Behavioral

How do you handle conflicts between two teams that are failing to deliver a feature?

Technical Program Manager

Square

DeliveryHero

Wayfair

Pinterest

Dell

Zomato

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Answers

Anonymous

4 months ago
4.2Exceptional
Using a root-cause analysis framework such as Ishikawa (or fishbone diagram) and talking to each team individually determine the source of the factors that led to the disagreement and ultimately led to the failure of the two teams failing to deliver the feature. With empathy and compassion, explain how the factors from each team affected the other and how that led to a negative outcome for both. Suggest and advise on compromises that each group can consider to meet the shared objective and then identify the time and focus each team must adhere to in order to get back on track. Further, identify check points for each team to share their progress in non-attritubutable setting to ensure blameless and effective progress. 

Anonymous

5 months ago
3.4Strong
Create a safe environment for both parties to speak . 
try to get clear understand of the exact scope of the conflict & tunderstand the dependencies between the team and agree on a desired approach to continue

Anonymous

5 months ago
3.4Strong
Meet with the two teams, review what's the current state, review what's causing the issue, brainstorm ways to resolve the issue, get commitment from the teams to implement the fix

Anonymous

5 months ago
3.4Strong
Understand the concerns, identify the roadblocks and risks that is blocking the team from delivering. Schedule a meeting to
mutually discuss the issues , identify the blockers and risks and escalate for priority / resource constraints 

Anonymous

6 months ago
As a TPM responsible for on time delivery my utmost priority is to unblock the things which can impact the same.  In case of failing delivery, I would like to understand more about the kind of conflict that is causing the same.
1. Is this technical conflict  - If the nature of conflict is technical, calling the individual teams, involve architect and perform a thorough design review to understand the blockers, dependency to be done. At the end of this prepare the list of tasks to be completed and assign it to the right teams with ETA. Track this periodically. 
If the feature or complex then arrange for ORIT till the clarity is arrived and enables team to work independently. 
2. Is this timeline conflict  
The timeline conflict could be due to issue in planning. With different stake holders, get the detailed planning including the dependency and merge the plans and get the consensus from individual owners on the timeline and publish with all the teams.
3. Is this human conflict - If the delivery is affecting due to human conflict, in short term intervene and understand the perspective of both the parties. suggest a middle ground and perform the role of middleman where the communication can pass thru the PM. In long term this might not work in that case in the best interest of the project changing either of the team members might be one of the solutions.

Anonymous

8 months ago
4.6Exceptional
Addressing conflicts between teams that are failing to perform requires a strategic and diplomatic approach to identify underlying issues, foster collaboration, and drive performance improvement. Here's how I would address conflicts between underperforming teams as a Program Manager:
  1. Identify Root Causes: Start by identifying the root causes of the conflicts and performance issues. This may involve conducting interviews, facilitating team meetings, and analyzing project data to understand the underlying challenges.
  2. Facilitate Open Dialogue: Create a safe and constructive environment for teams to openly discuss their concerns, perspectives, and challenges. Encourage active listening and empathy to foster mutual understanding and trust among team members.
  3. Mediate Conflict Resolution: Act as a neutral mediator to facilitate conflict resolution and consensus-building among teams. Help teams identify common goals and interests, explore alternative solutions, and find mutually acceptable compromises.
  4. Clarify Roles and Responsibilities: Clarify roles, responsibilities, and expectations for each team to ensure alignment with project goals and objectives. Establish clear communication channels and escalation procedures to address issues promptly and effectively.
  5. Set Performance Expectations: Define clear performance expectations and metrics for each team, aligned with project objectives and deliverables. Establish performance goals, milestones, and accountability mechanisms to track progress and ensure accountability.
  6. Provide Support and Resources: Provide teams with the necessary support, resources, and training to improve performance and overcome challenges. This may include additional training, coaching, mentoring, or access to specialized expertise as needed.
  7. Promote Collaboration: Encourage collaboration and teamwork among teams by fostering a culture of transparency, cooperation, and shared accountability. Facilitate cross-functional collaboration and knowledge sharing to leverage collective expertise and resources.
  8. Monitor and Evaluate Progress: Continuously monitor team performance and progress toward goals, identifying areas of improvement and celebrating successes. Conduct regular performance reviews and feedback sessions to assess performance, address issues, and adjust strategies as needed.
  9. Escalate if Necessary: If efforts to resolve conflicts and improve performance are unsuccessful, escalate the issue to higher levels of management or seek external mediation to facilitate resolution. Act decisively to address systemic issues and prevent further escalation.
  10. Celebrate Achievements: Recognize and celebrate achievements and milestones reached by teams, fostering a sense of accomplishment and motivation to sustain performance improvement efforts.
By adopting a proactive and collaborative approach to addressing conflicts and underperformance among teams, I can foster a culture of accountability, continuous improvement, and teamwork, ultimately driving project success.
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Interview question asked to Technical Program Managers interviewing at Tumblr, Bolt, CRED and others: How do you handle conflicts between two teams that are failing to deliver a feature?.