As strikes multiply, points of view sometimes seem irreconcilable, with each side believing the other to be mistaken. What if part of this misunderstanding was linked to the human factor, and could be resolved by a discussion based on the common ground of fairness?
The fight for equality is deeply rooted in the DNA of trade unionism. For many trade unionists, working to ensure that everyone is treated equally is key.
I learned this the hard way at the start of my career, and the lesson continues to prove useful years later. As a young project manager, I had a knack for getting different people to work effectively together, and I enjoyed tailoring my management style. I loved putting the right people in the right places, making sure that everyone could do what they did best. That was one of my great pleasures.
He’s her pet
The little pleasure that went with it was choosing the perfect little gift for each of my collaborators on important occasions (promotion, wedding, birth of a child etc.). I took pleasure in tailoring the gift. For one, an autographed book by his favorite author brought back from a conference in the USA, or a designer outfit on sale for his baby, for another a Meisenthal Christmas bauble for his collection (1).
But I was sorely mistaken. Just as I was doing my utmost to reconcile pleasure and performance, and to be attentive to my team’s needs, a little rumor started to spread that I was showing favoritism, that I wasn’t being fair. The rumors grew and became a serious problem.
It took me some time to identify the origin of the problem and to understand it. It all started with two employees who were shocked by the differences between the gifts given at the small celebrations, and their criticisms worked their way down the hallways and to the elected representatives. « Can you believe it! For her, a lousy book that she must have been given for free at the conference, and for him, a luxury outfit for his child! And other remarks in the same vein, all stemming from interpersonal misunderstanding (2). I thought I was making everyone happy, but I’d missed the point.
The little brand-name outfit had been bought at a jumble sale and had cost the same as the book… The budget for the gifts was the same for everyone, but it’s true that I hadn’t communicated this element of fairness, which was so dear to the hearts of those two employees, and I had vastly underestimated the confusion this could cause.
The f ***ing human factor
Differences of opinion between individuals are innumerable and can be major stumbling blocks. In success, as in failure, the human factor is key.
It’s commonly referred to as the human factor (3). Often, even among insiders, we speak of the « FHF », the f***ing human factor (4).
This factor is responsible for so many monumental errors (5) and for the failure of many a transformative project, 78% of which fail for having taken little or no account of the human factor (6)!
2 people 2 points of view, 1000 people 1000 points of view
Our talents filter our vision of the world. Is this glass half-full or half-empty? The answer differs from one person to another, depending on their personality.
The same is true of groups.
Union activists share the need to treat people in the same way, and the desire to establish clear rules to which they can adhere. Their action is aimed at reducing differences and promoting equality.
It’s part of their talent and has contributed to the historic trade union achievements we all enjoy today.
But like all talents, when you don’t possess them, it can be difficult to understand and appreciate them. During a recent conversation on talent and the driving forces behind constructive social dialogue, a member of a management committee blurted out, « No, they’re just jerks! (7) ».
Achieving a nonjudgmental posture can take time
On a personal note, it took me 15 years of observation and self-improvement to truly appreciate the full range of existing talents. For a long time, I told my teams, « All talents are useful to the business, they’re all equal », but I back then I would hear a little voice in my head reply, « Yes, all except one! », and you guessed it, I was thinking of a talent I did not have.
Getting back on the level playing field
The good news is that you don’t have to wait 15 years to learn this simple approach to social dialogue.
Must everything be made to measure? Should we think in terms of primary egalitarianism? Neither.
There is a middle ground for discussion: that of fairness.
Since my misadventure with overly personalized gifts, I’ve taken the time to talk with people about the fairness of solutions and projects, and to discuss this, to be sure not to create any misunderstandings or stumbling blocks.
Giving and requesting operating instructions
The conversations we sometimes perceive as impossible may not be quite so out of reach (8).
The key is to be curious about the other side’s perspective. Our personal operating instructions are all different. Taking human uniqueness into account can lead to better dialogue and mutual understanding.
- At the time, I was working in Alsace. If you don’t know Meisenthal Christmas ornaments, take a look here, they’re a real local institution: https://ciav-meisenthal.fr/rubrique/noel
- We are all absolutely unique, both in our physical traits and in our character traits. This uniqueness is at the heart of our daily interpersonal misunderstandings. The notion of human uniqueness and the sources of interpersonal misunderstandings have been discussed in previous articles in Atlantico’s Human Factor section.
- See, for example, Christophe Dejours’ book Le facteur Humain, published by PUF in the Que Sais-je? collection.
- Having many customers in the industry, I’ve often heard, when analyzing a major failure, « There’s nothing we can do about that, it’s the FHF!
- Source on transformations : Paul A. Argenti, Jenifer Berman, Ryan Calsbeek, and Andrew Whitehouse; HBR 2021-09-14. There are many other articles and research studies with comparable results. It is also useful to refer to Kotter’s work on the subject.Â
- For obvious reasons, I can’t share the major mistakes our customers have made in the past. The serious consequences of human error are well illustrated by concrete, real-life examples in « Les dĂ©cisions absurdes: sociologie des erreurs radices et persistantes » by Christian Morel (Volumes 1 to 3).
- I can’t resist the pleasure of recommending the book Psychologie de la connerie, edited by Jean-François Marmion, published by Sciences Humaines. It’s a delicious attempt at defining « human bullshit » in order to « better understand it and better fight it ».
- How to Have Impossible Conversations: A Very Practical Guide, Peter Boghossian & James Lindsay (2019)
