Too often, teams default to compliance or groupthink, avoiding friction at the cost of innovation. The key to unlocking their full potential is fostering constructive dissent—the ability to challenge ideas respectfully and productively. Here’s how.

Set ground rules. Commit as a team to open, respectful debate. Define clear expectations, such as prohibiting personal attacks, ensuring equal participation, and prioritizing good-faith engagement. 

Follow a four-step process. Generate ideas, clarify assumptions, introduce friction through challenges, and move forward with the best ideas. 

Recognize that innovation happens at intersections. Most breakthroughs occur where different disciplines meet—and sometimes disagree. Encourage collaboration across functions to spark new ideas and creative solutions.

Build trust. When people know their colleagues’ motives, they feel safer speaking up. Strengthen relationships on your team through both structured conversations and informal interactions.

Assign dissenting roles. To depersonalize disagreement, rotate team members into positions where they must challenge ideas or advocate for perspectives they don’t necessarily hold. 

Lead with inquiry. Encourage your team to avoid direct contradictions that undermine people and create defensiveness. Instead, ask thoughtful questions to guide conversations toward deeper understanding.

Model the behavior. As a leader, be the first to propose ideas and the last to critique them. Your approach sets the tone for how the team engages in dissent.
This tip is adapted from “How Constructive Dissent Can Unlock Your Team’s Innovation,” by Timothy R. Clark.
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