Leadership: Debugging Human Errors
Conflict is inevitable in any high-performing team, especially in leadership development. When ambitious individuals clash, it presents a unique challenge and a valuable opportunity for growth. The team learnt this at Ah Beng's IT Solutions, a bustling Singapore SME, through a very "local" experience. Ah Beng was grooming two promising coders, Mei Ling and Raj, for leadership roles. Both were brilliant, driven and, unfortunately, convinced they were the only brilliant ones. This competition led to a classic clash of egos, a scenario familiar to any organisation nurturing emerging leaders. Of course, these are not their real names to protect the identity of my client.
Recognising The Signs of Conflict
The tension manifested in several ways:
·?????? Subtle Undermining—Mei Ling "accidentally" overwrote Raj's code, and Raj retaliated by turning the office air conditioner into a "sauna" during her coding sessions.
·?????? Confrontation—An intense argument over semicolons versus tabs during a project deadline meeting escalated into personal attacks, with accusations of "coding like a chicken" and "using outdated floppy disk techniques."
·?????? Decreased Productivity - Missed deadlines and a tense office atmosphere, where even the office fish seemed stressed, signalled a clear drop in team morale.
Navigating The Conflict With "Kopi" Wisdom
A seasoned hawker-turned-tech-entrepreneur, Ah Beng recognised the signs of brewing conflict and decided to intervene.
·?????? Individual Conversations - He held separate "kopi" sessions with Mei Ling and Raj, patiently listening to their perspectives and focusing on their coding behaviours, not their personalities.
·?????? Facilitating a Joint Meeting - A joint "kopi" session forced them to confront their semicolon/tab war, ending with Ah Beng's stern warning about coding in Visual Basic if they didn't cooperate.
·?????? Coaching and Mentorship - He assigned Uncle Lim, a senior developer, to mentor them, focusing on emotional intelligence and collaborative coding.
Turning Conflict into a Catalyst for Growth
Ah Beng framed the conflict as a "debugging session" for their leadership skills.
·?????? Learning Opportunities - He emphasised the importance of active listening, empathy, and conflict resolution.
·?????? Team Building - A "LAN party" coding competition encouraged collaboration, albeit with some initial grumbling.
·?????? Celebrating Successes - When they delivered a project on time, a "teh tarik" party celebrated their achievement, reinforcing positive behaviours.
Ah Beng's blend of hawker wisdom and tech-savvy transformed a potential disaster into a "shiok" learning experience. By proactively addressing the conflict and turning it into a learning opportunity, he helped Mei Ling and Raj develop the resilience, emotional intelligence, and collaborative skills they needed to succeed. This case exemplifies how conflict can be a powerful catalyst for growth, even in a dynamic environment for SMEs in Singapore.
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