1. Failure to respond to employee needs
Conflict is…
a normal, inescapable part of life
a periodic occurrence in any relationship
an opportunity to understand opposing preferences and values
Main Causes
Poor communication
Lack of openness
Failure to respond to employee needs

2. Transitions in Conflict
Traditional View of Conflict
The belief that all conflict is harmful and must be avoided
Human Relations View of Conflict
The belief that conflict is a natural and inevitable outcome in any group
Interactionist View of Conflict
The belief that conflict is not only a positive force in a group but that it is absolutely necessary for a group to perform effectively

3. Functional Outcomes from Conflict Dysfunctional Outcomes from Conflict
Increased group performance
Improved quality of decisions
Stimulation of creativity and innovation
Encouragement of interest and curiosity
Provision of a medium for problem-solving
Creation of an environment for self-evaluation and change
Dysfunctional Outcomes from Conflict
Development of discontent
Reduced group effectiveness
Retarded communication
Reduced group cohesiveness
Infighting among group members overcomes group goals

4. Task Conflict : Conflicts over content and goals of the work.
It occurs when there are differences between how workers approach a job or obstacle in the workplace.
Low to medium level: considered healthy for the organization because it stimulates creativity, healthy competition and provides the possibility of a better outcome through constant discussions and different perspectives.
Relationship Conflict: Conflict based on interpersonal relationships.
It is based on dislike and mistrust and focuses on interpersonal conflict.
Because of its volatile and counter-productive nature, relationship conflict is considered completely destructive and harmful. It leads to delayed projects and poor outcomes.
Process Conflict: Conflict over how work gets done.
Low level: considered beneficial, because it stimulates healthy competition and motivation among individuals. However, intense arguments should be avoided. Moreover, process conflicts can easily lead to jealousy, loss of motivation and job dissatisfaction. Therefore, it should be kept to a minimum level, where managers and group leaders can easily control it.

5. Key Points for the Different Types of Conflict
Relationship conflict is considered to be the most negative and dysfunctional type.
Task conflict and process conflict can be beneficial for the organization, if they are kept to low levels.
If task conflicts and process conflicts are not managed, they may lead to relationship conflicts.

6. Some facts..
One of the surveys indicated that relationship conflicts consume approximately 18% of the managers’ total time.
Relationship conflicts are usually the reason of different personalities, attitudes and perceptions. It is one of the reasons why the workforce diversity is such a great management challenge.

7. The Conflict Process

8. Stage I: Potential Opposition or Incompatibility
Stage II: Cognition and Personalization
Perceived Conflict Awareness by one or more parties of the existence of conditions that create opportunities for conflict to arise
Communication
Semantic difficulties, misunderstandings, and “noise”
Structure
Size and specialization of jobs
Jurisdictional clarity/ambiguity
Member/goal incompatibility
Leadership styles (close or participative)
Reward systems (win-lose)
Dependence/interdependence of groups
Personal Variables
Differing individual value systems
Personality types
Felt Conflict
Emotional involvement in a conflict creating anxiety, tenseness, frustration, or hostility

9. Stage III: Intentions
Cooperativeness: Attempting to satisfy the other party’s concerns.
Assertiveness: Attempting to satisfy one’s own concerns.

11. Collaborating: A situation in which the parties to a conflict each desire to satisfy fully the concerns of all parties.
I win, you win
Fundamental premise
Teamwork and cooperation help everyone achieve their goals while also maintaining relationships
Strategic philosophy
The process of working through differences will lead to creative solutions that will satisfy both parties' concerns
When to use:
When there is a high level of trust
When you don't want to have full responsibility
When you want others to also have "ownership" of solutions
When the people involved are willing to change their thinking as more information is found and new options are suggested
When you need to work through animosity and hard feelings
Drawbacks:
The process takes lots of time and energy
Some may take advantage of other people's trust and openness

12. Winning something while losing a little is OK
Compromising: A situation in which each party to a conflict is willing to give up something.
You bend, I bend
Fundamental premise
Winning something while losing a little is OK
Strategic philosophy
Both ends are placed against the middle in an attempt to serve the "common good" while ensuring each person can maintain something of their original position
When to use:
When people of equal status are equally committed to goals
When time can be saved by reaching intermediate settlements on individual parts of complex issues
When goals are moderately important
Drawbacks:
Important values and long-term objectives can be derailed in the process
May not work if initial demands are too great
Can spawn cynicism, especially if there's no commitment to honor the compromise solutions

13. Accommodating: The willingness of one party in a conflict to place the opponent’s interests above his or her own.
I lose, you win
Fundamental premise: Working toward a common purpose is more important than any of the peripheral concerns; the trauma of confronting differences may damage fragile relationships
Strategic philosophy: Appease others by downplaying conflict, thus protecting the relationship
When to use When an issue is not as important to you as it is to the other person When you realize you are wrong When you are willing to let others learn by mistake When you know you cannot win When it is not the right time and you would prefer to simply build credit for the future When harmony is extremely important When what the parties have in common is a good deal more important than their differences Drawbacks: One's own ideas don't get attention Credibility and influence can be lost

14. Associates "winning" a conflict with competition
Competing: A desire to satisfy one’s interests, regardless of the impact on the other party to the conflict.
I win, you lose
Fundamental premise:
Associates "winning" a conflict with competition
Strategic philosophy:
When goals are extremely important, one must sometimes use power to win
When to use:
When you know you are right
When time is short and a quick decision is needed
When a strong personality is trying to steamroller you and you don't want to be taken advantage of
When you need to stand up for your rights
Drawbacks:
Can escalate conflict
Losers may retaliate

15. Avoiding: The desire to withdraw from or suppress a conflict
No winners, no losers Fundamental premise: This isn't the right time or place to address this issue Strategic philosophy: Avoids conflict by withdrawing, sidestepping, or postponing
When to use:
When the conflict is small and relationships are at stake
When you're counting to ten to cool off
When more important issues are pressing and you feel you don't have time to deal with this particular one
When you have no power and you see no chance of getting your concerns met
When you are too emotionally involved and others around you can solve the conflict more successfully
When more information is needed
Drawbacks:
Important decisions may be made by default
Postponing may make matters worse

16. Stage IV: Behavior
Conflict Management: The use of resolution and stimulation techniques to achieve the desired level of conflict.
Conflict Resolution
Techniques
Problem solving
Super ordinate goals
Expansion of resources
Avoidance
Smoothing
Compromise
Authoritative command
Altering the human variable
Altering the structural variables
Conflict Stimulation Techniques
Communication
Bringing in outsiders
Restructuring the organization
Appointing a devil’s advocate
A way of visualizing conflict. All conflicts exists somewhere along this continuum

17. Stage V: Outcomes Functional Outcomes from Conflict
Increased group performance
Improved quality of decisions
Stimulation of creativity and innovation
Encouragement of interest and curiosity
Provision of a medium for problem-solving
Creation of an environment for self-evaluation and change
Creating Functional Conflict
Reward dissent and punish conflict avoiders

18. Negotiating “Negotiating is the art of reaching an agreement by
resolving differences through creativity”

19. Negotiation Negotiation
A process in which two or more parties exchange goods or services and attempt to agree on the exchange rate for them.
BATNA
The Best Alternative To a Negotiated Agreement; the lowest acceptable value (outcome) to an individual for a negotiated agreement.

20. Bargaining Strategies
Negotiation that seeks one or more settlements that can create a win-win solution
Integrative Bargaining
Negotiation that seeks to divide up a fixed amount of resources; a win-lose situation.
Distributive Bargaining
Essence of
distributive bargaining:

22. Distributive Versus Integrative Bargaining
Bargaining Distributive Integrative Characteristic Characteristic Characteristic
Available resources Fixed amount of Variable amount of resources to be divided resources to be divided
Primary motivations I win, you lose I win, you win
Primary interests Opposed to each other Convergent or congruent with each other
Focus of relationships Short term Long term

23. The Negotiation Process

24. Issues in Negotiation The Role of Personality Traits in Negotiation
Traits do not appear to have a significantly direct effect on the outcomes of either bargaining or negotiating processes.
Gender Differences in Negotiations
Women negotiate no differently from men, although men apparently negotiate slightly better outcomes.
Men and women with similar power bases use the same negotiating styles.
Women’s attitudes toward negotiation and their success as negotiators are less favorable than men’s.

26. Negotiation Styles from a Cross-Cultural Perspective
Table 7–7
Negotiation Styles from a Cross-Cultural Perspective

27. Negotiation Styles from a Cross-Cultural Perspective
Table 7–7
Negotiation Styles from a Cross-Cultural Perspective

29. Negotiators vary in the styles of persuasion they rely upon and their comfort with emotionality.
In American settings, appeals tend to be made to logic, relying on "objective" facts. Emotional sensitivity is not highly valued, and dealings may seem straightforward and impersonal.
Japanese negotiators value emotional sensitivity highly, and tend to hide emotions behind calm exteriors.
Latin American negotiators tend to share the Japanese appreciation of emotional sensitivity, and express themselves passionately about their points of view.
Arab negotiators may appeal to emotions and subjective feelings in an effort to persuade others.
Russians, in contrast, tend to appeal to ideals, drawing everyone's attention to overarching principles.

30. monochronic cultures tend to:
Time Orientations
Monochronic approaches
to time are linear, sequential and involve focusing on one thing at a time.
These approaches are most common in the European-influenced cultures of the United States, Germany, Switzerland, and Scandinavia. Japanese people also tend toward this end of the time continuum.
Negotiators from
monochronic cultures tend to:
prefer prompt beginnings and endings,
schedule breaks,
deal with one agenda item at a time,
rely on specific, detailed, and explicit communication,
prefer to talk in sequence,
view lateness as devaluing or evidence of lack of respect.

31. Polychronic cultures tend to:
Time Orientations
Polychronic orientations
to time involve simultaneous occurrences of many things and the involvement of many people. The time it takes to complete an interaction is elastic, and more important than any schedule.
This orientation is most common in Mediterranean and Latin cultures including France, Italy, Greece, and Mexico, as well as some Eastern and African cultures.
Negotiators from
Polychronic cultures tend to:
start and end meetings at flexible times,
take breaks when it seems appropriate,
be comfortable with a high flow of information,
expect to read each others' thoughts and minds,
sometimes overlap talk,
view start times as flexible and not take lateness personally

32. Another dimension of time relevant to negotiations is the focus on:
PAST & FUTURE ORIENTED
North America
PAST-ORIENTED
Iran
India
the Far East
PRESENT & NEAR-FUTURE
The United States
PRESENT &
PAST
Latin America
Another dimension of time relevant to negotiations is the focus on:
PAST, PRESENT OR FUTURE

33. Why American Managers Might Have Trouble in Cross-Cultural Negotiations
Italians, Germans, and French don’t soften up executives with praise before they criticize. Americans do, and to many Europeans this seems manipulative. Israelis, accustomed to fast-paced meetings, have no patience for American small talk.
British executives often complain that their U.S. counterparts chatter too much. Indian executives are used to interrupting one another. When Americans listen without asking for clarification or posing questions, Indians can feel the Americans aren’t paying attention.
Americans often mix their business and personal lives. They think nothing, for instance, about asking a colleague a question like, “How was your weekend?” In many cultures such a question is seen as intrusive because business and private lives are totally compartmentalized.

34. Third-Party Negotiations
Mediator: A neutral third party who facilitates a negotiated solution by using reasoning, persuasion, and suggestions for alternatives.
Arbitrator: A third party to a negotiation who has the authority to dictate an agreement.
Conciliator: A trusted third party who provides an informal communication link between the negotiator and the opponent.
Consultant: An impartial third party, skilled in conflict management, who attempts to facilitate creative problem solving through communication and analysis.