Originally found at Ladders

In a perfect world, we’d all work alongside our best friends on projects we’re passionate about. Of course, reality is rarely perfect. Chances are, there will be at least a few people on your immediate team, around the office, or running the entire organization that you wouldn’t want to go out with on a Friday night. That’s OK. Not every co-worker has to be your friend, or even like you for that matter.

That being said, when inter-office relations turn sour and actively hostile, it can become a problem. Consider one relevant piece of research published in the scientific journal Academy of Management Discoveries that examined relationships among pairs of medical surgeons. There is no room for error on the operating table, but incredibly, the study found positive emotions amongst surgical teams played little role in determining surgical performances. The only factor that showed true influence? Tension. Less animosity among surgeons was associated with better surgical outcomes.

There are endless reasons why a welcoming office on Tuesday can feel like a passive-aggressive minefield by Friday afternoon. Many middle managers actively encourage competition among their workers, but this approach to leadership can backfire. Rivalries are known to turn friends to foes quickly, and collaboration is much more conducive to a productive workplace than competition. Alternatively, employees may grow resentful or bitter after being passed over for a promotion or opportunity, and take out their frustrations on co-workers that had nothing to do with that decision.

No one ever said teamwork is easy, but there are a number of innovative strategies that employers and employees alike can utilize in pursuit of a more productive, cooperative working environment.

Continue reading the original article at Ladders.

Read the original research in Academy of Management Discoveries.

Read the Academy of Management Insights summary.

Learn more about the AOM Scholars and explore their work:

• Tiziana Casciaro, University of Toronto
• Miguel Sousa Lobo, INSEAD
• Hendrik Wilhelm, Witten/Herdecke University
• Michael Wittland, University of Applied Sciences and Arts, Hanover