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Conflict and negotiation in the workplace: Learning Objectives

After studying this chapter, you should be able to;1) Identify the sources and consequences of conflict in organisations,2) Examine the five strategic approaches to conflict handling and discuss the circumstances in which each would be most appropriate,3) Apply the seven approaches that organisations can take to reduce dysfunctional conflicts.

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Conflict DefinedThe process in which one party perceives that its interests are being opposed or negatively affected by another party

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The Conflict Process

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Differentiation

Interdependence

• Different values/beliefs• Explains cross-cultural and generational

conflict

• Conflict increases with interdependence• Parties more likely to interfere with each other

Incompatiblegoals

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

Structural Sources of Conflict

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Ambiguous rules

Communication problems

• Create uncertainty, threaten goals• Without rules, people rely on politics

• Increase stereotyping • Reduce motivation to communicate• Escalate conflict when arrogant

Scarce resources• Motivates competition for the resource

Structural Sources of Conflict continued

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Five Conflict Handling Styles

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Resolving Conflict Through Negotiation

• Negotiation: conflicting parties attempt to resolve their divergent goals by redefining the terms of their interdependence

• Need to consider desired outcomes, tactics, deal design and the scope of the negotiation

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Negotiating Fundamentals

• Setting Limits – Target point– Resistance point

• Assessing Power – Consider alternatives – Skills

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Creating and Claiming Value

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Managing the Deal • Information• Skills • Concessions • Strategies

– Multi-issue proposals– Conceding on low-value items while getting

concessions on high-value items

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Managing Information • Small number of strong arguments• Understand the other negotiator’s needs• Investigative approach to negotiations

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Managing the Process • Tactics:

– Delaying or stalling the negotiation – Setting deadlines

• Risk: negotiation turning into an escalating cycle of attack and counterattack

• Ignore personal attacks and refocus on the substantive problem

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Beyond the Deal • Considering other aspects in addition to best

possible deal:– Implementation – Social capital – Relationship building– Reputation – Ethical negotiation

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Negotiating Ethically Avoid:• Misrepresentation• False promises• Attacking an opponent’s network• Inappropriate information gathering• Strategic misrepresentation of positive or

negative emotions

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Resolving Conflict through 3rd-party Intervention

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Choosing the Best Third-Party Strategy

• Managers prefer inquisitional strategy, but this is not usually the best approach

• Mediation potentially offers the highest satisfaction with process and outcomes

• Use arbitration when mediation fails

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Organisational Approaches to Conflict Resolution• Emphasising superordinate goals

– Emphasise common objective rather than conflicting sub-goals

– Reduce goal incompatibility and differentiation• Reducing values differences

– Remove sources of different values and beliefs▪ e.g. move employees around to different jobs

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Organisational Approaches to Conflict Resolution continued• Improving communication/understanding

– Employees understand and appreciate each other’s views through communication

– Relates to contact hypothesis– Warning: apply communication/understanding after

reducing differentiation• Reducing interdependence

– Divide shared resources– Combine tasks– Use buffers

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Organisational Approaches to Conflict Resolution continued• Increasing resources

– Duplicate resources• Clarifying rules and procedures

– Clarify resource distribution– Change interdependence

• Establishing a positive climate– Norms that encourage openness– Norms that discourage negative emotions and

encourage positive diffusion tactics (e.g. humour)• Alternative dispute resolution

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Summary • Moderate conflict can be effective• The conflict process model begins with the five

structural sources of conflict• The current perspective on conflict involves

distinguishing task from relationship conflict• There are several conflict-handling styles: problem

solving, forcing, avoiding, yielding and compromising. People who use problem solving have a win–win orientation

• Effective negotiators need to engage in both collaboration and competition in order to obtain outcomes