Why Great Leaders Don't Take Yes for an Answer: Managing for Conflict and Consensus (Hardcover)

Part I - Leading the Decision Process - consists of 2 chapters and introduces a conceptual framework for thinking about how to diagnose, evaluate, and improve strategic decision-making. In the first chapter the author explains why leaders should cultivate conflict and consensus simultaneously as well as why they typically find it very difficult to achieve this objective. In the second chapter, Roberto describes the implicit and explicit choices that leaders make to shape and influence how the decision process unfolds. Through these process choices, leaders can create the conditions that enable them to manage conflict and consensus in a constructive manner.

The second part, which consists of 3 chapters, focuses on the task of Managing Conflict. In Chapter 3 the author describes the factors that inhibit candid dialogue and debate in organizations. It distinguishes between "hard" and "soft" barriers that block the discussion of dissenting views. "Hard" barriers consist of structural aspects of the organization, such as demographic composition of the senior management team, the complexity of reporting relationships, and ambiguity in job/role definitions. The "soft" barriers comprise things, such as differences in status, the language system used to discuss failures in the organization, and certain taken-for-granted assumptions about how people should behave. The following chapter explains how leaders can stimulate heightened levels of conflict in their firms and provides a variety of mechanisms and practices, including their strengths and weaknesses, which leaders can use for this purpose. In the final chapter of this part, Roberto offers a set of tools and strategies which leaders can use to keep conflict constructive ("disagree without being disagreeable").

Part III - Building Consensus - concentrates on the creation of consensus within organizations without compromising the level of divergent and creative thinking. The author first discusses the dynamics of paralyzed by indecision, which can make the life of leaders extremely difficult. He then turns to the 2 building blocks of consensus: procedural fairness and legitimacy. It discusses methods and processes in which leaders can get people to co-operate even when they disagree with the final decision. The final chapter of this part addresses how leaders can move to closure during a contentious set of deliberations. There is a section on the management of the interplay between divergent and convergent thinking in order to bring timely closure to a decision process. This chapter introduces an approach/model of seeking "small wins" at various points during a complex and perhaps controversial decision-making process.

The final part of the book - A New Breed of Take-Charge Leader - consists of just one chapter, This chapter reflects on the book's philosophy of leadership and decision-making, which differs fundamentally from conventional views held by managers. Roberto distinguishes 2 approaches to "taking charge" when confronted with a difficult decision. In the traditional approach, leaders provide solutions to their organization's problems (the "take charge" and act decisively-approach). The alternative approach calls for leaders to take an active role shaping, influencing, and directing the process by which their organizations make high-stakes choices, without micromanaging the content of the decision. This latter approach entails a disciplined focus on how choices are made, not simply what the organization should do.

Yes, I do like this book - although I think that the title is misleading and somewhat "cheesy". The book discusses improvements to decision-making through the management of conflict and consensus in this process. The reasoning used in the book is based on sound research, whereby it useful to know that the author has massive academical credentials. I believe that the strength of the book comes from reminding us that successful management of conflict can result in better decision-making. The book also includes good advice on how to manage this conflict, which people often try to avoid and results in weak decisions. Highly recommended to managers and people interested in decision-making.

How do you overcome that? Authors like Tom Peters give you lists of things to do such as "manage by walking around" which can help.

Professor Roberto of Harvard Business School has gone one step past John Kotter's work on leadership in this book to help the leader see the role that she or he needs to play in setting up decision and implementation processes that will succeed. In that sense, this book is in the tradition of Jim Collins in Built to Last and Good to Great.

Professor Roberto focuses primarily on encouraging dissent in looking at choices and then on a process that is perceived as fair to select the best choice and to move forward into implementation. In doing so he emphasizes the need to minimize friction while maximizing organizational gains.

His advice is built both from successful and unsuccessful case histories and academic research. So you get a good overview of all the work in this field in just one book. As a result, I think this book is a "must read" for any business leader.

The book also fits my own experiences. Most leaders never realize that they should work on the process they are using if it doesn't yield the results they want. If you try to talk to them about a better process, they look at you like you are some kind of academic nerd . . . rather than someone who wants to make their efforts more practical and successful.

I found the comparisons between John F. Kennedy's flawed process leading up to the Bay of Pigs invasion and his handling of the Cuban missile crisis to be especially compelling and interesting. I think you will, too.

The book has a number of minor flaws. Professor Roberto seems to have studied the literature on this subject more than he talked to those who developed the literature. Where I know the authors, the points they make about their own research are slightly different from what Professor Roberto has to say about them. For example, those who use scenarios describe how a group eventually finds solutions that are superior choices . . . regardless of the future environment. Professor Roberto doesn't mention that potential benefit at all.

But you'll still be way ahead of the game, even if you miss the nuances. But if any academic's work interests you after reading this book, I encourage you to contact the academic directly and read their work as well.

I thought that the best part of the book came in the discussions and examples on how to change cultures that aren't working.

Thank you, Professor Roberto!