The Crisis Within a Crisis Managing Your Own Teams Infighting During a Major Project

The Enemy Within: How to Manage Team Conflict When External Pressure is High

In any high-stakes operation, there's a common assumption that the primary threat comes from the outside — the competitor, the market, the adversary. But my experience in over 300 crisis negotiations taught me a different, more critical lesson: your biggest vulnerability is almost always internal.

I call it the "crisis within the crisis." It's the infighting, the breakdown in communication, and the clash of egos within your own team that emerges just when you need cohesion the most. In fact, I would estimate that 80% of my time and energy during a kidnap negotiation was spent managing the dynamics on our side of the table. The 20% spent dealing with the kidnappers was often the easy part.

For a leader, managing this internal friction during a major project, a product launch, or a corporate crisis is your most important and difficult job. If your team is at war with itself, you have no chance of winning the external battle.

Why Pressure Cookers Explode

Under immense pressure, the cracks in a team's foundation begin to show. Stress short-circuits our Emotional Regulations, making us more defensive, less empathetic, and more likely to revert to self-preservation. Minor disagreements become major blow-ups. Different communication styles become sources of intense friction. People aren't just fighting over the project; they're fighting for status, for certainty, and to avoid blame.

As a leader, you cannot ignore this. You must proactively manage the team's emotional and psychological state with the same rigour you apply to your project plan.

Strategies for Leading the Internal Battle

1. Make the Mission the Enemy

When team members turn on each other, it's often because they've lost sight of the real adversary. Your first job is to constantly re-focus them on the external mission. Depersonalise the conflict by framing the project's challenges as the enemy you must defeat together.

• Instead of: "We need to sort out this disagreement between marketing and sales."
• Try: "Marketing and sales, our competitor just launched a new feature that threatens our market share. We need to be perfectly aligned to beat them. How can we solve this distribution issue together to ensure we win?"

This shifts the dynamic from internal conflict to external collaboration. Read more about this in our article: Conflict is Not the Enemy.

2. Establish a Clear "Battle Rhythm"

In a crisis, ambiguity is toxic. A predictable routine for communication and decision-making provides the structure and psychological safety your team craves. This "battle rhythm" reduces anxiety and minimises freelance operations.

• Daily Stand-ups: A brief, daily meeting to align on priorities.
• Clear Roles and Responsibilities: Ensure everyone knows exactly what they own. Use a RACI Responsible, Accountable, Consulted,Informed chart if necessary.
• Single Point of Truth: Create one channel or document for all critical project information to prevent conflicting narratives.

3. Mediate, Don't Dictate

When disputes arise, your role is not to be the judge who declares a winner. It is to be the mediator who facilitates a resolution. Use the structured process outlined in our Guide to Mediating Workplace Conflict. Guide the warring parties through the Empathy Loop until they feel heard, then shift them towards a collaborative solution.

4. Protect Your Team's Energy

Long-term, high-pressure projects are marathons, not sprints. As a leader, you are the chief energy officer for your team. Burnout is a primary cause of internal conflict.

• Model Calm: Your team will mirror your emotional state. If you are frantic and stressed, they will be too. Stay in your RedCentre.
• Mandate Downtime: Actively encourage and enforce breaks. Protect weekends where possible. A rested team is a more resilient and less fractious team.
• Celebrate Small Wins: In a long crisis, it's easy to lose sight of progress. Acknowledge and celebrate every small victory to maintain morale and momentum.

The ultimate success of any high-stakes project depends on the cohesion of the team executing it. By anticipating the "crisis within the crisis" and actively managing your team's dynamics, you are not just preventing a costly distraction; you are forging a more resilient, effective, and unified force capable of overcoming any external challenge.

Is your team feeling the pressure of a high-stakes project? Scott Walker specializes in workshops and coaching designed to build team resilience and improve communication when it matters most.