Conflict Management in the Workplace

Presentation on theme: "Conflict Management in the Workplace"— Presentation transcript:

1 Conflict Management in the Workplace
Presented by Maribeth C Bohley

2 Resolving Conflicts Intro to key concepts about conflict 5 mins Conflict in the workplace is a painful reality and a key reason for poor productivity and frustration. Do you have people in your workplace that cause problems for everyone else? Do they create additional work for others? One point is clear--conflict does not magically go away and only gets worse when ignored. What type of workplace conflict requires intervention? Anything that disrupts the office, impacts on productivity or poses a threat to other employees needs addressing. The degree to which you tolerate a situation before intervention may vary. A manager may not feel it necessary to intervene when a minor exchange of words occurs between employees--unless such an incident becomes a daily occurrence and expands beyond the employees initially involved. However, a situation where one employee threatens another requires immediate action. When handling conflict, some basic guidelines apply.

3 Agenda Conflict defined Cost of un-managed conflict
Start with yourself- what is your conflict style? Four-step process for resolving conflict Conflict defined Cost of un-managed conflict Start with yourself- what is your conflict style? (Thomas Killman) Four-step process for resolving conflict

4 Conflict Definition A strong disagreement between people, groups, etc. that often results in angry arguments. Often involves A difference of opinion combined with high stakes and high emotion.

5 Costs If You Don’t Manage Conflict
Wasted time listening to complaints Lost productivity Absenteeism, health claims People withdrawing emotionally Employee turnover Aggression and possible violence

6 Conflict Self-Assessment: Silence or Violence
ACTIVITY Conflict Self-Assessment: Silence or Violence Complete Thomas Killman Conflict Inventory or Style Under Stress Discuss results Why is this important to understand about yourself?

7 Conflicts in the Workplace
2195cb0a 17 mins When do you intervene? First give the warring parties a chance to solve the problem on their own. This shows that you respect their abilities as professionals to work things out without your “fixing” the problem. They will also learn more in the process and possibly forge a strong partnership b y going through a process of communicating and getting to know each other better. When do you step in to assist? When the problems are affecting their work or disrupting other people’s work, you need to get involved.

8 Six Communication Strategies
Don’t react in anger. Be specific when describing the offending situation. Explain how the situation has affected you. Ask for the other person’s point of view. Get clarification if needed. Acknowledge your contribution to the situation. Invite the other person to work with you to improve the situation. Six Tips to Achieve Workplace Conflict Resolutions Here are six basic communications tactics to use when you’re coping with charged situations in your workplace: Don’t react in anger. Express your feelings in a clear and non-threatening way. Creating an open, receptive environment reduces the chances of escalating the conflict and increased the changes of coming to a conflict resolution. Be specific when describing the offending situation. But don’t state any assumptions about intention. This limits the odds of the person responding defensively. Explain how the situation has affected you. Often people don’t ask or even consider about how others are affected by their behavior, so addressing this directly can deliver true insight. Ask what they were thinking at the time of the offending action and how the situation makes them feel. Pay attention to nonverbal cues also. Aim for direct answers. Get clarification if needed. Understanding their point of view is the best way to learn how to work with them. Acknowledge your contribution to the situation. Accepting your share of the responsibility takes away the blame and establishes an even ground. Invite the other person to work with you to improve the situation. This takes the individual off the hot seat, and gives them the power to make a change for the better.

9 Make a list of five conflicts that you currently dealing with at work.
ACTIVITY Make a list of five conflicts that you currently dealing with at work. Make a list of five conflicts that you currently dealing with at work. What is the source of the conflict? (Address the problem, not the person) Clarify the interests of each side. (acknowledge feelings but don’t allow bad behavior based on those feelings) Identify/list goals that they have in common. (look forward and avoid dwelling in the past) Brainstorm and list actions that will meet common goals and alleviate the conflict. (look for the win-win) Which types of conflict are they? Let’s practice - Groups of two – Review each scenario Propose a way to resolve the conflict by going through the four step conflict resolution process. Conflict Situations Choose one of these scenarios and propose a process to solve the conflict. What is the source of conflict? Define interests of each side. List goals they have in common. List actions that will meet common goals and alleviate the conflict.   Kim has an important meeting in 30 minutes and needs to make additional copies of a handout. Some last-minute additions have been made to the participant list. Uh-oh! The copy machine is jammed! There is a document on top of the machine, and it looks like it belongs to Alix. This has happened three times in the last two weeks. Time to speak to Alix? Work volume at the company is at an all time high, so everyone has been asked to work on Saturday. Everyone, that is, except Habib and Prakesh. Their co-worker Pat resents this and decides to take up the issue with the boss. [Characters = Pat & the boss] A caller wishes to speak to a specific person who is unavailable. There is a real sense of urgency in the caller’s voice. As a caring customer service representative, the employee has a sincere interest in providing a timely solution. [Characters = Customer Service Rep, customer, employee who is unavailable] The production department has delayed shipment of this week’s orders because of a serious defect discovered during a quality control audit. They pride themselves on the quality of their work. In the meantime, the sales force has taken a record-breaking number of orders and has promised delivery within 48 hours. [Characters = Production Supervisor and Sales Manager] Chris has a troubling situation with two employees who have different complaints: “Dale spends too much time going over every last detail with customers on the phone.” “Lee doesn’t ask the right questions or get all the necessary information on calls, and then I have to go back to the customer to fill in the gaps.” Terry, Stacy, and Morgan all want to take PTO on the same day. Terry has a back-up plan for someone else to cover. The others don’t have an alternate to handle their work.

10 Some Common Sources of Conflict
Personal Differences Information Deficiency Role Incompatibility Environmental Stress Personal Differences Focus is on perceptions and expectations Most difficult to resolve because they stem from personal values and needs, highly emotionally charged Information Deficiency Focus on missing, incorrect, or misinterpreted information Very common Tend to be factual in nature Easiest to resolve – simply correct the deficiency Less emotional because value systems are not being challenged Role Incompatibility Focus is on goals and responsibility (for example production vs. sales) Usually resolved through a common higher authority Interacts with personal differences and information deficiencies Environmental Stress Focus is on resource scarcity and uncertainty Disputes over domain, control, resources Uncertainty due to rapid, repeated change Generally intense but dissipates as change becomes routine

11 Key Behaviors/Skills For Conflict Resolution
SELF Deal with issues IMMEDIATELY! Don’t take it personally. Differences of opinion are typically not personal. Look for the Win-Win Don’t escalate conflict- if you have to, walk away.

12 Key Behaviors/Skills For Conflict Resolution
Specifically What is the source of the conflict? Clarify the interests of each side. Identify/list goals that they have in common. Brainstorm and list actions that will meet common goals and alleviate the conflict. Generally Deal with issues IMMEDIATELY! Communicate with direct reports – often Don’t take it personally. If there is no policy for dealing with conflict , co-create one with everyone on your team. Drill down to discover core issue(s) – is it structural or personal? What is structural? This has to do with resources, procedures, job responsibilities – the things are not personal, just the facts surrounding the work and workplace. One way you can determine whether the conflict is structural is to ask yourself, If we put 2 different people into this situation, would we still have conflict?” Interpersonal conflicts stem from the topics we mention earlier about work style, backgrounds, etc.

13 Learn how to deal with conflict
Create process for identifying conflict in early stages Understand your organization’s code of conduct, “rules of engagement” and ethics Promote respectful workplace where everyone supports each other, work in teams and set collective goals.

14 Dealing with “Crankpots”
Make sure most of your communication with crankpots happens face-to-face Never try to change the crankpot Become a keen listener, giving full attention to the crankpot every time Don't take their harsh words and grating behavior personally When conversation becomes confrontation, use this strategy: "Could we schedule a time to talk about this issue tomorrow?” Arrange to meet with the crankpot in your locale crankpots- - someone who is having a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day every day! Someone who is depressed, negative, pessimistic or angry The workplace harbors an abundance of crankpots--people who wouldn't know a smiley face if they saw one. Certainly they couldn't join the Optimist Club. They remind me of a character in the comic strip Li'l Abner, who went everywhere with a dark cloud over his head. Now and then, thunder rumbled and lightning struck. Sound familiar? We have trouble pleasing crankpots. Communication becomes difficult, and at times impossible. That's why I am going to offer six ways to succeed with the disgruntled ones. ONE: Make sure most of your communication with crankpots happens face-to-face. Crankpots are prone to misinterpret s and phone conversations. They make misguided assumptions, because you are not there to reinforce your message through your posture, gestures, and facial expression. Many times, you will prevent escalation of problems by saying, "I appreciate your call. I suggest we meet for a few minutes to continue our discussion." "But," you may wonder, "doesn't this take more time?" In the short run, yes, but in the long run no--because you will save time by reaching agreement sooner and forming a mutually satisfactory plan with specific action steps. TWO: Never try to change the crankpot. Trying to alter their communication style will frustrate you, and anger them. Instead, adjust to their style. If they expect highly detailed reports, forget about breaking the ice with jokes or chit chat about sports. Prepare those intricate reports and move along to your next task. THREE: Become a keen listener, giving full attention to the crankpot every time. One reason this person may be so cranky is because he or she lacks social skills, and may feel lonely. Say, "Please tell me how you came to your decision, so I can understand it fully." Suddenly, you change from enemy to ally. Truly, you can listen your way to a meaningful partnership. FOUR: Don't take their harsh words and grating behavior personally. Remember, they are not singling you out. They treat everybody that way, as long as they can get by with their abrasive approach FIVE: When conversation becomes confrontation, use this strategy: "Could we schedule a time to talk about this issue tomorrow? I think we will benefit by thinking about the problem individually overnight." A respite from verbal jousting often creates a more favorable climate for negotiation. SIX: Arrange to meet with the crankpot in your locale. In his domain, he is likely to act more domineering. In yours, she has less likelihood of feeling she commands the turf. If there is a home field advantage in sports, the same holds true for the business world.

15 It is literally true that you can succeed best and quickest by helping others to succeed. Napoleon Hill Imagine the other person is your best friend. How would you treat that person?

16 Thank you!