August 25, 2026
Episode 202: Why Your Team Needs More Conflict (Not Less) with Amy Gallo
What if we all said what we actually meant in the workplace? On this episode of The Future of Teamwork, Dane Groeneveld interviews Amy Gallo, contributing editor at Harvard Business Review and author of Getting Along: How to Work with Anyone (Even Difficult People).
Amy shares how her work studying workplace conflict changed her perspective from helping people avoid disagreement to helping them have better conflict. She explains how she looks for hidden conflict inside organizations (including the “nice” teams that insist they don’t have any conflict) and why the person everyone finds irritating might actually be pointing to something the organization needs to hear.
Amy and Dane explore how leaving your emotions and ego at the door actually hurts your team, why teams need more conflict in the workplace to allow for innovation, and how to channel workplace friction productively.
Additionally, Amy and Dane look at the growing impact of burnout – not just on employees and companies, but on the families and communities people return to at the end of the workday. Finally, they dig into how AI is eliminating opportunities to collaborate, navigate disagreement, and practice emotional intelligence (and what leaders can do to counteract this).
This is a practical conversation on channeling positive conflict that will make teams stronger.
Why Your Team Needs More Conflict (Not Less) with Amy Gallo
Guest Bio
Amy Gallo is a workplace expert who writes and speaks about gender, interpersonal dynamics, difficult conversations, feedback, and effective communication. She is the best-selling author of Getting Along: How to Work with Anyone (Even Difficult People) and the HBR Guide to Dealing with Conflict, as well as hundreds of articles for Harvard Business Review. From 2019 to 2025, Amy co-hosted HBR’s popular Women at Work podcast, which examines the struggles and successes of women in the workplace. She is frequently sought out by media outlets for her perspective on workplace dynamics, conflict, and difficult conversations. Her advice has been featured in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Fast Company, Marketplace, Bloomberg Business, and NPR, as well as on WNYC, the BBC, and ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corporation).
Key Takeaways
00:00 Welcome to the Future of Teamwork Podcast
00:27 Meet Amy Gallo
01:02 From Consulting to HBR
03:39 Emotions and Ego at Work
05:08 Why Teams Need Regulation
06:25 Better Conflict Not Less
10:14 Conflict Is Everywhere
11:39 Finding Hidden Friction
12:03 Politeness Is Human Nature
13:50 The Problem Person Clue
15:14 Dial Up Productive Friction
15:55 Command Control Culture
17:10 When Conflict Explodes
19:45 Brutal Honesty Feedback
21:55 Harsh Leaders Myth
23:47 Healthy Teams Burnout
27:49 AI Isolation Risk
31:57 Speaking Less Losing EQ
35:17 Bot Free Collaboration
40:13 Wrap Up Next Steps
42:18 Where To Find Amy
42:51 Final Disclaimer Outro
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