Conflict Management November 2017 Our vision “Achieve a high level of Value and Quality for our Customer whilst maintaining a healthy and thriving business for our staff and wider stakeholders.”

Understand what conflict is Objectives Understand what conflict is Understand what causes conflict and key steps in managing it Understand what the ‘problem solving cycle’ is and how to use it Understand how to prevent future conflict Opportunity to reflect on how you manage conflict and how effectively you do it Our vision “Achieve a high level of Value and Quality for our Customer whilst maintaining a healthy and thriving business for our staff and wider stakeholders.”

What is conflict management? Our vision “Achieve a high level of Value and Quality for our Customer whilst maintaining a healthy and thriving business for our staff and wider stakeholders.”

Conflict with your Manager Conflict with a Colleague Conflict is an issue or difference that causes a disagreement between individuals and / or groups. Disputes at work can take different forms Conflict with your Manager Conflict with a Colleague Dispute with another Department Our vision “Achieve a high level of Value and Quality for our Customer whilst maintaining a healthy and thriving business for our staff and wider stakeholders.”

How do you think you and the Company could benefit from resolving disputes in the workplace? Our vision “Achieve a high level of Value and Quality for our Customer whilst maintaining a healthy and thriving business for our staff and wider stakeholders.”

Increased productivity A pleasant working environment Stronger working relationships Happier staff Less work related stress Personal and professional growth Decrease in sickness absence Cost and time saving Our vision “Achieve a high level of Value and Quality for our Customer whilst maintaining a healthy and thriving business for our staff and wider stakeholders.”

Workplace conflict tends to fall into two categories: Individual Group Our vision “Achieve a high level of Value and Quality for our Customer whilst maintaining a healthy and thriving business for our staff and wider stakeholders.”

A clash of personalities Individual Everyone at some time will have problems or concerns with someone else at work, they may be: A clash of personalities A strong difference of opinion over work issues An overspill of personal issues from outside work Our vision “Achieve a high level of Value and Quality for our Customer whilst maintaining a healthy and thriving business for our staff and wider stakeholders.”

Their managers style is too strong or too weak An employee may have problems or concerns with their manager because they feel they: Their managers style is too strong or too weak They favour other colleagues when assigning tasks (favouritism). Our vision “Achieve a high level of Value and Quality for our Customer whilst maintaining a healthy and thriving business for our staff and wider stakeholders.”

Sometimes known as ‘them and us’ can be caused by: Group conflict Sometimes known as ‘them and us’ can be caused by: A general resentment or anger towards senior management Poor morale and low levels of motivation This also includes conflict between departments due to a lack of understanding or disrespect for work of different departments. Our vision “Achieve a high level of Value and Quality for our Customer whilst maintaining a healthy and thriving business for our staff and wider stakeholders.”

Causes of conflict Managers have a responsibility to look at the reasons for conflict and take measures to prevent it. Our vision “Achieve a high level of Value and Quality for our Customer whilst maintaining a healthy and thriving business for our staff and wider stakeholders.”

Causes of conflict: Poor management Excessive work loads Relationships at work Inadequate training Poor communication Poor work environment Our vision “Achieve a high level of Value and Quality for our Customer whilst maintaining a healthy and thriving business for our staff and wider stakeholders.”

So what should you look out for: Lack of motivation Behaviour Productivity Sickness Absence Our vision “Achieve a high level of Value and Quality for our Customer whilst maintaining a healthy and thriving business for our staff and wider stakeholders.”

Conflict at work takes different forms Recap Conflict at work takes different forms Managers should look out for any early warning signs before they escalate Managers should be open and communicate regularly to with their staff to prevent conflict Managers need good skills to and confidence to deal with conflict Our vision “Achieve a high level of Value and Quality for our Customer whilst maintaining a healthy and thriving business for our staff and wider stakeholders.”

The problem solving cycle Name problem & set goals Evaluate The Plan Analyse the problem Create an Action Plan Collect data Problem resolved Analyse The data Analyse Solution Search for Solutions Our vision “Achieve a high level of Value and Quality for our Customer whilst maintaining a healthy and thriving business for our staff and wider stakeholders.”

Using the problem solving cycle Exercise 1 Using the problem solving cycle Our vision “Achieve a high level of Value and Quality for our Customer whilst maintaining a healthy and thriving business for our staff and wider stakeholders.”

Preventing future conflict Set the right tone An open door policy Regular meetings Effective systems for consultation Use our policies Disciplinary & Grievance Managing Performance Absence Management Our vision “Achieve a high level of Value and Quality for our Customer whilst maintaining a healthy and thriving business for our staff and wider stakeholders.”

Treat all employees as equally important Stand up for our values Treat all employees as equally important Recognise the need for work life balance Take incidents of harassment and bullying seriously Work together Working groups of managers and employees Employee representatives Our vision “Achieve a high level of Value and Quality for our Customer whilst maintaining a healthy and thriving business for our staff and wider stakeholders.”

Recap The process in which a manager should resolve conflict will depend on its severity The problem solving cycle can help you approach conflict in a systematic way You can use the lessons learnt by conflict to prevent it happening again Our vision “Achieve a high level of Value and Quality for our Customer whilst maintaining a healthy and thriving business for our staff and wider stakeholders.”

Conflict Management Case Study Lee is a manager in a medium size Company with 7 people reporting to him and has had to deal with conflict recently. A few months ago 2 of Lee’s subordinates had a falling out over work tools, this was strange as they had always been good friends. When do you think is the best time for Lee to take action? Our vision “Achieve a high level of Value and Quality for our Customer whilst maintaining a healthy and thriving business for our staff and wider stakeholders.”

When the conflict starts to affect Sam or Brian’s work performance As soon as Lee notices that there could be a problem When Sam or Brian raise an informal complaint When Sam or Brian raise a formal complaint Our vision “Achieve a high level of Value and Quality for our Customer whilst maintaining a healthy and thriving business for our staff and wider stakeholders.”

Signs of conflict – Sam has been irritable and confrontational lately, which isn’t like him Causes of conflict – Sam agrees he has been struggling with the pressures of his new role and its really getting on top of him. Preventative action – Lee has arranged for Sam to receive some extra training and support and has encourage him to talk to him directly if stress is affecting him in the future Our vision “Achieve a high level of Value and Quality for our Customer whilst maintaining a healthy and thriving business for our staff and wider stakeholders.”

Key steps to managing conflict Face conflict head on Intervene quickly Use official processes Seek advice if required Our vision “Achieve a high level of Value and Quality for our Customer whilst maintaining a healthy and thriving business for our staff and wider stakeholders.”

Exercise 2 – self assessment quiz How do you manage conflict in your team… and how effectively do you do it? Exercise 2 – self assessment quiz Our vision “Achieve a high level of Value and Quality for our Customer whilst maintaining a healthy and thriving business for our staff and wider stakeholders.”

Understand what conflict is Objectives: Understand what conflict is Understand what causes conflict and key steps in managing it Understand what the ‘problem solving cycle’ is and how to use it Understand how to prevent future conflict Opportunity to reflect on how you manage conflict and how effectively you do it Our vision “Achieve a high level of Value and Quality for our Customer whilst maintaining a healthy and thriving business for our staff and wider stakeholders.”

So, how well do you now think you understand conflict management? Please take a few minutes to answer the questions designed to ascertain your understanding of the topics covered. Our vision “Achieve a high level of Value and Quality for our Customer whilst maintaining a healthy and thriving business for our staff and wider stakeholders.”