Product Management playbook/Module 9 · Stakeholders

Day 88 / 100 · Stakeholders · Handling conflict between teams

Conflict is about goals, not people.

Most cross-team conflict comes from different goals and pressures. Make those visible and the argument usually changes shape.

Name the shared goal

What do both teams ultimately want for the customer?

Surface constraints

What pressures and targets is each team under?

Positions vs interests

“We need X” hides a reason. Find the reason.

Agree criteria, then decide

Decide how to choose before choosing.

Source: Program on Negotiation, Harvard Law School ↗

Separate the people from the problem.