How to Reduce the Friction that Hurts You — and Harness the Friction that Helps

Organizations too often subject their employees and customers to
unnecessary friction that creates inefficiency and causes
frustration. But, in some situations, friction can be a positive
force, spurring more innovation and better decision-making. So how
do you reduce the bad kind and embrace the good?  Stanford
professors Bob Sutton and Huggy Rao have studied this problem for
seven years and offer strategies for leaders at every level to help
them recognize when friction is needed or not and then add or
subtract accordingly. They share ample examples of people and
companies getting it right. Sutton and Rao are the authors
of The Friction Project: How Smart Leaders Make the Right
Things Easier and the Wrong Things Harder, as well as the HBR
article, "Rid Your Organization of Obstacles that Infuriate
Everyone."