Peggy and Julia are the leaders of two cross-functional teams that interact frequently.
They have been working together for five years, and while their teams get along well, there’s noticeable tension and frustration between Peggy and Julia.
Peggy’s behavior is showing increased signs of conflict brewing such as sarcasm and venting, and Julia is starting to withdraw and detach.
Having noticed the tension, you asked Peggy to shed some light on what might be going on.
Peggy sat down and unleashed a wave of emotion.
“I’ve had it! Julia emailed everyone on the team AGAIN without checking with me first. I’m pretty sure I told her not to email the entire team every time she has an issue with the plan. I especially don’t appreciate her tone in the email. It drives me crazy when she says ‘you should’ and ‘we need to.’ She points out everyone’s mistakes and seems to think she is an expert at everything. Actually, when I vented to Patel about Julia the other day, he told me he’s had the same experience with her. She loves running the show and undermine me as co-leader. We’ve had challenges in the past, and this is just another one of her shenanigans. She’s just so passive-aggressive. I can’t stand it!”
Return to the prep exercises and answer the questions related to the Case Study.
