Conflict and Negotiation in the Workplace

Conflict arises in any situation where your concerns or desires differ from another person’s.

Managing Conflict

Be constructive or destructive

Be stimulating or unnerving

Produce higher quality results or stifle a project

Lead to original thinking or cause destructive power struggles

Conflict can...

Taps creativity and problem solving

Generates new solutions

Increases involvement

Improves communication

Releases pent-up emotion

Builds cohesiveness

Helps individuals and teams grow

Constructive Conflict

Positive View (cont.) “Two heads are better than one”

If the differences are seen as enriching, rather than as in opposition to each other, the “two heads” will indeed be likely to come up with a better solution than either one alone

Represents a richer set of experiences and because they can bring to bear on the problem a greater variety of insights

Many problems can be seen clearly, wholly, and in perspective only if the individuals who see different aspect can come together and pool their information

Reduces productivity

Diverts energy

Destroys morale

Polarizes groups

Deepens differences

Spawns additional conflict

Produces regrettable behavior (acting-out)

Deconstructive Conflict

Views of Conflict (cont.) Balanced View

Conflict may sometimes be desirable and other times destructive

Some conflicts can be avoided and reduced, others have to be resolved and properly managed

Sensitive to both negative outcomes (loss of skilled employees, stress, and even violence) to positive outcome (creative alternatives, increased motivation and commitment, high quality of work, and personal satisfaction)

Conflict and Performance

Level of Conflict

Org

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Low High

Neg.

Pos.

Conflict and Unit Performance (cont’d)

Task vs. Socioemotional ConflictTask-related conflict

Conflict is aimed at issue, not parties Helps recognize problems, identify

solutions, and understand the issues better Potentially healthy and valuable

Socioemotional conflict Conflict viewed as a personal attack Introduces perceptual biases Distorts information processing

Toward Effective Management of Differences Because the presence of differences can

complicate the manager’s job, it is of utmost importance that he understand them fully and that he learn to handle them effectively

Manager’s ability to deal effectively with differences depend on: His ability to diagnose and to understand

differences His awareness of, and ability to select

appropriately form, a variety of behaviors

DifferentiationDifferentiation

Task Task InterdependenceInterdependence

• Different values/beliefs• Explains cross-cultural and

generational conflict

• Conflict increases with interdependence

• Higher risk that parties interfere with each other

IncompatibleIncompatibleGoalsGoals

• One party’s goals perceived to interfere with other’s goals

more

Sources of Conflict

Ambiguous RulesAmbiguous Rules

Communication Communication ProblemsProblems

• Creates uncertainty, threatens goals• Without rules, people rely on politics

• Increases stereotyping • Reduces motivation to communicate• Escalates conflict when arrogant

Scarce Scarce ResourcesResources

• Motivates competition for the resource

Sources of Conflict (con’t)

Interpersonal Conflict Management:

Win-Win Orientation – A person’s belief that the parties will find a mutually beneficial solution to their conflict

Win-lose Orientation- a person’s belief that the conflicting parties are drawing from a fixed pie, so his or her gain is the other person’s loss

Interpersonal Approaches of approaching the other party in conflict situation

Each approach can be placed in a two dimensional grid

Cooperativeness:

• Attempting to satisfy the other party’s concerns.

Assertiveness:

• Attempting to satisfy one’s own concerns.

Cooperativeness:

• Attempting to satisfy the other party’s concerns.

Assertiveness:

• Attempting to satisfy one’s own concerns.

Uncooperative Cooperative

Unassertive

Assertive

Two basic aspects of all conflict handling modes

Uncooperative Cooperative

Unassertive

Assertive

Compromising

Avoiding Accommodating

Competing Collaborating

Choosing the Best Conflict Management Style

Most people have a preferred conflict management style, but use different styles under different conditions

Skill of conflict management – apply the right style for the situation

Interpersonal Conflict Management Styles (cont.)

Avoiding –Withdraw from or suppress a conflict “Hiding the head in the sand” response Reflects an aversion to tension and frustration and

may involve a decision to let a conflict work itself out

Illustrated by the following statements I usually don’t take positions that will create

controversy I shy away from topics that are sources of

disputes with my friends That’s okay. It wasn’t important anyway. Let’s

leave well enough alone

Uncooperative Cooperative

Unassertive

Assertive

Avoiding

“I’ll think about it tomorrow”

Useful for:•Issues of low importance•Reducing tensions•Buying time•Low power

Interpersonal Conflict Management Styles (cont.)

Competing –Satisfy one’s interest regardless of the impact on the other party

Strongest win-lose orientation Suggested by the following statements

I insist that my position be accepted during a disagreement

I usually hold on to my solution to a problem after the controversy starts

Uncooperative Cooperative

Unassertive

AssertiveCompeting“My way or the highway”

Useful for:•Quick action•Unpopular decisions•Vital issues•Protection•when fostering intimate or supportive relationships is not critical

Interpersonal Conflict Management Styles (cont.)

Accommodation – Involves giving in completely to the other side’s wishes, or at least cooperating with little or no attention to your own interests

Usually are favorably evaluated by others, but perceived as weak and submissive

Illustrated by the following statements If it makes other people happy, I am all for it I like to smooth over disagreements by

making them appear less important

Uncooperative Cooperative

Unassertive

Assertive

Accommodating

“It would be my pleasure”

Useful for:•Creating good will•Keeping the peace•when maintaining the relationship outweighs other considerations

Advantage: Accommodating maintains relationships

Disadvantage: Giving in may not be productive, your may be taken advantage of

Interpersonal Conflict Management Styles (cont.) Compromising – Trying to reach a middle

ground with the other party Based on give and take, involves a series of

concessions You attempt to satisfice rather than maximize

your outcomes and hopes that the same occurs for the other party

Does not always result in the most creative response to conflict

Not as useful for resolving conflicts that stem from power asymmetry, because the weaker party may have little to offer the stronger party

Illustrated by the following statements After failing in getting my way, I

usually find it necessary to seek a fair combination of gains and losses for both of us

I give in to others if they are willing to meet me halfway

Uncooperative Cooperative

Unassertive

AssertiveCompromising

“Let’s make a deal”

Useful for:•Moderate importance•Time constraints•Temporary solutions•Equal power & strong commitment

Interpersonal Conflict Management Styles (cont.)

Collaborating – Collaboration is trying to find a mutually beneficial solution for both parties through problem solving

An individual who use this style tends to See conflict as natural, helpful, and even

leading to more creative solution if handled properly

Recognize that when conflict is resolved to the satisfaction of all, commitment to solution is likely

Interpersonal Conflict Management Styles (cont.) Collaboration (cont.)

Statements consistent with this style include I tell the other person my ideas,

actively seek out the other person’s ideas, and search for mutually beneficial solution

I try to dig into an issue to find a solution good for all of us

Uncooperative Cooperative

Unassertive

Assertive

Collaborating

“Two heads are better than one”

Useful for:when peer conflict is involved when trying to gain commitment through consensus building •Integrating solutions•Learning•Merging perspectives

Advantage: both sides get what they want and negative feelings eliminated

Disadvantage: takes a great deal of time and effort

All five styles and their variations are equally available responses to conflict

The fact that a person prefers a given style does not mean he or she will not use other styles

Indeed, this model assumes that we use each style at one point or another

Nevertheless, our dominant style reflects our particular beliefs about conflict, our preferences and comfort zone

Secondary choices constitute backups preferences when we find it necessary to abandon our preference, creating a response hierarchy

It is important to emphasize that we have the ability to change our dominant style and our response hierarchy

If a person genuinely desires to have a more constructive approach to conflict management, change is entirely possible and it is a personal option

To change our style, we must become aware of the available options and then undertake a conscious program of building skills where we need them

Structural Approaches to Conflict Management Emphasizing Superordinate Goals –

Common objectives held by conflict parties that are more important than their conflicting departmental or individual goals

Useful where conflict is caused by goal incompatibility

By increasing commitment to corporate wide goals, employees feel less conflict with co-workers regarding competing individual or departmental level goals

Structural Approaches to Conflict Management (cont.) Reducing Differentiation

Alter or remove conditions that create these differences in the first place

Differentiation is mainly based on unique experiences and values – not just the symbol of differences

Japanese companies move people around to different jobs, departments, and regions so that they eventually develop common experiences with other senior decision makers in the organization

Structural Approaches to Conflict Management (cont.) Improving communication and

Understanding Direct communication Dialogue meetings – A process of

conversation among team members in which they learn about each other’s mental models and assumptions, and eventually form a common model for thinking within the team

Intergroup mirroring – a structured conflict management intervention in which the parties discuss their perceptions of each other and look for ways to improve their relationship by correcting misperceptions

Structural Approaches to Conflict Management (cont.) Reducing task Interdependence

If cost effective – might occur by dividing the shared resource so that each party has exclusive part of it

Introduce buffers between people Buffers might take the form of resources

such as adding more inventory between people who perform sequential tasks

Human buffers in organizations – who intervene between highly interdependent people or work units

Structural Approaches to Conflict Management (cont.)

Increasing Resources Clarifying Rules and Procedures

One way to clarify rules is to establish a schedule for sharing scare resources

Negotiation in Conflict Management

What is Negotiation?“A decision-making process among

interdependent parties who do not share identical preferences”

It is an attempt to reach a satisfactory exchange among or between the parties

Your PositionsYour Positions

InitialInitial TargetTarget

InitialInitialTargetTarget

Opponent’s PositionsOpponent’s Positions

Area ofPotential

Agreement

Bargaining Zone ModelResistanceResistance

ResistanceResistance

Situational Influences on Negotiation

Location

Physical Setting

Time Passage and Deadlines

Audience

Effective Negotiator Behaviors

Preparation and Goal Setting

Gathering Information

Communicating Effectively

Making Concessions

Bargaining Strategies

Distributive versus Integrative Bargaining

Bargaining Strategies (cont.) Integrative bargaining is preferable to

distributive bargaining –builds long term relationships and facilitates working together in the future

Conditions necessary for this integrative bargaining Include parties open with information and

candid about their concerns Sensitivity to each other’s needs, ability to

trust and willingness to maintain flexibility

Third-Party Involvement

Any attempt by a relatively neutral person to help the parties resolve their differences

Types of Third-Party Intervention Mediation – A neutral third party who facilities

a negotiated solution by using reasoning, persuasion, and suggestions for alternatives

In labor disputes, international relations, and marital counseling

What Do Mediators do? Almost anything that aids the process or

atmosphere of negotiation can be helpful The mediator might also intervene in the content of

the negotiation, highlighting points of agreement, pointing new options, or encouraging concessions

Types of Third-Party Intervention (cont.)

Mediation (cont.) Best for everyday disputes between

two employees as gives employee more responsibility for resolving their own disputes

Most effective under moderate level of conflict

The mediator must be perceived as neutral and non-coercive

Types of Third-Party Intervention (cont.) Arbitration – The process of arbitration

occurs when a third party is given the authority to dictate the terms of settlement of a conflict When employee cannot resolve their

differences Seems to work best because the

predetermined rules of evidence and other process create a higher sense of procedural fairness

Types of Third-Party Intervention (cont.) Consultation – An impartial third party, skilled in

conflict management, who attempts to facilitate creative problem solving through communication and analysis

Consultant’s role is not to settle the issues but, rather, to improve relations between the conflicting parties so that they can reach a settlement themselves

Instead of putting forward specific solutions, the consultant tries to help the parties learn to understand and work with each other

Has a longer-term focus: to build new and positive perceptions and attitudes between the conflicting parties