"Without conflict, there is no progress."

These are the words of Mike Riordan, a revered business consultant and special advisor to Datamax over the years. They are also words that Lee Wheelington unabashedly embraces. The Hot Springs-based Area Sales Manager isn’t afraid to voice his opinion when he believes it’s a step forward for the organization. Likewise, he openly encourages healthy debate among his team – a move that both pays dividends to clients and garners appreciation from his team.

“There are things Lee views as important, when it comes to trying new things, different techniques,” Hot Springs Account Representative Molissa Jordan-Spradley said. “We always work to follow through with that. On that same note, his door is ALWAYS open. If we see things differently, he is consistently open to listening to our input and coming together for a way to make something work.”

Beg to disagree? You shouldn’t have to beg. More often than not, constructive conflict yields better outcomes. In the spirit of “Problem Seek, Problem Solve,” and “Respect the Ideas and Opinions of Others, ” there’s no shame in healthy conflict. But there’s more to it than just that.

Conflict is Necessary.

Molissa admits that she’s prone to shy away from conflict in most aspects of her life. Not at the office. With Lee, she’s comfortable with coming in and speaking her mind and has learned that it’s an often-necessary step toward discovering what’s best for the customer.

“I think it’s just made us incredibly strong as a team, one that is committed to the same goal,” Molissa said.

Lee believes that the word “conflict,” at least in this case, is a bit mistakenly used.

“It has such a negative connotation. Most of the time, conflict is opposing parties who don’t share the same goal,” Lee said. “But in this case, each side believes we’re going into this with our company philosophies and believe in the foundation of why we’re here. It’s ok for us to disagree on how we achieve our goals. We should always push ourselves to get better, as well as encourage each other to do the same.”

Conflict Suggests Passion.

If the mission is the same, showing a little passion isn’t a bad thing (albeit with an open ear).

“A lot of times my message is fueled by my passion, and that may come across as argumentative, but I find it’s just necessary. If someone else has an equal stance, I’ll go ok, that’s a pretty good idea. Let’s talk about that,” Lee said.

This passion comes with an obvious disclaimer.

“If you go into that sort of discussion with an open ear and an open mind, with the idea that you’re moving the company forward, then it’s a needed discussion. I’m just as likely to listen to someone else and say ‘You know what, you were right. And I’ve got to back up and re-approach this.”

In other words, if we go into a debate for the wrong reason (our own interests and not the best interest of the organization) the desired outcome vanishes.

Conflict Should be Mined.

Patrick Lencioni’s book “The Five Dysfunctions of a Team” places “fear of conflict” as the second tier of its “dysfunctions” pyramid. Healthy teams engage in healthy conflict, the book suggests.

In that book, a “miner of conflict” is an individual who goes into a meeting and extracts buried disagreements within the team, and sheds the light of day on them. The intent is to stay with the conflict until it is resolved.

“You’re not just there to pick a fight. You’re there to say, ‘How can we make this better?’ You try to open up a lively discussion, and then guess what? You’re problem-solving,” Lee said.

Conflict is Empowering.

Nowhere is this more evident than on Lee’s team. Just recently, after a meeting with reps, he closed the session by asking for their input on the issue at hand. His phone rang later in the day, and a candid suggestion was made. Ask Lee, and he’ll tell you: That conversation literally made his week.

Debate on, says Emily Wyrick. The Hot Springs Account Representative isn’t the least bit afraid to engage with Lee or other team members about what’s the best next step for a client, or how an issue should be resolved. From a customer’s perspective, the end game with healthy conflict is a heightened level of trust. For her, it’s empowerment.

“Putting yourself in that person’s shoes is a big part of healthy disagreements, and I think Lee is so great at that,” Emily said. “Hearing us out about what we think, and giving us a chance to speak up? It gives me the confidence in myself to go out and help the customers even more. ‘What do YOU think?’ We all want to hear that.”