Do we need more Devil’s Advocates?
Is there any advantage to having a “devil’s advocate” on the team?
For a long time many of us would simply like to see team members all get along rather than to have a contrarian thrown into the mix. But in reality a “devil’s advocate” can actually create an opportunity for the team to make better decisions and to have more fulsome discussions on issues that are really important for the overall success of the team.
There is research that shows that teams, like boards of directors, with a dissenting member typically have a much better grasp of key issues than boards where all the members are in agreement. The key to the dissenting opinion is the need for a high-level of emotional intelligence in order to avoid the potential to fall into the emotional wrangling that can so often easily develop.
The key for success is that the individual must have the ability to see both sides of the argument, understand the sensitivities of both sides and to articulate/communicate the position in a non-confrontational manner.
Beyond the need for this emotional intelligence there are some other key characteristics that would be helpful to role of the devil’s advocate.
The individual must be mature enough not to be personally overtaken by the prospect of conflict with colleagues (do not taking things personally). The successful devil’s advocate can’t be beholden to any of his or her colleagues; any indebtedness could stifle or frustrate the devil’s advocate from pointing out the challenges he/she really sees with the issue/direction.
The devil’s advocate is best played by a change agent who is not wed to the way things have typically been done or defending the status quo. And finally, and probably due to personal experience, the devil’s advocate likely has the best opportunity for success if he/she has direct experience or an affinity with the challenge the team is grappling with.
On many occasions most of us have taken the view that the devil’s advocate is simply a drain on our time and seen as someone who is only out to derail the initiatives we are considering.
The problem is however, that we may end up settling into the team’s norms and not promoting or considering the type of disruption that the devil’s advocate is championing. Instead it may be useful to harness the devil’s advocate to help set a new tone for change.
Encouraging independent thinking has some real potential to our teams and our organizations. The last thing any of us wants is a team that is prone to “group think.”
So the next time the devil’s advocate in your team has something to say – listen carefully with a renewed sense of curiosity to what he or she really has to say and keep an open mind!
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