Franke James is Editor/Founder of Office-Politics.com and Inventor of the Office-Politics® Game.

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Arnie Herz, is a lawyer, mediator, speaker, author and consultant nationally recognized for his practical and inspired approach to conflict resolution and client counseling.

Dr. John Burton LL.B. M.B.A. M.Div. Ph.D. is an ethicist, mediator, lawyer and theologian. John is currently located in Prince Rupert, B.C., Canada, working with Canada's aboriginal communities.

Now I have a twenty-person-large group of enemies examining everything I do for weaknesses...

June 2005

Dear Office-Politics,

I am an external hire for a position in a company with a group who wanted that position filled internally. Now I have a twenty-person-large group of enemies examining everything I do for weaknesses. Are there ways to turn the situation around?

Parachuted

Dear Parachuted,

To state the obvious and win your enemies over, you need to get everyone working together as a team, agreeing on what the 'big goal' is. So how do you work this magic, especially when you are the outsider?

I think it's safe to assume that the company has hired you, an outsider, to create change and establish a new, healthier order. This sounds like a great opportunity -- but you have to be simultaneously tough and creative. How so?

By 'tough' I mean that you will have to be making some hard decisions as to processes and people. What's not working? Who is not working? What is dysfunctional? What is great? etc.

While some Executives in your position might think they could figure it all out by themselves, through inner wisdom, I think the best approach is through consultation with your team. And even though you think you have 20 enemies, I believe you can and will earn their respect through smart decisions that address endemic problems and correct them. If your 20 team players think they are part of the smart decision-making, all the better.

Here's how to get started:

Dr. Edward de Bono, the well-known creator of the term Lateral Thinking has developed some very useful creative and strategic thinking techniques which I think are ideal for your situation. He has written about it in a book called, 'Six Thinking Hats.' (It was published in the 90s.) The bottom-line reason to read his book, and use his techniques, is that they will help you to quickly bring ideas, gripes, etc. to the surface, and I believe, develop an action plan to manage your team out of these problems -- to a better and healthier future.

In a Six Thinking Hat's meeting everyone has a voice. But the trick is that they must only voice their opinions at certain times. The beauty of the concept is that it helps the moderator (you) to guide people's thinking. You want everyone to think in the same 'direction' at the same time: optimistic, negative, cautious etc. This forces people to put all the 'optimistic' ideas on the table at the same time (while metaphorically wearing their Yellow Hat for example). If someone has a negative view, they can't speak until the negative ideas are ready to be tabled. (Most people love to be seen as coming up with clever ideas, so even the most negative person often comes up with optimistic ideas because they hate to be silenced.)

In my 15 years of experience working with advertising clients, the Six Thinking Hats techniques work superbly. They surface ideas from all corners of the company, and from all levels. They can help you to understand each person's agenda, and what the roadblocks are. We have taken the wisdom from Dr. de Bono's book and applied it into a practical three-step process which we call 'The Creative Vision Session'. The first step is to imagine the Dream (in an ideal world how would your department function?). Then in Step 2, you identify the Hurdles. (What will prevent you from making the Dream real?) In Step 3, you create the Action Plan. (You must assign one person to be in charge of each Action, and decide on a time line.)

At the end of it all you'll have a blueprint, and a construction schedule for change. And how exciting it is that YOU have the opportunity to build this better future.

Let us know how you do. Thanks for writing to Office-Politics.

Aim High,

Franke

Franke James, MFA
Creator, The Office-Politics Game