In the physical world of materials, friction often yields positive results. You can make a fire by rubbing two sticks together or by striking a bar of magnesium. You can make beautiful jewelry in a rock tumbler or make piece of metal or wood silky smooth through sanding. And the Bible even addresses it in Proverbs 27:17 -- As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another. So if friction is a Biblical truth and is also readily apparent in nature then why do we avoid friction, both at work and in our personal life? 
Friction, or conflict, challenges us to think outside the box, to not accept the status quo, and to seek creative solutions to complex problems. At times leaders must interject friction at strategic times to yield the results that are needed. I recall a time when I was leading a small Java development team. We were behind on our deliverables against an impossible deadline. A new developer was added to the team to help meet the deadline. On his first day on the project the new developer, despite having a strong background in Java, was having great difficulty getting his machine properly configured and the project compiled.
At 1pm that afternoon the new person was still struggling. The senior developer on the team tried unsuccessfully to fix the problem for about 10 - 15 minutes and declared it "could not be fixed" and went back to work. I had finally seen enough. The new developer wanted to be productive, and we certainly needed his help, but he couldn't get his machined configured properly and the senior resource seemed unmotivated to help. I pulled the senior resource aside and inquired about the problem. He reiterated that it "could not be fixed", that he didn't know what to do and politely asked to return to his deliverables.
I had a different idea in mind. The situation needed some friction. So I had the senior developer pull his chair into the new person's cube. I told both of them to sit there together and quietly stare at the machine with the broken configuration. I figured if one resource was unproductive why not two? They both protested immensely but I left them to stare at the blank screen.
I'm sure you can guess what happened next. I don't believe more than 20 minutes had passed and they came into my office and told me that they had fixed the issue! Prior to the introduction of the external friction the senior developer lacked the motivation to fix the problem.
One could easily write this off and assume the true problem was the senior developer not the lack of friction. I don't believe that was the case. We're all guilty of putting our priorities and interests ahead of others at times. And often times, too often, it takes an external force to nudge us back onto the proper course of action. I witnessed it yet again today, two of my best resources had been struggling with an issue off and on for weeks without resolution. I put the two together, introduced a dash of friction, and no less than 2 hours later the root cause of the problem was determined and fixed.
Certainly not every problem can be resolved as neatly and quickly as those seen on a one hour TV drama. But adding a bit of healthy friction at strategic times can often yield the results your seeking. On a much broader scale Patrick Lencioni, in his book Silos, Politics and Turf Wars, suggests that an existing crisis, or even the introduction of a crisis, can help build cohesion between different teams within an organization.
Note of disclaimer: Be careful to do this only in a healthy and constructive manner. Too much friction or conflict can backfire and lead to disastrous results. Introducing a fake crisis or conflict unrelated to the issue at hand will simply be ignored.
Curtis S