
A three-legged-racing team. These races can be fun — when they're meant to be. At work, though, they can be very un-fun. Photo (cc) by SA 2.0 Virginia State Parks staff.
By assigning a task to two or more impossibly incompatible people, the political operator creates a three-legged race. Perhaps you remember the races from picnics long ago — participants pair up, and standing side-by-side, the right-hand partners tie their left legs to the right legs of the left-hand partners. The pairs then run a race, and comical spills are inevitable.
Three-legged races might be funny at picnics, but in business they're extremely dangerous, because the political operator who selects the race partners has likely arranged for failure. By exploiting a past history of conflict, leadership ambiguity, organizational tensions, or contention for the same promotion, the operator ensures project sabotage, or damage to one or both careers.
Three-legged races are especially challenging when the partners hold joint responsibility for mission success. But even if one is designated lead, there can still be significant trouble if one partner is required to accept the other and is ordered to "make it work."
Three-legged races
might be funny
at picnics, but
in business
they're dangerousEven if you aren't now engaged in a three-legged race, look around. If others are lashed together, or have been in the past, check for patterns. Is it cultural? Does one specific player repeatedly create three-legged races? If so, your turn will come.
If you find yourself in a three-legged race, what can you do?
- Show your partner this essay
- Giving a name to this dynamic helps you both talk about it together. When you both see that someone else has arranged for your troubles, you can see your common interest more clearly.
- Come to consensus about your situation
- Whoever tied you together might be unaware of how destructive the arrangement can be, but more often, the tactic is a cynical attempt to undermine the project or to damage careers. Try to come to consensus about what's really going on.
- Ask for help
- If you can't work things out between you, ask for outside assistance. A professional mediator or facilitator can help both of you see things a bit differently. Avoid asking for help from the operator who lashed you together. By now, you know where that leads.
- If you can't work it out, prepare contingencies
- Things may be so far gone that consensus is impossible, even with the help of a professional. If you're unable to agree, head for the exit. Even if you have enough power in the situation to prevail, your partner usually has enough strength to sabotage the effort. Getting out might be your best option.
Perhaps, as a manager, you arrange three-legged races to give warring parties a chance to "work together" to resolve their problems. Even though you mean well, find another way to help them — this method puts them and the organization at risk. Get help. Dealing with interpersonal difficulties directly actually does work. Top
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Related articles
More articles on Workplace Politics:
Communication Traps for Virtual Teams: II
- Communication can be problematic for any team, especially under pressure. But virtual teams face challenges
that are less common in face-to-face teams. Here's Part II of a little catalog with some recommendations.
On Snitching at Work: II
- Reporting violations of laws, policies, regulations, or ethics to authorities at work can expose you
to the risk of retribution. That's why the reporting decision must consider the need for safety.
Bottlenecks: I
- Some people take on so much work that they become "bottlenecks." The people around them repeatedly
find themselves stuck, awaiting responses or decisions. Why does this happen and what are the costs?
Is It Arrogance or Confidence?
- Confusing arrogance and confidence can cause real trouble — or lost opportunities. What exactly
is the difference between them?
Capability Inversions and the Dunning-Kruger Effect
- A capability inversion occurs when the person in charge of an effort is far less knowledgeable about
the work involved or its purpose than are the people doing that work. In capability inversions, the
Dunning-Kruger effect can intensify group dysfunction, sometimes severely disrupting the effort.
See also Workplace Politics, Managing Your Boss and Devious Political Tactics for more related articles.
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Beware any resource that speaks of "winning" at workplace politics or "defeating" it. You can benefit or not, but there is no score-keeping, and it isn't a game.
- Wikipedia has a nice article with a list of additional resources
- Some public libraries offer collections. Here's an example from Saskatoon.
- Check my own links collection
- LinkedIn's Office Politics discussion group