People deal with workplace conflict in different degrees. So, what is the best way to resolve workplace conflict? There are different strategies to address this issue and key is exploring ideas on what employees, managers, and business leaders can do to create a workplace where conflict is not shunned, but engaged with in a safe and practical way.
Understanding workplace conflict
Conflicts at work happen for many reasons including:
- Differences in opinions or personality.
- Biases employees have towards their colleagues.
- Different working styles.
- Views of favouritism or unfair treatment.
- Small disagreements that snowball into bigger disputes.
Simply put, the main reason for workplace conflict is that people are different. Employees all have different personalities, working styles, habits, and behaviours, all made to mix and interact in the same space (whether physical or virtual) for a significant amount of time.
Five strategies to deal with workplace conflict
Based on the Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Model, which weighs the importance of the goal against the relationships of the people involved, there are five strategies for resolving workplace conflict:
Avoiding – Avoiding is when a person ignores or withdraws from the conflict. This strategy is generally used when the discomfort of confrontation exceeds the potential reward of resolution of the conflict. While this might seem the simpler option, people are not really contributing anything of value to the conversation and may be withholding worthwhile ideas. When conflict is avoided, nothing is resolved.
Competing – Competing is used by people who go into a conflict planning to win. They are assertive and not cooperative. This strategy is characterised by the assumption that one side wins and everyone else loses. It does not allow room for diverse perspectives forming a whole picture. Competing might work in instances such as a sports match, but it is rarely a good strategy for team problem solving.
Accommodating – Accommodating is a strategy where one person gives in to the wishes or demands of another. They are being cooperative but not assertive. While this may appear to be a gracious way to give in when one person may be in the wrong, it is less helpful when it is used to accommodate others merely to preserve harmony or avoid disruption. Like avoidance, it can result in unresolved issues. Too much accommodation can result in teams where the most assertive parties commandeer the process and take control of most conversations.
Compromising – Another strategy is compromising, where a person is partially assertive and cooperative. The concept is that everyone gives up a little bit of what they want, and no one gets everything they want. The perception of the best outcome when working by compromise is that which ‘splits the difference.’ Compromise is perceived as being fair, even if no one is particularly happy with the outcome.
Collaborating – Collaborating is the method used when people are both assertive and cooperative. A team may learn to allow each participant to contribute with the possibility of co-creating a shared solution that everyone can support.
Conflict between two employees? Now what?
Most employees will deal with conflict in the workplace at one time or another, with many citing personality differences as the main cause, followed by stress and workload. With this in mind, some steps employers can take to resolve disputes include:
Encourage them to talk – Although it may sound basic, this often poses a challenge for most people. Gossiping or courting sympathy from others is easier than talking to the person involved. Facing the issue head on is the quickest way to defuse the conflict.
Focus on the behaviour, not the person – Encourage employees not to focus on the personality, but on the action. For example, instead of saying, “You were very rude,” use “you were raising your voice and kept interrupting me.” That focuses on the action and is a more factual approach.
Practice active listening – Many make the mistake of preparing counter-arguments in their head while the other person is talking. Encourage employees to really listen and hear where the other person is coming from.
Summarise and identify areas of conflict – Once each party has aired their side, it is important to work together to isolate and identify points of conflict. There can be a lot of emotion in these conversations, so employees will need to sift through this to get to the main points of the conflict.
Prioritise which to resolve first – If there is more than one area of conflict, employees should choose which one to work on first. Ideally, it would be the issue that might have the biggest impact on the rest of the team. Once that has been addressed, the smaller issues can be addressed.
Take action and follow through – Both parties should be committed to the plan to help resolve workplace conflict. This means working together to find answers and solutions together.
What managers can do to help resolve workplace conflict
Be clear about policies and decisions – Disagreements happen when there is confusion – whether that is about roles, priorities, or reporting structures. Avoid conflict by having clear rules and guidelines for everyone to follow in the form of clear policies and processes, and the thinking behind these documents including any changes made.
Prioritise conflict resolution training – Facilitate and conduct training sessions on conflict resolution for both employees and managers; equip teams with the skills and confidence to address and resolve conflict, and equip managers to proactively address team issues and lead effectively while maintaining neutrality.
Make everyone accountable – The leadership team can help instil a culture of accountability among the entire workforce where everyone is responsible for addressing and resolving conflicts at work. This is about working together to find solutions and improve working relationships.
Promote psychological safety – Employees should feel comfortable voicing concerns, sharing ideas, and admitting mistakes without fear of backlash. Managers can promote psychological safety by encouraging open dialogue, responding to feedback constructively, and addressing conflicts with fairness.
While managers are often seen as in-house mediators in resolving workplace conflict, it is not just a problem for HR or management, it is everyone’s concern. Addressing conflict at work requires an all-hands-on deck approach.
Workplace conflict, when left to fester, can affect the entire business. Before that happens, leaders should empower employees to resolve workplace conflict among themselves, conduct conflict resolution training regularly, and share tools and strategies to allow employees to fix these problems at their level before escalating the matter.
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