Communication Technique in Managing Conflict

This course focuses on identifying types of conflicts and resolving conflicts through effective communication techniques. Your Final Paper will be an eight-to ten-page paper (excluding the APA title and reference pages) that will showcase what you learned about conflict and conflict resolution.

Identify a recent interpersonal, group, or organizational conflict that you were involved in and was later resolved. Select five of the topics listed below and discuss how they apply to your chosen conflict. You must use a minimum of five resources to help support your discussion of these topics. Be sure to focus on communication techniques that were used during the conflict management process. Argue whether the resolution to this conflict was a “best practices” approach to resolving this conflict.

Your paper must include an introduction paragraph that provides a high-level overview of your paper. In addition, your paper must include a strong conclusion paragraph that brings together the topics discussed. Remember not to introduce any new topics in your conclusion.

Conflict Topics for the Final Paper (select five)

Why does conflict occur?
Conflict management
The positive and negative effects of conflict
Role of personality types in conflict management
Communication techniques
Ethics and workplace conflicts
Climate in a conflict situation
Stress and anger
Facework
Forgiveness
Mediation and arbitration

ANSWER

Communication Techniques in Managing Conflict

Conflicts in any organization are inevitable due to differences in personality, culture, attitudes, and professionalism. Healthy conflicts are necessary since individuals and companies learn from them and devise better management methods (Adekunle, Abimbola & Ehimen, 2019). Workplace conflicts can result from interdependence, leadership, work style, personality differences, and discrimination. Conflicts can lead to better understanding, working relationships, and better ideas when appropriately resolved. A dispute is a process beginning when one party or an individual perceives that another individual or party has negatively affected or is about to negatively affect something that the first individual or party cares about (Aggarwal, Verma & Agarwal, 2020). This essay outlines a personality conflict that I experienced working in the advertising department of Coca-Cola company. The report first gives an overview of the conflict and why it occurred, then discusses how the dispute was resolved by examining conflict management, mediation, and communication techniques. It then discusses the positive and the negative impacts of the conflict on the organization.

Why Does Conflict Occur

Conflicts occur for several reasons, including seeing, wanting, and thinking differently, and having different statuses, goals, approaches, personalities, and influences (Aggarwal, Verma & Agarwal, 2020). For instance, when one delays another person at work due to a slow working pace, a conflict can arise. The conflict I experienced occurred due to personality differences. It is not possible for one to like everyone without considering their personality. At work, for instance, employees try to avoid working with individuals who have unsavory characters. However, what people perceive others to be is not always true. Thus, understanding and empathy are necessary since a single story of someone is not a reflection of who they are and should not define them in the future.

The conflict began when a new employee was recruited into the advertising team. He was productive, efficient, fun, and the kind of person one would think at first glance that he was perfect for the job. Over time, the evil side started showing and threatened to destroy the team’s spirit of togetherness. It began with simple comments that undermine others, talk over team members in meetings, praises himself for the team’s achievements, and take ownership of people’s ideas. It went further to a point where he told team members that he was the boss and his decisions should be respected. He started a habit of drinking alcohol on the balcony at work every evening. He once called all of us his “bitches.” His actions and behavior made most of the team members hate coming to work and became less cooperative. A conflict developed between the new team member and the other members to the extent that he was left to carry out some activities by himself. The organization’s leadership observed the conflict but was reluctant to resolve it since it expected that the team would manage it by itself.

Conflict Management

Traditional and contemporary conflict management theories propose ways of managing conflicts based on different assumptions. The traditional theory assumes that conflicts are harmful and should be avoided (Adekunle, Abimbola & Ehimen, 2019). Besides, it assumes that conflicts are caused by trouble makers and should be subdued. The contemporary theory recognizes that conflicts are unavoidable since human beings differ. The theory believes that disputes occur due to change and be beneficial if managed appropriately. Thus, tension and hence conflict in an organization is essential in developing or working with new ideas. Conflict management is the process of limiting the negative effects of a conflict while increasing the positive effects. The aim is to enhance learning and group outcomes such as performance and effectiveness in an organization. Five styles of conflict management include competing, compromising, collaborating, avoiding, and accommodating.

Accommodating is putting other party’s needs before one’s own needs and allow them to win. This style is applicable if the effect of the opposing party’s take is not significant (Adekunle, Abimbola & Ehimen, 2019). It is not suitable for the conflict in my case since it is not appropriate to allow the new employee to continue intimidating, harassing, and bulldozing. Accommodating such behavior can lead to employee turnover, lack of collaboration, and poor performance. Avoiding involves ignoring, removing conflicting parties, or evading the conflict (Mayer, 2021). For instance, conflicting individuals can be reassigned duties, moved to other locations, or removed from a project. It is applicable when there is a high chance that a cool-down period could neutralize the conflict. In the case of the discussed conflict, leaders tried to ignore the conflict, but it escalated when the new employee wanted to take over the advertising team like a boss. This conflict management style failed, and leaders had to opt for the appropriate style.

Compromising involves finding a middle ground by seeking conflicting parties to concede some aspects for an agreed solution to be achieved (Mayer, 2021). This style is appropriate for the conflict since the team needed the new employee’s services but still wanted a conducive working environment. Team members had to accommodate some actions while the new employee had to stop behaviors such as bulldozing and looking down upon others. Competing strategy involve conflicting parties rejecting to compromise and each taking opposing stands. Generally, this style should not be relied upon heavily and was not appropriate for the conflict (Dahiya & Dahiya, 2018). It could have led to more harm to the team if the new employee were left to compete and gain control of the group. The last style is collaboration which is the best for long-term results. It involves considering the needs of both parties without the need of compromising. It is appropriate when conflicts arise from opposing good ideas and not inappropriate behavior by some workers. This style is not suitable for my conflict case.

Mediation and Arbitration

Arbitration is a process where parties in conflict agree that an individual or a group of people can decide about the dispute after hearing arguments from both sites (Aggarwal, Verma & Agarwal, 2020). The arbitrator has the authority, in this case, to decide on the dispute. Mediation is a process where disputing parties discuss their differences with an independent mediator who helps them settle. Mediation and arbitration are the new trends in conflict resolution since most organizations want to minimize conflict resolution time and costs (Aggarwal, Verma & Agarwal, 2020). Mediation was used in resolving the conflict in my advertising team. Mediation is a communication technique by itself since it focuses more on parties through comparison and negotiation. Arbitration should be carried out if mediation fails.

Through mediation, we were able to give our views and listen to the new employee’s opinions. We appreciated his personality after hearing his story, and each member agreed to lend a hand in helping the new member adjust to the team’s culture. He compromised by accepting other team members to guide him and the rest of the team compromised by understanding his behavior and help him change his character. At the end of the mediation, the entire team was relieved, and members appreciated that a single story of a person is not a reflection of who he or she is. We have viewed the new employee from one angle and concluded that he has unwanted behavior without listening to his story.

Communication Techniques Used in Mitigating the Conflict

A compromising conflict management style was adopted where mediation under the guidance of a leader was conducted. Several communication techniques were used, especially by the mediator during the process. First, the mediator built active listening skills by helping members absorb what is being said. It helped a lot since many members began viewing things from different perspectives. Second, the mediator used neutral terms and open non-verbal communication. Neutral language separates parties from the problem and eliminates one party’s feeling of being attacked (Jahangir, Safdar & Zaheen, 2021). The mediator used more of “I” instead of “you” to create neutrality. The mediator was not judgmental even if justified information about one party is given. He was mindful of his gestures, tone of voice, and facial expressions. Third, the mediator remained calm and never showed any overreaction. It is necessary since one cannot control others’ behavior, but the response towards the behaviors can directly affect diffusing the situation. Fourth, the mediator focused on feelings and not only on facts. The heart of a matter is how people feel and speak more than what is communicated through talking (Jahangir, Safdar & Zaheen, 2021). Fifth, the mediator ignored unnecessary challenging questions. I this case, he directed the attention of members back to the issue and set some limits.

Sixth, silence for reflection was allowed during the mediation. Silence is a communication technique that allows individuals to communicate with their intrinsic selves (Caber et al., 2019). it gives one a chance to reflect on what has happened and choose how to proceed. Finally, he allowed time for decision-making after giving his recommendations. The decision achieved led to a win-win situation, and all members, including the new employee, appreciated it. He even thanked other team members for coming to his aid and promised to transform his character.

These communication techniques played a significant role in resolving the conflict. The mediator was clear and concise when explaining due to the communication techniques. Besides, he knew when to stay quiet and when to interrupt due to his set limits. During the whole process, he was tracking, listening, and taking records. Furthermore, the communication techniques build up the relationship among members since they showed respect, empathy, and grace.

Positive and Negative Effects of Conflict

Conflicts results can lead to resinous disagreement, incompatibility between two interests, opinions, and principles, and disagreement between groups of people. The conflict has negative connotations, yet the effects within an organization can be negative or positive.

Positive Effects

Some conflicts come with challenges that an organization needs to overcome to succeed. The conflict in my team had some positive effects on the organization. Social change is the first effect of the conflict. Both interpersonal and intergroup dynamics within the organization were refreshed and more reflective of current issues and realities. Conflicts can also change the decision-making process. In the discussed dispute, premature decision-making was avoided, and each member was given the powers to give views before any decision is made (Adekunle, Abimbola & Ehimen, 2019). The conflict also brought reconciliation since boundaries were given on the powers of each member. Treating all members as equals brings back a conducive working environment. The conflict also strengthened group unity since members got an opportunity to negotiate their interests due to the conflict. Besides, it increased group cooperation since it brought the need to work together towards a common goal. The conflict also improved future communication since members learned more about each other and appreciated our differences. New leadership skills were identified due to the conflict. Some members who were typically silent stepped up and demonstrated their skills in bringing members together. All these positive effects could not have been realized if there was no conflict.

Negative Effects

Despite the positive effects of the conflict, several negative effects occurred. Frustration was the main effect since members became frustrated and job satisfaction reduced. Most members could not face the new employee and expected the leadership to act. The slow response by the administration made members feel that their issues were unrecognized by leaders. As a result, members became stressed, which affects mental health. Another negative effect is a decrease in productivity (Caber et al., 2019). The advertising team began acting slow whenever projects are given due to a lack of cooperation. Members lost focus on core values during the conflict period since more gossiping about the conflict increased.

An increase in the need to leave the organization is another negative effect of conflict (Dahiya & Dahiya, 2018). Frustration can force members to leave for other jobs, especially if a conflict is not resolved within the shortest time. No member left the job in the organization, but chances were high that some could do so if the conflict had escalated more. Violence is another effect where individuals or team members fight (Jahangir, Safdar & Zaheen, 2021). The conflict increases the chance of fights within the team since the new employee could threaten anyone.

Conclusion

Conflict management is necessary for any organization since it enhances the positive effects of a dispute while at the same time mitigating the negative effects. Conflict causes vary from different personalities, thoughts, ideas, working styles, leadership methods, discrimination, and other methods. Companies should not treat conflicts as bad and should be avoided, as assumed by the traditional conflict theory. Instead, it should be viewed as a challenge that a company should address to devise better practices and culture. When a new member was recruited, the conflict that arose in my advertising team was effectively managed by the company through mediation.  Mediation allowed us to discuss all our views at length and arrived at a common understanding. Despite some negative effects experienced during the conflict, several positive effects were realized after resolving the conflict. Members became more connected, cooperative, and collaborative. The new employee who was the epicenter of the conflict benefited a lot from the help he received from other members in changing his behavior. Overall, conflicts are inevitable, and healthy ones should be encouraged to develop new ideas and techniques in an organization.

References

Adekunle, A. M., Abimbola, O. S., & Ehimen, E. J. (2019). Conflicts Management Strategies: A Tool for Industrial Harmony. Izvestiya, (1), 19-34. https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=eMfwt4IAAAAJ&hl=en

Aggarwal, R., Verma, T., & Agarwal, K. (2020). Conflict management-a challenge to resolve through various communication styles. International Journal of Environment, Workplace, and Employment, 6(1-2), 40-55. https://www.inderscienceonline.com/doi/abs/10.1504/IJEWE.2020.113089

Caber, M., Ünal, C., Cengizci, A. D., & Güven, A. (2019). Conflict management styles of professional tour guides: A cluster analysis. Tourism Management Perspectives, 30, 89-97.

Dahiya, H., & Dahiya, M. (2018). Managing Conflicts: Conflict Management in Organisations and Projects.

Jahangir, N., Safdar, A., & Zaheen, B. (2021). Impact of Communication Climate on Conflict Management Styles among Employees. Journal of Business and Social Review in Emerging Economies, 7(1), 63-68.

Mayer, C. H. (2021). Intercultural Mediation and Conflict Management Training: A Guide for Professionals and Academics. Springer Nature.

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