The use of the word tribalism is increasingly common, and it is becoming part of the conversation in business too. Here, I’ll look at the tribalism meaning, and how it can impact your organisation.
Tribalism Meaning
Tribalism is a word that can be defined as the behaviour and attitudes resulting from intense loyalty to one’s social group, or ‘tribe’.
In the business environment, where organisations are increasingly made up of specialists, leaders who can get diverse groups to work together are highly valued. However, as collaboration experts, these leaders must guard against tribalism, which occurs when subgroups focus solely on their activities and fail to consider the organisation as a whole.
Tribalism begins when employees and leaders perceive their organisation as divided and categorised. They regard their immediate co-workers as unique, alienating people from other tribes within the same organisation. This is despite many of these ‘outsiders’ actually being colleagues they rely on to help them get things done.
The Negative Impact of Tribalism on Business
Today, tribalism is common in business. A classic example is the labour/management divide and union dynamics; unions, wilfully or not, foster tribalism by creating a tribal, us-and-them attitude among members.
Another is the perceived divide between white and blue-collar workers in a business.
Even if you haven’t experienced this sort of tribalism, you may have seen it happen in more subtle ways.
Here are ways tribalism can destroy businesses;
Tribalism Inhibits Variety
When you hire people from different tribes, you can expect a variety of approaches and points of view. In addition, because different cultures have different lifestyles, employees will have other ideas on how to complete a task.
You can easily find a workable solution among these numerous suggestions.
When you hire from a single tribe, or fail to ensure the different tribes interact and collaborate, you are limited to the number of unique ideas your employees can contribute.
Tribalism Brings About Isolation and Separation
When most of your employees are from certain tribes, everyone else will feel as if they do not belong.
Everyone should be welcome in a thriving workplace. When different tribes work for the organisation, in collaboration, and are equally respected, everyone feels like they have a say in the company.
Tribalism Can Lead to Inefficient and Redundancy
Naturally, there will be inefficiencies if your teams aren’t communicating well or, worse, throwing rocks at each other (metaphorically).
Over time, crippling redundancies may occur, resulting in the two teams working on similar projects separately. This can lead to chronic misalignment in project messaging, strategy, and delivery.
How You Can Prevent Tribalism Meaning Harm
Simply put, the best business defence against tribalism is prevention. Who is responsible for this? Mainly leaders and employees.
However, as with other parts of company culture, supervisors and other senior leaders are the best lines of defence against toxic workplace tribalism.
Although the following strategies may not be completely effective in preventing the problem, they can help to mitigate its effects;
Consider dividing responsibilities and holding direct reports accountable.
Ask yourself the following:
- Have you established clear guidelines for the division of responsibilities?
- Have you established workplace behaviour expectations?
- Is it possible for shared goals to be clearly defined and communicated across teams?
- Do you hold both teams and their leaders to the same standard for meeting goals?
The first step is for leaders to acknowledge the problem and commit to resolving it. The answers to these questions may be challenging, but they can also help you determine the actions required to resolve the issue.
To sum it up, unresolved tribalism can result in missed deadlines, lost clients, and decreased productivity. Moreover, as disagreements and grievances accumulate, team dysfunction frequently results in tension, stress, and disengagement.
Tribalism in business may also result in employee relations issues caused by low employee morale, such as talent flight and difficulty recruiting new employees. In addition, managers and supervisors motivated by tribalism will frequently hire like-minded employees, potentially resulting in a lack of diversity and inclusion throughout your organisation.
As a leader, it is your responsibility to ensure that your company’s culture supports its mission, vision, and values.
