Positives and negatives of workplace conflict Conflict is natural. How it is viewed and addressed will make the difference between it being positive or negative experience. The negative aspects of poorly managed workplace conflict include lost productivity, the destruction of morale, escalation of resentment, increased stress, sick days and disability claims and the loss of valuable employees, as well as, the cost to hire and retrain new employees. Whereas, the benefits of properly managed workplace conflict can include innovation through work collaboration, the fostering of healthy competition, the raising awareness of the needs of others, motivating communication and it can bring issues into the open to be resolved. According to a study by Kelly Services, “as employees put forth and debate the merits of various ideas, they negotiate through conflicts to come to the best solutions”. This type of negotiation process indicates that the business environment fosters diverse perspectives and properly managed conflict can lead to enhanced employee engagement. In summary, Stephen Robbins, author of Organizational Behavior, says it is important to value the conflict itself and the conflict 's potential for productivity as low, medium or high. By embracing conflict, one does not focus on whether conflict is good or bad, but instead embrace it as a potentially positive interaction between people. Differences of Conflict Management in Union vs Non-Union Environments There are several differences in the conflict management of union vs.
…show more content…
non-union environments. The non-union conflict management environment often lacks equality in the following areas: access, application, independence from manipulation, equal protection when the system is used and inadequate enforcement. Whereas, the challenges for a union conflict management environment include: lack of flexibility, a lacking in system buy-in and participant engagement and it’s lack of any interest, power and rights based options available to participants. As pointed out by Hollenbeck, Gerhart, Wright, & Noe (2014) another of a union’s “major benefits to society is the institutionalization of industrial conflict, which is therefore resolved in the least costly way. In summary, there are challenges to each environment, but it is a union environment which can “allow a collective effort to ensure consistent, flexible and fair conflict management. Effective Training Strategy to Manage Workplace Conflict Including Training for Supervisors According to CCP’s research (2008), “teams in which there is not diversity of opinion will tend to agree quickly and feel confident, but actually make worse decisions: an aspect of what psychologists call “groupthink.” This would indicate that some level of conflict is good in organizations and should be managed for success. This can be achieved by providing managers and employees conflict management training and providing an environment in which to practice the skills learned. It is important to practice these in order to ensure a strong foundation of conflict management skills have been achieved. Furthermore, as stated earlier, conflict in the workplace is inevitable, so it is imperative that those in a leadership position be trained in the use of sound conflict management strategies. It is important to address conflict immediately to avoid escalation. Next, one should listening to the issue and all parties involved individually first, without taking sides. Once identification of the real issue and what is important to the individuals involved in understood, the manager must decide whether the issue can be resolved within the group or if the
non-union environments. The non-union conflict management environment often lacks equality in the following areas: access, application, independence from manipulation, equal protection when the system is used and inadequate enforcement. Whereas, the challenges for a union conflict management environment include: lack of flexibility, a lacking in system buy-in and participant engagement and it’s lack of any interest, power and rights based options available to participants. As pointed out by Hollenbeck, Gerhart, Wright, & Noe (2014) another of a union’s “major benefits to society is the institutionalization of industrial conflict, which is therefore resolved in the least costly way. In summary, there are challenges to each environment, but it is a union environment which can “allow a collective effort to ensure consistent, flexible and fair conflict management. Effective Training Strategy to Manage Workplace Conflict Including Training for Supervisors According to CCP’s research (2008), “teams in which there is not diversity of opinion will tend to agree quickly and feel confident, but actually make worse decisions: an aspect of what psychologists call “groupthink.” This would indicate that some level of conflict is good in organizations and should be managed for success. This can be achieved by providing managers and employees conflict management training and providing an environment in which to practice the skills learned. It is important to practice these in order to ensure a strong foundation of conflict management skills have been achieved. Furthermore, as stated earlier, conflict in the workplace is inevitable, so it is imperative that those in a leadership position be trained in the use of sound conflict management strategies. It is important to address conflict immediately to avoid escalation. Next, one should listening to the issue and all parties involved individually first, without taking sides. Once identification of the real issue and what is important to the individuals involved in understood, the manager must decide whether the issue can be resolved within the group or if the