Our society has become so focused on making every experience as ‘frictionless’ as possible: companies are investing billions of dollars into making their products effortless to use, and workplaces are being designed to eliminate anything that might hinder productivity. It’s no wonder we’ve been trained to assume that friction is always a bad thing.

What if we told you that there is such a thing as productive friction? In fact, if managed properly, we believe that some level of friction at work can bring on a wide variety of positive benefits for your people and your bottom line.

Keep your teams sharp

To have a great team, not everyone has to get along. In the workplace, it is vital to welcome new perspectives and value differing opinions. There have been countless studies on the benefits of diverse teams - they’re more innovative, make better decisions, and understand customers better. What’s more? Many of these benefits actually stem from the simple act of friction. According to HBR, diverse teams encourage greater scrutiny of each member’s actions - which keeps your team sharp and encourages growth and innovation.

Discover greater solutions

Work is all about solving problems. It’s about looking for new, innovative ways to do things. Friction between different ideas and viewpoints can actually improve your chances of finding breakthrough solutions. By focusing on the problem to be solved, rather than the differences between team members, managers can harness friction in a healthy manner and encourage innovation and better business results. A team without friction risks becoming complacent and stuck in their usual habits. It’s important to challenge the status quo from time to time and uncover new areas for improvement.

Forge stronger relationships

By definition, friction is the unease that arises when two people of opposing views come together. There is no escaping it in the workplace - even the most compatible and thriving teams experience friction. It’s time we stop looking at all workplace tensions as bad, and instead focus on the positive outcomes. Friction in the form of positive conflict can actually serve to strengthen relationships and forge stronger bonds between employees. When disputes and tensions are consistently managed properly - through healthy communication and empathy - people will be encouraged to work through their differences and discover that they have more in common than they originally thought.

All in all, the perfect scenario is one where there’s enough friction and healthy discussion to encourage creativity, growth and innovation. At MixR, we believe this is achieved in a high-trust environment that promotes mutual understanding and respect. It’s all about creating a safe space for people to connect and build genuine relationships.

Take some time to discover MixR and find out if it’s the right solution for your community-building needs.