The life of any organization—its principles, ethics, style, values, and morality—is shaped by the interactions between labor and management. In analyzing what is likely to hamper these interactions, we can identify two sets of problems: one centered around management and the other on employees.

Employee-centered problems

• Few companies ever take the time to teach employees how to communicate with management in a constructive manner.
• Hourly workers are too frequently on the receiving end of poorly implemented change strategies that are revised or replaced so often they make no sense.
• New hires are expected to work together and build teams on their own with little or no help from management.
• Employees are seldom exposed to problem solving and conflict resolution methodologies as part of their formal job training.
• Employees who lack relationship-building abilities tend to concentrate on each other rather than the task at hand.

Management-centered problems

• Managers are too often unapproachable, hard to locate, or otherwise make it difficult for subordinates to communicate with them in a timely fashion.
• Managers talk about teamwork and expect their subordinates to work in teams, but seldom work in teams or act in a team-like manner themselves.
• Giving timely evaluations, addressing poor performers, and correcting inappropriate behavior are job factors that managers too often avoid and seldom perform well.
• The importance of delegation is frequently disparaged or given only token support by those managers who still find it hard to give up the old command and control system. 
• Fielding complaints, being open to criticism, and communicating negative information in a constructive way are managerial skills that are highly valued but rarely practiced.

What we need is less soul selling and more soul searching. In other words, we must change the way corporate American works.

But, you may ask, can something be done that will make a difference and not cost a ton of money? And, more importantly, can a change of this magnitude be brought about without disrupting the workflow?

The answer to both concerns is yes. I believe there’s a lot you can do that won’t take a long time or require a heavy cash investment either. All it requires is for your organization to stop pitting management and labor against each other. By joining forces can replace the Me-ness that’s there now, with a We-ness that fosters collaboration.

Your company would benefit greatly if labor and management were to see themselves less as opposing forces and more as corporate citizens working as a team. A good way to impart this attitude is to tackle the two lists cited above. The needs and wants of your managers and employees should be the same—to do good work and to prosper as a result.