The leadership required to forge a coalition government

The political landscape has shifted beyond recognition in the last ten days. Clegg, Brown and Cameron have moved from tightly fought political debates to earnest attempts to resolve conflict and reach a resolution. The trio’s televised debates showcased differing opinions and seemingly incompatible leadership approaches. But the public has spoken and they want change. With the leaders’ differences rather than similarities capturing the headlines before May 6, how will collaboration truly materialise?

The first thing they’ll need to do is find common ground and focus on the higher goal in which they both have a vested interest and passion to achieve. This will set the tone for their conversations and provide something motivating to work towards. Disagreements will need to be acknowledged but sidelined in the short-term if they are seeking to really collaborate effectively. Relationships need to be built in the first instance and leaders will need to move away from their typical communication styles which centre on ‘advocacy’ - in other words, convincing somebody that their point of view is the right one, to ‘inquiry’ where they seek to truly understand another’s point of view, rather than criticise it.

The right balance of advocacy and inquiry will allow leaders to come to a third place or solution that they might not have thought about before. They’ll need to talk plainly, suspend judgements, listen properly and respect one another’s positions to reach common ground. They’ll also need to probe for other’s point of view, while encouraging people to challenge their own - a world away from much of the campaign trail which was rife with opposing views.

Traditionally, conflict is viewed as negative, destructive and something to be avoided. But actually, if people’s conflict is managed skilfully, it can be a positive force when it comes to collaboration. Without different views, teams can lack innovation, often becoming stale and unresponsive to change. This is an opportunity that any leadership coalition must recognise and seize.

After listening to each other’s views properly, they can search for outcomes that benefit both parties and, most importantly, the public who’ve asked for change. By merging two parties’ differing views, solutions have the potential to address the concerns of more of the British public. For whoever takes the number ten keys, moving from competing to collaborating will mean being more accommodating and compromising.

Austin Swain is Director of Research and Product at Lane4

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