Are you having trouble getting 2 departments, companies, organizations, people, or groups to work together? The 4 Ways of Seeing framework developed by Bryce Hoffman may be just the tool you are looking for.
Developed as part of Red Teaming critical analysis methodology (learn more here: Make Sure Your Plans Don’t Fail), The 4 Ways of Seeing provides a simple, but revealing way to clearly define commonalities, differences and viewpoints between groups of people or individuals.
Fill out the perspective matrix through brainstorming exercises, seeking input from as many perspectives and people as possible. Questions you can ask in each quadrant can be adjusted for the circumstances, but some general categories to start with include Motives, Opportunities, Opposition, and Confusion.
Once the matrix is completed, look for points of commonality, differences, and potential misunderstandings. This information will allow you to better guide the groups to a common understanding.
The concept is simple on first view, but it can be taken to a more in-depth analysis when needed. Expand the view to take in more stakeholders and analyze the interrelationships through multiple iterations of the matrix. In addition, you can take a deep dive into the reasons behinds the points of view like values, culture, ideologies, and the external environment to bring out the nuances that will provide significant clarity to the people involved.
No one tool will be a silver bullet when dealing with people, but the 4 Ways of Seeing framework provides a structure that will bring focus and direction to the analysis of some very difficult situations.
Sources:
https://community.apan.org/wg/tradoc-g2/ufmcs-red-team-central/m/red-teaming-tools-and-training/286574
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-TowaxZDUnY
https://strategicdiscipline.positioningsystems.com/blog-0/red-team-tool-four-ways-of-seeing-new-coke-arch-deluxe-failures
