1. Do preliminary planning, scheduling, and room setup.Getting the right people in the right room at the right time is a good first step to creative problem-solving. Do some leg work upfront to determine who’s involved in a conflict. Then put some effort into creating an inviting environment so your employees have the best shot at successfully resolving their issue.
2. Greet parties and discuss the process.Setting ground rules, discussing your role as a neutral facilitator (which may be new to your employees) and letting the parties know that you’re open to helping them resolve their differences are all ways to demonstrate that this conflict — and its resolution — belongs to them.
3. Share perspectives.Refining the art of reflecting and reframing helps you identify core values, neutralize emotional language, and demonstrate that listening to each other’s point of view is far more productive than listening to rebuttals.
4. Build an agenda together.Creating a cooperative agenda after hearing each other’s perspective lets employees build a list of topics that acts as a compass for the rest of their meeting and provides a yardstick for their progress.
5. Negotiate in good faith.Giving employees the space to brainstorm and make proposals for solutions that benefit both of them can create remedies that are longer lasting and more durable.
6. Hold private meetings if necessary.Meeting privately gives each employee an opportunity to share sensitive information, practice how he might ask for what he needs, apologize for his role in the conflict, or acknowledge the positive aspects of his working relationship.
7. Craft agreements, with details.The best agreements are detailed agreements. Leaving anything to the imagination can cause trouble down the road, so crafting agreements with an eye for detail gives employees the boundaries and certainty they seek.
8. Monitor follow-through.Looking for signs that things are going well or tuning into cues that there’s more work to be done gives you an opportunity to praise your employees for what they’re doing well and to coach them on next steps.

http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/mediation-process-for-resolving-conflict-at-work.html

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1. Do preliminary planning, scheduling, and room setup.Getting the right people in the right room at the right time is a good first step to creative problem-solving. Do some leg work upfront to determine who’s involved in a conflict. Then put some effort into creating an inviting environment so your employees have the best shot at successfully resolving their issue.
2. Greet parties and discuss the process.Setting ground rules, discussing your role as a neutral facilitator (which may be new to your employees) and letting the parties know that you’re open to helping them resolve their differences are all ways to demonstrate that this conflict — and its resolution — belongs to them.
3. Share perspectives.Refining the art of reflecting and reframing helps you identify core values, neutralize emotional language, and demonstrate that listening to each other’s point of view is far more productive than listening to rebuttals.
4. Build an agenda together.Creating a cooperative agenda after hearing each other’s perspective lets employees build a list of topics that acts as a compass for the rest of their meeting and provides a yardstick for their progress.
5. Negotiate in good faith.Giving employees the space to brainstorm and make proposals for solutions that benefit both of them can create remedies that are longer lasting and more durable.
6. Hold private meetings if necessary.Meeting privately gives each employee an opportunity to share sensitive information, practice how he might ask for what he needs, apologize for his role in the conflict, or acknowledge the positive aspects of his working relationship.
7. Craft agreements, with details.The best agreements are detailed agreements. Leaving anything to the imagination can cause trouble down the road, so crafting agreements with an eye for detail gives employees the boundaries and certainty they seek.
8. Monitor follow-through.Looking for signs that things are going well or tuning into cues that there’s more work to be done gives you an opportunity to praise your employees for what they’re doing well and to coach them on next steps.

http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/mediation-process-for-resolving-conflict-at-work.html

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Over the last 20 years or so, Joey Cope has seen changes in the human resources profession.

In his opinion, they’ve been for the better.

Now, human resources professionals feel a stronger sense that their job involves helping employees — not just their company — Cope said.

Two decades ago, at least locally, “there wasn’t that emphasis,” said Cope, executive director for the Duncum Center for Conflict Resolution at Abilene Christian University.

Cope was one of several scheduled speakers at the annual HR Summit, hosted by the Big Country Society for Human Resource Management. About 115 human resources professionals and small business owners attended the Tuesday event at the Hunter Welcome Center at ACU, said Judy Elmore, who helped organize the event.

“There is a lot of uncertainty in the workplace,” said Elmore, describing how talks on topics such as employee engagement, conflict resolution and pursuing personal excellence were part of a program designed to benefit all sizes of employers.

Brad Thompson, a human resource professional with Hendrick Medical Center, praised the reference information put together for attendees, as well as the keynote speaker, Al Lucia, a business consultant.

“He focused a lot on leadership,” Thompson said.

For more experienced workers in the field of human resources, the conference offered a chance to continue their education and get an idea of what’s new in the profession, said Dee Weaver with Allied Employer Group, which offers payroll and other services to businesses.

This year’s theme was “Peace, Love & HR,” which fit perfectly the topics discussed Tuesday, said Tera Gibson with Fehr Foods, noting the day’s emphasis was on resolving conflict in the workplace and making sure employees stay engaged with their work.

“It’s a good resource for local HR and business people,” Gibson said of the conference.

http://www.reporternews.com/news/2011/aug/17/human-resources-summit-includes-discussions-on/

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The ability to resolve conflict in the workplace is a valuable skill to have. When workplace conflict is not managed efficiently this can lead to disastrous repercussions.

Habitual clashes and recurring conflict in the workplace is a recipe for disaster. Employer-employee resentments create office politics and unpleasant workplace atmospheres. It is important to find simple ways to conflict resolution in order to promote a healthy employment environment. When faced with conflict, employees are faced with a notion to either fight or flight. Yes, our innate reaction to any threatening situation is either to stay and defend ourselves or run like the wind. Conflict in the workplace is destructive and isolating. No one likes to get involved in complicated work conflicts.

The best thing to focus on when faced with resolving conflict in the workplace is your main objective and the relationship at stake. How important is your goal and to what lengths are you willing to go in order to achieve this. Similarly, consider the relationship with the person you are conflicting with. At best in any challenge there is a winner and a loser. How do you feel about possibly damaging an important work relationship? While faced with such a paradox you will eventually have to come to a conclusion.

Here are six rules to follow when attempting to manage conflict within the workplace

1.      Don’t give in too easily.

Contestants in a work conflict often use terror tactics to intimidate their opponents. While this is beginning to sound more like an ancient form of employment jujitsu, there is no reason to panic just yet. Don’t allow moments of workplace conflict to intimidate you into submission. If you believe in the worth of your objective and have convinced of its merit, don’t give up. By ignoring your emotional drive will result in resentment fear and hostility. Face conflict in a consistent manner and stay true to yourself.

2.       Avoid a win-lose solution when the stakes are high.

When your goal is important but so is the relationship you are conflicting with, what are you supposed to do? It is in your best interest to resolve the problem as amicably as possible. While this is not an easy task, try to find the most agreeable solution to the problem at hand. A mutual agreement is the best option for both parties involved.

3.      Maintain vital business relationships.

What happens when faced with the scenario in which the longevity of the business relationship far outweighs your objective? Consider long-term as well as short-term objectives. Both of these are relevant but it is your task to prioritise these accordingly.

4.      Fold when you are pressed for time.

When deadlines are looming and time is slipping by, consider accepting defeat with the bigger picture in mind. Ultimately a decision has to be made to solve conflict. Don’t waste valuable time squabbling over who is more correct. Sometimes the best conflict resolution is to agree to disagree select a common ground to work on.

5.      Learn to negotiate.

Negotiation is a vital skill to have in order to solve workplace disputes. Your ability to negotiate will depict your success in leading decision. Negotiation skills promote healthy debate and encourages clearly thought out concepts. Learn to negotiate during work conflict and be flexible in your approach.

Try to keep things Light.

Making light of awkward situations is always a constructive strategy. Conflict resolution can sometimes be uncomfortable which is why you should keep an open mind and a sense of humour.

Conflict resolution should always be managed with confidentiality and sensitivity. When people’s integrity and belief system is being questioned, defence mechanisms are a natural reaction. Try to maintain all business relationships while at the same time achieving your goal.

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The fact that conflict exists, however, is not necessarily a bad thing: As long as it is resolved effectively, it can lead to personal and professional growth.

In many cases, effective conflict resolution can make the difference between positive and negative outcomes.

The good news is that by resolving conflict successfully, you can solve many of the problems that it has brought to the surface, as well as getting benefits that you might not at first expect:

• Increased understanding: The discussion needed to resolve conflict expands people’s awareness of the situation, giving them an insight into how they can achieve their own goals without undermining those of other people.
• Increased group cohesion: When conflict is resolved effectively, team members can develop stronger mutual respect, and a renewed faith in their ability to work together.
• Improved self-knowledge: Conflict pushes individuals to examine their goals in close detail , helping them understand the things that are most important to them, sharpening their focus, and enhancing their effectiveness.

However, if conflict is not handled effectively, the results can be damaging. Conflicting goals can quickly turn into personal dislike. Teamwork breaks down. Talent is wasted as people disengage from their work. And it’s easy to end up in a vicious downward spiral of negativity and recrimination.

If you’re to keep your team or organization working effectively, you need to stop this downward spiral as soon as you can. To do this, it helps to understand two of the theories that lie behind effective conflict resolution:

Understanding the Theory: Conflict Styles

In the 1970s Kenneth Thomas and Ralph Kilmann identified five main styles of dealing with conflict that vary in their degrees of cooperativeness and assertiveness. They argued that people typically have a preferred conflict resolution style. However they also noted that different styles were most useful in different situations. They developed the Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Mode Instrument (TKI) which helps you to identify which style you tend towards when conflict arises.

Thomas and Kilmann’s styles are:

Competitive: People who tend towards a competitive style take a firm stand, and know what they want. They usually operate from a position of power, drawn from things like position, rank, expertise, or persuasive ability. This style can be useful when there is an emergency and a decision needs to be make fast; when the decision is unpopular; or when defending against someone who is trying to exploit the situation selfishly. However it can leave people feeling bruised, unsatisfied and resentful when used in less urgent situations.

Collaborative: People tending towards a collaborative style try to meet the needs of all people involved. These people can be highly assertive but unlike the competitor, they cooperate effectively and acknowledge that everyone is important. This style is useful when a you need to bring together a variety of viewpoints to get the best solution; when there have been previous conflicts in the group; or when the situation is too important for a simple trade-off.

Compromising: People who prefer a compromising style try to find a solution that will at least partially satisfy everyone. Everyone is expected to give up something, and the compromiser him- or herself also expects to relinquish something. Compromise is useful when the cost of conflict is higher than the cost of losing ground, when equal strength opponents are at a standstill and when there is a deadline looming.

Accommodating: This style indicates a willingness to meet the needs of others at the expense of the person’s own needs. The accommodator often knows when to give in to others, but can be persuaded to surrender a position even when it is not warranted. This person is not assertive but is highly cooperative. Accommodation is appropriate when the issues matter more to the other party, when peace is more valuable than winning, or when you want to be in a position to collect on this “favor” you gave. However people may not return favors, and overall this approach is unlikely to give the best outcomes.

Avoiding: People tending towards this style seek to evade the conflict entirely. This style is typified by delegating controversial decisions, accepting default decisions, and not wanting to hurt anyone’s feelings. It can be appropriate when victory is impossible, when the controversy is trivial, or when someone else is in a better position to solve the problem. However in many situations this is a weak and ineffective approach to take.

Once you understand the different styles, you can use them to think about the most appropriate approach (or mixture of approaches) for the situation you’re in. You can also think about your own instinctive approach, and learn how you need to change this if necessary.

Ideally you can adopt an approach that meets the situation, resolves the problem, respects people’s legitimate interests, and mends damaged working relationships.

Understanding The Theory: The “Interest-Based Relational Approach”

The second theory is commonly referred to as the “Interest-Based Relational (IBR) Approach”. This type of conflict resolution respects individual differences while helping people avoid becoming too entrenched in a fixed position.

In resolving conflict using this approach, you follow these rules:

• Make sure that good relationships are the first priority: As far as possible, make sure that you treat the other calmly and that you try to build mutual respect. Do your best to be courteous to one-another and remain constructive under pressure.
• Keep people and problems separate: Recognize that in many cases the other person is not just “being difficult” – real and valid differences can lie behind conflictive positions. By separating the problem from the person, real issues can be debated without damaging working relationships.
• Pay attention to the interests that are being presented: By listening carefully you’ll most-likely understand why the person is adopting his or her position.
• Listen first; talk second: To solve a problem effectively you have to understand where the other person is coming from before defending your own position.
• Set out the “Facts”: Agree and establish the objective, observable elements that will have an impact on the decision.
• Explore options together: Be open to the idea that a third position may exist, and that you can get to this idea jointly.

By following these rules, you can often keep contentious discussions positive and constructive. This helps to prevent the antagonism and dislike which so-often causes conflict to spin out of control.

Using the Tool: A Conflict Resolution Process

Based on these approaches, a starting point for dealing with conflict is to identify the overriding conflict style employed by yourself, your team or your organization.

Over time, people’s conflict management styles tend to mesh, and a “right” way to solve conflict emerges. It’s good to recognize when this style can be used effectively, however make sure that people understand that different styles may suit different situations.

Look at the circumstances, and think about the style that may be appropriate.

Then use the process below to resolve the conflict:

Step One: Set the Scene

If appropriate to the situation, agree the rules of the IBR Approach (or at least consider using the approach yourself.) Make sure that people understand that the conflict may be a mutual problem, which may be best resolved through discussion and negotiation rather than through raw aggression.

If you are involved in the conflict, emphasize the fact that you are presenting your perception of the problem. Use active listening skills to ensure you hear and understand other’s positions and perceptions.

• Restate.
• Paraphrase.
• Summarize.

And make sure that when you talk, you’re using an adult, assertive approach rather than a submissive or aggressive style.

Step Two: Gather Information

Here you are trying to get to the underlying interests, needs, and concerns. Ask for the other person’s viewpoint and confirm that you respect his or her opinion and need his or her cooperation to solve the problem.

Try to understand his or her motivations and goals, and see how your actions may be affecting these.

Also, try to understand the conflict in objective terms: Is it affecting work performance? damaging the delivery to the client? disrupting team work? hampering decision-making? or so on. Be sure to focus on work issues and leave personalities out of the discussion.

• Listen with empathy and see the conflict from the other person’s point of view.
• Identify issues clearly and concisely.
• Use “I” statements.
• Remain flexible.
• Clarify feelings.

Step Three: Agree the Problem

This sounds like an obvious step, but often different underlying needs, interests and goals can cause people to perceive problems very differently. You’ll need to agree the problems that you are trying to solve before you’ll find a mutually acceptable solution.

Sometimes different people will see different but interlocking problems – if you can’t reach a common perception of the problem, then at the very least, you need to understand what the other person sees as the problem.

Step Four: Brainstorm Possible Solutions

If everyone is going to feel satisfied with the resolution, it will help if everyone has had fair input in generating solutions. Brainstorm possible solutions, and be open to all ideas, including ones you never considered before.

Step Five: Negotiate a Solution

By this stage, the conflict may be resolved: Both sides may better understand the position of the other, and a mutually satisfactory solution may be clear to all.

However you may also have uncovered real differences between your positions. This is where a technique like win-win negotiation can be useful to find a solution that, at least to some extent, satisfies everyone.

There are three guiding principles here: Be Calm, Be Patient, Have Respect.

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that the traditional approach to conflict resolution rushes too quickly to find what is factual, objective, and patterned rather than staying with the stories that have brought the conflict to the point of escalation. Winslade and Monk believe that the solution to stories gone badly is to understand that people live their lives through stories, and then ask questions that create inquiry into the work that these stories do, and experiment with how these stories might be reshaped to bring about a different relationship to the conflict.

I will begin a series of posts over the next several weeks introducing this innovative approach to conflict resolution which is a departure from the traditional problem-solving, interest-based model of resolving disputes. Narrative mediation is based upon a postmodern, social constructionist philosophy, and views conflict as arising within cultural contexts that have influence on how parties construct their perceptions of a particular event. The narrative mediation approach encourages the conflicting parties to reach understanding and resolution through a deep understanding of the shared personal narratives underlying the conflict, leading to a new story of relationship between the parties involved.

In future posts I will walk through Winslade and Monk’s nine hallmarks of narrative practice in mediation. These nine are:

1. Stories Matter
2. Avoid essentialist assumptions
3. Engage in double listening
4. Build an externalizing conversation
5. View the problem story as a restraint
6. Listen for discursive positioning
7. Identify openings to an alternative story
8. Re-author the relationship story
9. Document progress

I hope you will join me as we see how paying attention to stories has the power to transform relationships.

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The Conference Board of Canada predicts a shortage of nearly one million workers by 2020. “How your organization handles conflict could be a major factor in your quest to seek out and retain quality new hires,” says Marjorie Munro, co-director of the Alberta branch of the Workplace Fairness Institute.

The American Institute of Stress cites reports that occupational pressures are “far and away the leading source of stress for American adults and that these have steadily increased over the past few decades.”

Blaine Donais of the Workplace Fairness Institute has developed a “fairness cost analysis tool” which can be used to put a price tag on conflict. It’s one way to put a price on low employee engagement and start building a foundation to better manage conflict through a variety of mechanisms, including coaching.

Sue Lyons, a senior consultant and coach with Work Life Insight in Calgary, says coaching forms part of the solution to helping to effectively manage and resolve workplace conflict.

“The transfer of learning is so high and it hits the target every time,” says Lyons. “If you have a good coach and a committed employee, you can work on anything.”

Since conflict usually arises out of a difference of values, coaching can help two opposing sides to remove the heated emotion and more closely examine the real issues at play in any given conflict. “Coaching helps employees deal with the conflict on the front line,” she says. “There’s no judgment and no politics in coaching.”

Facing the prospect of long-term labour shortages, experts advise companies to be aware of both the direct and indirect costs associated with conflict in the workplace and develop a comprehensive plan to improve the processes for managing it.

Direct costs include litigation, sick and stress leaves, sabotage, theft, hiring as employees leave and restructuring. Indirect costs include manager and human resources time, employee time, productivity costs and reputation costs.

“Costs are evident when managers spend increasing time resolving conflict with their employees; an employee shows a measurable drop in productivity, there is an increasing number of sick days or the water fountain gossip time becomes longer and longer,” says Munro.

A good conflict resolution system can include conflict coaching, training, peer mediation and even a conflict ombudsperson for the office. Donais’ fairness ranking can help companies identify where they need to improve and helps managers to see how deficiencies translate into recruitment challenges. “Your fairness ranking becomes a topic for discussion in the most compelling job interviews, and you are able to attract and retain employees because you know, and you can prove, that you treat them fairly,” says Munro.

“Consider the systems you have in place for addressing conflict within your organization,” she says. “For example: are employees free to approach managers outside the chain of command through a formalized open door policy? If so, do managers receive adequate training in resolving disputes?

Do employees know about the policy? Were employees involved with the development of the policy, and are they included in ongoing evaluations?”

Companies that develop a poor reputation for their ability to manage conflict will experience more difficulty in recruiting and retention adds Munro.

Generational differences are often a source of conflict as Millenials, or Generation Y, working alongside Baby Boomers nearing retirement, says Lyons.

While coaching is only one part of a good conflict management program, she believes it will increasingly become ingrained into the corporate landscape.

“When I think about the companies I’ve worked for that are really progressive and won the awards . I see coaching shifting into an attraction and retention strategy that’s as big as health benefits,” says Lyons.

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Attention

In conflict situations, all identified problems need to be given prompt attention. Dianna Booher, author of “Get a Life without Sacrificing Your Career” says certainly the most extensive and pressing confrontations cry loudest for our attention, but many mountains are merely the consequence of a molehill left unattended to. In Booher’s words, “They all must be dealt with. Remember two key concepts here: sensitivity and willingness to resolve the situation. Those who have their eyes, ears, and minds open will see what others don’t or won’t. Having a good sense of your surroundings and associates is the best way to recognise when and how conflicts arise.”

Asking questions

One of the best ways to avoid and resolve conflict in the workplace is to ask questions. Gary Harper, author of “The Joy of Conflict Resolution: Transforming Victims, Villains, and Heroes in the Workplace and at Home” suggests that if you feel that a friend or co-worker is nursing a grudge against you, but you have no clue as to why it is so, asking the right questions will enable you to uncover the other side of the story and fix the damaged relationship.

Harper says assuming you and a co-worker have just delivered a report to senior management about a project on which you collaborated. As you leave the meeting, your co-worker shakes his head. Since then, he has barely acknowledged you. As Harper puts it, “You are mystified by his attitude because the report was so well received by management. You decide to approach him, but don’t really know where to begin. You can unravel the mystery of conflict by (1) understanding how people view such confrontations and (2) by using conversation skills to get to the root of the conflict.”

Self-justification

It is a fact that in conflict, each person has his or her own story and people tend to see themselves as either the innocent victim or perhaps the righteous hero, while looking at the other person or people as the villain or villians. Attachment to these roles results in conversations that quickly regress to debates or outright confrontations: a verbal thrust and parry in which judgement is met by justification. People dissipate tremendous energy, but at the end of the day, they feel like they have gone in circles with little understanding or identification of the real issue.

Team conflict

Only few workplace situations are as frustrating as belonging to a team experiencing persistent or recurrent conflict. While this phase of team development is normal, it disrupts productivity and leaves team members feeling frustrated. According to Michael Goldman, president of Facilitation First, a company that specialises in providing professional meeting facilitation and training, there really are no quick fixes here, and there are typically many reasons for team conflict. Goldman adds that the desire to make your feelings known is the first step in helping your team to tackle its ineffective behaviour. However, it is important to remember that, depending on how you make your feelings known, your disclosure may be perceived as yet another problem or an as opportunity for the team to become more effective.

It should be noted that no one is going to listen to someone who is emotionally volatile. In fact, with quiet people, your intervening strategy may shut them down entirely, while domineering members will just get more fired up. Goldman advises that you can take a few deep breaths and try to feel the weight of your body against the floor. Keep on doing this until you feel a sense of calm.

Team conflict

Only few workplace situations are as frustrating as belonging to a team experiencing persistent or recurrent conflict. While this phase of team development is normal, it disrupts productivity and leaves team members feeling frustrated. According to Michael Goldman, president of Facilitation First, a company that specialises in providing professional meeting facilitation and training, there really are no quick fixes here, and there are typically many reasons for team conflict. Goldman adds that the desire to make your feelings known is the first step in helping your team to tackle its ineffective behaviour. However, it is important to remember that, depending on how you make your feelings known, your disclosure may be perceived as yet another problem or an as opportunity for the team to become more effective.

It should be noted that no one is going to listen to someone who is emotionally volatile. In fact, with quiet people, your intervening strategy may shut them down entirely, while domineering members will just get more fired up. Goldman advises that you can take a few deep breaths and try to feel the weight of your body against the floor. Keep on doing this until you feel a sense of calm.

What to ask and strategy

You can then ask the group the question such as, “Can I give some feedback about our group process?” Then if people are willing to listen, Goldman says then you can try the following method: State your observation so far. That is, “I noticed in the last 20 minutes that when John presented his idea, none of us acknowledged what he had to say. Rather, we just went into our own stuff.…”). State what you imagine is going on, e’g., “I imagine that we all have good intentions, but when push comes to shove our own agendas come first.” Then state the impact on you, “I’m feeling frustrated because I, and perhaps others, don’t feel heard by the team.”

Another thing is to state what you want, e.g., “If we could listen first to what someone has to say, then repeat what we think we heard, I think the speaker would feel more supported and that his or her ideas haven’t been missed.”

In following this intervention, you need to be quiet and allow the team to respond. However, if no one responds or people get sarcastic by saying they are not there to talk about your feelings, then ask other members if they feel the same way. You may have to repeat your feedback to ensure everyone has heard you, and endeavour to avoid getting frustrated.

The team

But if members have heard what you want and are willing to cooperate, then you have essentially asked them to follow an operating listening rule. Goldman submits that while you are at it, see if there are any other rules the team may need to live by in order to become boost performance. You can suggest that these rules be posted at every meeting. Whoever is chairing the meeting could use these rules to ensure people are behaving according to the team’s expectations. Once a month, the team should review these to see which rules need to be modified or expunged.

Parting words

It is important to realise that all your team members experience conflict and it is normal for the team to enter and fall back into conflict during the developmental stage. Understanding this, and proactively taking time to express your opinion and develop norms, would ensure that members of the team enjoy a healthy future, and your organisation will be better for it.

Resolution Mediation

http://www.resolutionmediation.net/

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Red Deer Alberta

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The majority of UK employees do not believe that HR departments are best placed to manage conflict in the workplace, according to new research.

In a Global Market Insite poll of 1,000 UK workers, commissioned by the Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution (CEDR), just 16% said that HR was best suited for conflict management.

The Tough Talk report revealed that twice as many respondents (14%) enlisted the help of a neutral third party when conflict first arose, compared to those who approached their HR department (7%).

A combined 87% of respondents felt that levels of conflict at work had increased or at best stayed the same over the past 12 to 18 months, while only 8% believed that levels of conflict had decreased.

Nearly two-thirds (60%) of respondents cited a tendency to ignore conflict and a lack of problem-solving ability (57%) as organisational weaknesses, the likely outcomes being unresolved conflict or dissatisfaction in how conflict is managed.

The survey also revealed that money had not been the primary reason for conflict in working life over the past year, despite widespread fears about redundancy and job losses. People were twice as likely to cite workload (32%) than money (16%) as the primary trigger for difficult conversations.

The overwhelming majority (88%) of respondents agreed that the cost of conflict is damaging to the UK economy. The study showed that more people (59%) cited internal factors – including management (32%) and co-workers (27%) – as the top sources of “challenging conversations”, compared to external factors, including customers, suppliers or business partners.

Dr Karl Mackie, chief executive of CEDR, said: “All eyes are trained on the private sector as a beacon of hope for job creation, but the survey suggests levels of internal conflict that stand in the way of real business transformation.

“Conflict, when managed effectively, can support morale and curb stress, helping create an environment that’s more conducive to achieving mission-critical goals.”

Employers should give greater priority to effective conflict management as a core value that is championed across the organisation, from the boardroom to the shop floor, according to Mackie.

“Those in leadership positions have a duty to skill up in this area and encourage more structured conversations which can reveal more than one path to conflict resolution,” he said.

http://www.personneltoday.com/articles/2010/11/09/56887/hr-not-best-placed-to-manage-conflict-say-uk-workers.html

Resolution Mediation

http://www.resolutionmediation.net/

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There are many reasons for conflict to arise in the workplace, but following are typical (most popular) situations that result in conflict:

1- Opposing opinions

2- Differing perceptions of values

3- Unclear expectations

4- Egos and competition

5- Change – not wanting to let go of old processes and procedures

Employees are frequently faced with situations which affect their emotions. Whether it’s the loss of a loved one, a divorce, an empty nest, menopause, job loss, or financial hardships, emotions are always in a state of fluctuation. This array of our internal emotional clocks is inevitable, and when employees don’t understand how to manage their emotions, turmoil will follow wherever they go, and their lives will be in a constant state of disarray.   This is especially distressing in the workplace. Finding fault, anger, and personal attacks can cause Corporations to lose valuable time, productivity, and can result in other negative consequences – consistent high turnover rates, low employee morale, high employee health costs, and unnecessary departmental changes to name a few.

The best way to avoid conflict is to try and prevent it in the first place.  Following are simple guidelines for preventing simple conflict:

1- Maintain open communication – How often do you talk to employees? Create a departmental mission statement and goals allowing each employee to have a voice and contribute to the design of the objectives – create it together.

2- Reward employees – Employee loyalty or reward programs work well for many types of businesses.

3- Hold special events – A company-sponsored social event is great for team building and bonding.  With the renewed interest in retaining quality employees, company-sponsored special events are returning to the forefront.

4- Ensure two-way communication – When it comes to employee relationships, listening is just as important as telling.  Encourage feedback – whether through surveys, newsletters, or a suggestion box.

5- Walk the floor – For many employers, it is important to stay close to employees without smothering them.  They want to know you care about their work while at the same time allowing them the freedom and trust to perform their jobs.

6-Impromptu rewards – Everyone loves an unexpected treat.  This creates a motivating fun atmosphere by showing your employees you are thinking of them and their happiness at work is a priority.

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