Read the extract of ‘Let’s stick together’ and discuss the questions that follow.

In many organisations the functional silo is alive and well. A common view is finance does not provide information required by sales and is trying to prevent sales from selling by vetoing deals or attempting to reduce entertainment budgets.

Members of the finance department can also be critical of the sales team, especially when the rest of the organization is tightening its belt and sales people seem to be blowing significant money on entertainment expenses, have little accountability for how they spend their time and are perceived to believe cost reduction does not relate to them.

Of course, such conflicts are not limited to finance and sales. They often occur between sales and production regarding availability of product, and between research and development and production in relation to the manufacturability of newly designed products.

The finance department is not only a participant in some of the interdivisional conflicts, but often as an important player in some of the activities that can be the glue to integrate divisions or functions within a company. In a difficult economic environment the balance of power often moves to finance given a need to reduce costs and increase accountability.

Root causes of interdivisional conflict within an organization can include:

• Different subcultures and mental maps for success.
• Group dynamics.
• Inconsistent and incomplete information.
• Performance measures that seek to maximize the performance of one function, not the company as a whole.

Poor communication.

Required

A. Do you agree with the author’s view that divisional conflicts are common in organisations? Why? Why not?

B. Identify other departments which are likely to have competing interests and provide examples of potential conflicts.

C. Devise some strategies to address each of the author’s root causes.