David from Ghana gave input where he could, as did the other team members.
But everyone really needed to take things more slowly,
because English was a second language for most of the team.
But Beth had trouble slowing down because of the negative interactions between John
and Beth, and the difficulty that the team had communicating in general.
Beth ended up trying to do everything herself.
This was sales negotiations, financial projections, managing operations, etc.
Other members served in their roles, but
there was little conversation in the room to share information.
At the end of the second round,
John was removed from the team because of his behavior.
But this wasn't without negative consequences for Beth and
the other members.
Even though John was removed, Beth also decided to leave the team.
The situation was so upsetting to her,
that she could not recover from the conflict in that short time frame.
John was certainly a difficult teammate in everyone's eyes.
But Beth's unwillingness to adjust her pace
caused her to burn out by taking on too much of the team's responsibilities.
While this is an extreme example of a toxic individual having a negative
impact on the team, Beth's handling of the situation can not be ignored either.
Have you ever avoided conflict and taken on too much yourself?
I know I have.
This kind of scenario, while an extreme case,
can happen to you if your team does not address conflict in a timely manner.
So what could this team have done?
Because conflict can develop at the individual level, it's important to note
that it can affect the team, group, and organizational levels, and
turn into a vicious cycle of damage if the conflict is completely buried.
The team learning, or
taking time to reflect on a dynamics, could have prevented some of the damage
if the team was able to establish compatible ways of thinking.
Better use of people like David, who have relationships across the two individuals
in conflict, could have assisted in bridging gaps between parties.