Problem

Frustration or misunderstandings escalate into conflicts, harming relationships and making collaboration even more challenging.

Workshop Title

"From Conflict to Collaboration: Building Stronger Inter-Team Relationships"

Objectives

• Identify sources of conflict and tension between teams.
• Foster understanding and empathy through open dialogue.
• Develop actionable strategies to improve inter-team relationships.

Materials Needed

• Flipchart or whiteboard.
• Sticky notes and markers.
• Presentation materials (optional, such as large paper or slides).

Process

1. Welcome and Icebreaker (10 minutes)

Activity: Cross-Team Connections

• Pair participants from different teams.
• Each shares one thing their team does well and one challenge they face.

2. Identifying Conflict Sources (15 minutes)

Activity: What’s Causing the Tension?

• In mixed-team groups, brainstorm sources of inter-team conflict (e.g. misaligned goals, lack of communication, resource competition).
• Groups share findings.
• Facilitator captures key themes on a flipchart or whiteboard.

3. Building Empathy and Understanding (20 minutes)

Activity: Walk in My Shoes

• Each team prepares a short visual or verbal presentation covering:
  • Their role in the organisation.
  • Their key challenges and priorities.
  • What they need from other teams to succeed.
• Teams share with the group.

4. Collaborative Problem-Solving (25 minutes)

Activity: Resolving a Shared Challenge

• Identify a challenge that spans multiple teams (e.g. meeting deadlines, improving customer experience).
• Mixed-team groups apply the 4-Step Problem-Solving Framework:
  1. Define the problem.
  2. Brainstorm solutions.
  3. Evaluate options and choose the best.
  4. Create an action plan.
• Groups present solutions back to the whole.

5. Creating a Collaboration Charter (15 minutes)

Activity: Team Relationship Agreement

• As a whole team, draft a “Collaboration Charter” with agreed guidelines for effective teamwork. Examples:
  • Regular inter-team check-ins.
  • Clear communication of priorities and deadlines.
  • Commitment to constructive feedback.

6. Closing and Reflection (5 minutes)

Activity: One Step Forward

• Each participant shares one personal action they’ll take to improve inter-team collaboration (e.g. “I’ll schedule regular updates with Team B”).

Facilitator Notes

• Welcome and Icebreaker: Sets a collaborative tone and encourages empathy from the start.
• Identifying Conflict Sources: Normalise tensions and highlight that they are common and solvable.
• Building Empathy and Understanding: Emphasise that perspective-taking reduces conflict and increases collaboration.
• Collaborative Problem-Solving: Showcase how working together leads to more robust solutions.
• Creating a Collaboration Charter: Ensure the group leaves with a tangible, co-created guide for future interactions.
• Closing and Reflection: Reinforce the importance of individual actions alongside collective agreements.

Follow-up

• Schedule a review session in 4–6 weeks.
• Revisit the Collaboration Charter, celebrate progress, and refine agreements where needed.