People are complicated, and no two of your employees are exactly alike. When you have that many different perspectives in your workplace, conflict is bound to happen. While conflict can sometimes lead to healthy competition and innovation, left unchecked or undirected, it can have damaging effects on the organization. As a leader, the responsibility to resolve these issues often falls on you. We’ll provide some practical guidance for how to do so effectively.
Conflict resolution is the art of diffusing tension between parties to reach a mutually beneficial agreement. Put simply, it’s helping your employees get along. Leaders need to know how to handle conflict in the workplace. One study found that 85% of employees deal with conflict in their working lives, and it costs U.S. companies an estimated $359 billion annually (csp.edu).
Even though your plate is full, it’s important to address problems quickly and fairly. If you don’t, a situation could escalate and result in lost productivity, poor team morale, a lack of faith in your leadership abilities, and more.
In a word, very. CPP found that 85% of both individual contributors and leaders agreed they experienced some amount of inevitable conflict at work. In addition, 29% of all employees said that they experienced almost constant conflict. Tellingly, 12% said they also saw conflict frequently among leaders (cppglobal.com).
Is conflict always negative? No.
By any definition, negative examples of conflict in the workplace include:
But notice that healthy, positive conflict can include:
While you’re ultimately responsible for the harmony and productivity within your team, you don’t have to spring to action as soon as your employees disagree. Instead, encourage workers to find common ground on their own. That way, you can focus on more urgent matters, and your team members can hone their conflict resolution skills.
It may be helpful to know that “it's estimated that as many as 90 percent of all conflicts result from misunderstandings (coparenter.com).” That goes for work and personal relationships. By communicating new policies about conflict and modeling good behavior, prohibiting all forms of harassments and disrespect, and bad treatment based on differences, you can be ahead of the curve.
However, if your staff can’t get past their differences and work together civilly, then you’ll need to play the role of mediator. You should also get involved immediately if you become aware of harassment, theft, violence, substance abuse, or illegal activity. In these instances, you must act quickly to prevent harm to employees and the company.
Pro Tip: Have, adhere to, and enforce a company-wide conflict resolution policy. That way, it’s clear what needs to happen in a given situation.
When you need to intervene in an employee conflict, follow these best practices:
Once team members have reached a consensus, follow up periodically to see if the solution is working and if the employees are getting along.
Wouldn’t it be nice if you never had to deal with another employee conflict? Unfortunately, that’s not a realistic goal. However, you can reduce the number of incidents that come your way with some prevention tips:
When you have a strong sense of self-awareness and know your team members well, preventing and resolving conflict becomes much easier. You’ll know exactly how to approach specific circumstances and people. Acquiring this deep knowledge can take years of observation and interactions.
But there is a faster way - taking and administering a behavioral assessment. Omnia’s well-regarded assessment has a track record of success. It’s fun and easy to take, and when you get the results, you’ll instantly know more about yourself and your employees. With this insight, you’ll be well on your way to a more pleasant work environment.
Unchecked conflict can wreak havoc on team morale and company achievement, so you need to act fast when the situation calls for it. By exercising good judgment and flexing your mediator muscles, you can restore harmony and productivity in no time. If you’d like to learn more about how behavioral assessments can help you keep the peace, contact us today!
Have an article-specific question or want to continue the conversation? Now you can! Contact the author directly through the short form below and Tonya DeVane will respond to your query. If you have a more general question please use our chat function, call 800.525.7117, or visit our contact us page and we'll have a subject matter expert answer your questions.
