusiastic
about new points of view, invites
a little conflict and welcomes againstthe
grain ideas.
WHAT’S POSITIVE ABOUT
DISSENT?
In organizational culture, you might call
this positive dissent. Its something executive
coach and HR consultant Bonnie
Flatt characterizes as “the ability to disagree
in a positive way while maintaining
connection, trust and respect for others’
points of view.”
It’s not about inviting chaos among the
ranks. A smooth-running business will,
of course, require some amount of order.
But that shouldn’t come at the expense
of employees’ curiosity and willingness
to speak up when they want to or need
to.
There’s a diverse collection of opinions
on offer in nearly every organization,
whether it’s related to cultural background,
life experience, age or gender. An
organization that doesn’t tap into that –
by seeking and encouraging points of view
that might be at odds with leadership or
the status quo – is missing out.
“Positive dissent falls under the simple
premise that two heads are better than
one, four better than two and so on,”
said Anthony Papa, senior vice president
global human resources at Federal-
Mogul Motorparts.
By Melissa Campeau
32 ❚ FEBRUARY 2016 ❚ HR PROFESSIONAL