Conflict and Conflict Management in Teams

What is Conflict?

A few definitions of conflicts are:1. A state of open, often prolonged fighting; a battle or war.2. A state of disharmony between incompatible or antithetical

persons, ideas, or interests; a clash.3. A state of opposition between ideas, interests, etc.; disagreement

or controversy 4. A state of opposition between two simultaneous but incompatible

wishes or drives, sometimes leading to a state of emotional tension

Context of Conflicts at work

As organizations continue to restructure work teams, conflicts will arise from differences, and when individuals come together in teams, their differences in terms of power, values, and attitudes contribute to the creation of conflict.

Some disputes managers and employees alike may be subjected to in the workplace include:

Unfair or unequal treatment Emotional Abuse Discrimination Sexual harassment Angry/ Resistant individuals Inability to saying no Feuding groups Environments in transitions (i.e. changes) Inability to ask for what one needs Culturally diverse environment Unclear or undefined organizational directives Physical attributes of the workplace (e.g. health and safety issues)

An overlook of organizational conflicts

An overlook of organizational conflicts

Interpersonal Conflict: Conflict between individuals due to differences in their goals or values. Can be between colleagues, senior and junior team members,

employee and clientCommon types of interpersonal conflicts

Emotional Conflict Conflict due to different needs Conflict due to different values and attitudes

Select Examples A Senior and Junior may have conflicts around how a poor done was

done by the team memberIntragroup Conflict:

Conflict within a group or team.Select Examples

Conflicts may arise due differences of opinions around allocation of work, different views in solving a problem, sharing ofrecognition as well as risks.

An overlook of organizational conflicts

Intergroup Conflict: Conflict between two or more teams, groups or departments. Managers play a key role in resolution of this conflict Intergroup conflicts often lead to a minimization of intragroup conflicts

as people come together to oppose another group Select Examples Business Origination team and Execution team regarding requirements Between HR team and the Business Development Teams on recruitment

policies,salaries etc

Interorganizational Conflict: Conflict that arises across organizations. Select Examples Different businesses are competing against one another for a same piece of business Between an organisation and the client in terms of the nature of work product delivery against the specification

Impact of conflictWhen Conflict is constructive?

Results in clarification of important problems and issues Results in solutions to problems Involves people in resolving issues important to them Causes authentic communication Helps release emotion, anxiety, and stress Builds cooperation among people through learning more about each

other Helps individuals develop understanding and skillsWhen is conflict destructive?

Takes attention away from other important activities Undermines morale or self-concept Polarizes people and groups, reducing cooperation Increases or sharpens difference Leads to irresponsible and harmful behavior, such as fighting, name-

calling

Conflict PreventionAs well as being able to handle conflict when it arises, One should

first focus on ways of preventing conflict from becoming damaging. A constructive approach would be to:

Being open – if we have issues, we need to express and deal with them immediately and not allow it to accumulate and dwell upon.

Maintain clear communication – articulate thoughts clearly, question and clarify views.

Encouraging different points of view and evaluating each fairly without any personal bias

Not looking for blame – encourage ownership of the problem and solution.

Demonstrating respect for team members rather than resorting to blame game.

Keeping team issues within the team, talking outside results in conflict escalation.

Conflict in the video

A video capture from the sitcom “The Office”

Conflict Resolutions in the Video

Video link

Conflict Resolution

What is conflict management?

• The results of conflicts are not predetermined.• Conflicts might escalate and lead to nonproductive results, or

they can be beneficially resolved to lead to high quality productive results.

• Learning to manage conflict is integral to a high-performance team.

• Conflict management is the principle that all conflicts cannot necessarily be resolved, but learning how to manage conflicts can decrease the odds of nonproductive escalation.

• It involves acquiring skills related to conflict resolution, self-awareness about conflict modes, conflict communication skills and establishing a structure for management of conflicts.

Dealing with ConflictAccommodatingThe accommodating strategy essentially entails giving the opposing side what it wants. AvoidingThe avoidance strategy seeks to put off conflict indefinitely. CollaboratingCollaboration works by integrating ideas set out by multiple people. The object is to find a creative solution acceptable to everyone. CompromisingThe compromising strategy typically calls for both sides of a conflict to give up elements of their position in order to establish an acceptable, if not agreeable, solution.CompetingCompetition operates as a zero-sum game, in which one side wins and other loses.

Healthy and Unhealthy ways of managing and resolving conflict

Inability to compromise or see other persons side.

Ability to seek compromise and avoid punishing

Explosive, angry, hurtful, resentful reactions

Calm, non-defensive and respectful reactions

Withdrawal of love resulting in rejection, isolation and abandonment

Readiness to forgive and forget and to move past the conflict without holding resentments or anger

Fear and avoidance of conflict; the expectation of bad outcomes

Belief that facing conflict head on is the best thing for both sides

Conflict Management Skills Good and a patient listener The pitch and the tone have to be taken great care of Adopt a positive attitude Never criticize anyone or make him feel small Prefer the conference room, board room or any suitable place for

presentations, seminars and discussions The superiors must ensure that the team members are assigned

responsibilities according to their KRAs and specializations Avoid gossips and rumors

Conflicts must be avoided at workplace so that employees do not carry tensions back home and are able to give their best to benefit themselves as well as the organization.

Importance of Conflict Management

Facilitates employees to concentrate on their work.

Strengthens bonds amongst employees Helps finding a middle way – an

alternative to any problem and successful implementation of any idea.

Motivates employees to strive hard to live up to the expectations and contribute to the organization in the best possible way.

Prevention is better than cure.

Conclusion

"The better able team members are to engage, speak, listen, hear,

interpret, and respond constructively, the more likely their

teams are to leverage conflict rather than be leveled by it”

Thank youPresented by:

Neha Kumar (A029)

Nitya Murthy (A031)

Rashi Kapur (A039)

Sonal Rajadhyax (A050)

Yuvraj Tandon (A059)