What Breaks Every Perfectly Good Team?

Monday morning began normally.

Sales won a new customer and promised delivery within two weeks. Nobody checked with Manufacturing first. Manufacturing quietly adjusted the production schedule, annoyed that Sales had made another promise without asking.

Finance then rejected Sales’ expense claim because one receipt was missing. Sales felt Finance was being difficult. Finance felt Sales was careless.

Meanwhile, HR sent an email reminding everyone about a new leave procedure. Manufacturing supervisors complained that HR had created another rule without understanding the realities of the factory floor.

At the management meeting, General Management changed the priority of a major project. The message was brief: “This is now urgent.”

Manufacturing changed its schedule again. Finance questioned the additional costs. Sales complained that customer commitments were being affected. HR was asked to find additional manpower immediately.

None of these incidents was serious on its own.

But they accumulated.

Sales began bypassing Finance. Finance became stricter with Sales. Manufacturing stopped trusting Sales’ promises. HR became increasingly involved in operational decisions. Managers began protecting their own departments.

The organization still had one common Goal.

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These are some generic occurrences in companies.

Department	Potential Conflicts	OEQ Area
1. Sales	Promises delivery dates that Manufacturing cannot meet; offers discounts without Finance approval; demands urgent production; blames other departments when targets are missed; provides incomplete customer information; prioritises revenue over process.	Workflow, Roles & Responsibilities, Power Struggle
2. Finance	Rejects Sales expenses or discounts; delays approvals; focuses heavily on cost control; demands documentation that Sales considers excessive; disagrees with Management on spending priorities; challenges departmental budgets.	Workflow, Roles & Responsibilities, Power Struggle
3. Human Resources	Introduces policies that departments perceive as impractical; expects managers to follow HR procedures; struggles to balance employee needs with Management expectations; intervenes in departmental conflicts; delays recruitment or disciplinary processes.	Roles & Responsibilities, Workflow, Power Struggle
4. Manufacturing	Resists last minute Sales requests to optimize efficiency and productivity over customer demands; confused about inaccurate forecasts; balancing raw material costs and priorities and production; Insecure with Sales for unrealistic promises; resists process changes introduced by Management.	Workflow, Personality, Roles & Responsibilities
5. General Management	Sets ambitious targets without understanding operational realities; changes priorities frequently; gives conflicting instructions; expects departments to cooperate without clarifying responsibilities; intervenes selectively; creates competition between departments.	Goals, Roles & Responsibilities, Workflow, Power Struggle

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Understanding Cross-Department Conflict Map

To identify and resolve Organization or Team Dysfunction, Corporate Managers can also examine conflicts between pairs of departments:

Sales ↔ Finance

• Sales wants flexibility; Finance wants control.
• Sales wants faster approvals; Finance wants proper documentation.
• Sales focuses on revenue; Finance focuses on profitability and risk.

Sales ↔ Manufacturing

• Sales promises the customer; Manufacturing has to deliver.
• Sales wants speed; Manufacturing wants stability.
• Sales changes priorities; Manufacturing sees this as disruption.

Sales ↔ HR

• Sales wants people quickly; HR follows recruitment processes.
• Sales wants performance pressure; HR is concerned about employee wellbeing and policy.
• Sales managers may feel HR is interfering in their management.

Finance ↔ Manufacturing

• Finance wants lower costs; Manufacturing wants sufficient resources.
• Finance questions overtime and production expenses.
• Manufacturing may feel Finance does not understand operational realities.

Finance ↔ HR

• HR wants competitive salaries and benefits; Finance wants to control costs.
• HR prioritises employee needs; Finance prioritises budgets.
• Disagreements may arise over headcount and compensation.

Manufacturing ↔ HR

• Manufacturing wants skilled manpower immediately; HR follows recruitment timelines.
• HR introduces policies that Manufacturing sees as disruptive.
• Managers may disagree about employee performance and disciplinary action.

General Management ↔ Everyone

• Management sets the Goal, but departments interpret the Goal differently.
• Management may change priorities without explaining the reasons.
• Departments may feel Management does not understand their operational challenges.
• Management may believe departments are working in silos.
• Departments may blame one another rather than taking Accountability.

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The OEQ Question

The important exercise is not simply to ask:

“Which department is causing the problem?”

Instead, ask:

“What Behavior is creating the conflict, and what is the underlying OEQ issue?”

Corporate Managers should identify the symptoms, trace them back to Personality, Workflow, Roles & Responsibilities or Power Struggle, and then recommend the Behavior they would like to see instead. Regular clarifications can help each Manager improve their communication process as well as to collaborate better.