It’s one of the most unforgettable moments in baseball history: Game 7 of the 2003 American League Championship Series between rivals the Boston Red Sox and the New York Yankees. In this decisive game that would send one team to the World Series, Boston pitcher Pedro Martinez held the Yankees to two runs over seven and a half innings, while his team went up by three. By the bottom of the eighth, Red Sox Manager Grady Little had a decision to make: Keep on the mound his star pitcher, who had already thrown 120 pitches and seemed tired, or pull him from the game and risk upsetting Martinez and the fans. It’s now part of baseball lore — Martinez stayed in the game and the Yankees came back to win the contest.
As a manager myself, I think one reason Little didn’t change the pitcher was because things were going well, and he wanted to avoid friction. I define friction as an action that’s done in opposition to, or that challenges, the status quo.
Friction can cause conflict (something we tend to avoid), but it can hold the key to increased performance and growth. As managers, we are responsible for helping to drive both of those things in our employees and our teams. That means in addition to finding ways to remove friction for your team to run smoothly, it’s also your job to introduce friction to help them grow. To introduce friction to your teams effectively, focus on understanding why, when and how.
Why Introduce Friction?
There’s a mathematical model that illustrates the phenomenon Little experienced: it’s called the Sigmoid Curve. The graph follows development over time and looks like a sideways "S": a dip (usually the period of learning) at the beginning, followed by steady growth and ending in decline. The lesson: Growth is not infinite. To avoid decline on the curve requires questioning the status quo and implementing changes as close to the peak of the growth period (but before the decline) as possible. Had Martinez been taken out while things were still going well, the Sox might have avoided a Yankees comeback.
Similarly, by introducing friction to your team during the growth phase of the Sigmoid Curve, you push them to keep innovating and keep growing — rather than having to troubleshoot in the midst of a decline. Be careful not to introduce friction just for the sake of friction, however. You’ll only breed confusion and even distrust among your team. To avoid this pitfall, remember to take the time to consider why: Effectively creating friction is about strategically finding ways to improve the employees’ ability to do what they do.
When Should I Create Friction?
The best moment to introduce friction is the “sweet spot” on the Sigmoid Curve: not so early that you interrupt growth but before growth starts to stagnate and decline. Admittedly, it’s not always easy to know when you’ve hit that sweet spot. Following these guidelines may help: Keep a steady pulse on how the team is doing, train an eye toward the future and consult a mentor for perspective.
Remember, the goal of friction is to help your team keep growing and innovating. If your organization just experienced a change and the team seems to be struggling, it’s not necessarily the decline phase — they might need some positive feedback or motivation to spur growth. Look instead toward things the team does well already or toward practices that have been in place for a while, to spot an opportunity to push them forward.
I’m looking at introducing friction to my team with a new project management tool, even though everyone on my team is executing against their goals. My first clue that it was time to introduce friction came when a new hire showed me the tool he used. It got me thinking: My team is growing, and we might need to implement a unified system to make sure we’re not duplicating our efforts.
In another instance, I started an internal project called Development Day, where once a month a person at the company teaches everyone about their passion outside of work. It went well — attendance was high, people enjoyed the sessions — but after a year, I worried it might become stale or boring. So, I introduced friction by transferring the leadership responsibilities to someone else to improve the program in the long run.
How Do I Introduce Friction To My Team?
Once you decide to introduce friction, think about the impact it will have. Most of my team will not like the project management tool I’m considering, so I'm in the middle of a cost-benefit analysis: Do I believe it will significantly improve our ability to collaborate? And is that worth the friction it's going to create?
From there, it’s time to tell the team. The most important thing is to communicate your goals and reasoning clearly to everyone who will be impacted. I would say to my team, “I know you might not see the value in adopting a project management tool, but I think it will make us better at collaborating, communicating and doing our jobs.” Knowing the change is for their benefit will help them approach it with an open mind rather than with resistance and frustration.
Not all friction is going to resolve seamlessly. But if we don’t introduce it at all, we risk becoming complacent. Instead, as managers, it’s our job to take ownership over driving growth and results for our teams and thoughtfully introduce friction when it’s needed.
As for the Red Sox? They returned the following season with a new manager, defeated the Yankees in the playoffs and went on to win their first World Series in 86 years.
