Your team is in conflict. How can you use collaboration tools to bring them together?

As a project manager, selecting the right collaboration tools is key. Assessing team needs and ensuring compatibility across devices are priorities. This approach enhances communication, streamlines workflows, and promotes effective conflict resolution within the team.

Jumping to assumptions–like which tool to use–before having clarity on the questions below risks demotivating your team and wasting time. First address these 3 questions, then get to which tools are best. 1. WHO on the team is in conflict? 2. WHY are they in conflict? (What might be the cause of that conflict? Diff't priorities/perspectives, diff't personality styles? Ego? Biases?) 3. WHAT is the conflict about? (Approach to the problem, or the problem itself?) Getting clarity on prob. definition prevents conflict and can solve it too. After these questions are answered, you can get to HOW the team will solve for it/which tools they will use.

Trabalhar conflitos envolve a comunicação aberta, escuta ativa e busca por soluções colaborativas. Importante identificar as causas e criar estratégias e ações para resolução adequada.

Spot on! It may also be worth while to check the underlying context (there may have been some “unhelpful” history, or team members are “forced”to compete.)

Initially, I have to observe my team to find out root and nature of conflict. Then , I will set prompt separate strategy to resolute each type i.e. relationship conflict, value conflict and task conflict. For serious conflict impacting team members assignment, I may choose formal grievance reddressal mechanism. Otherwise, I will prefer one to one sitting then group sharing to find out best melting point. Importantly, I must ensure empathy, confidentiality, professionalism and institutional values & culture in each of my action.

As a project manager, setting clear expectations is paramount. Clearly outlining roles, responsibilities, and objectives ensures everyone knows what is expected of them. This fosters accountability and minimizes misunderstandings, leading to smoother project execution.

Setting or reseting expectations is a key step. RACI matrixes and roadmaps can be built (by the people involved) to clarify the objectives, along with who are the accountable and responsible actors. To remove the disconnection the team can temporarily have the task of bringing joint updates to the leader or a broader group. In this way they have the freedom to choose how to get organized and feel the ownership to make it happen.

No doubt, setting clear expectations from the beginning of a project will help reduce the amount of conflict experienced. Using the RACI chart is a great way to identify roles and responsibilities, reducing confusion that might lead to conflict. Who’s Responsible, who’s Accountable, who’s Consulted and who’s Informed..

Clarity and open discussion from the very beginning of a project. This also includes reinforcement as to what everyone’s roles and responsibilities are. This avoids misunderstandings and the use of ambiguity when explaining roles! Common sense goes a long way when working together closely!

A RACI (Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, Informed) excel template is very useful when there are multiple players in the process. It gives a lot of clarity when there is a sequential handover and tight deadlines.There are many other online RACI workflow tools available now. SLA's/KRIs/KPI's can be tracked. The project manager can have a bird eye view on the overall progress and blockers.

The art on giving feedback is nothing less than the art of war! When and How, these are the most important questions that can totaly change the outcome. In all communication courses they tell you to start with positive however you need to find the right words and a balance, Imagine starting with saying how everything is going well and how their peers are all happy by their performance, now if you continue by telling them of their shortcomings not only you have made them confused but you have also left an unnecessary bitter after taste! So choose your words and your timming wisely. If there are things that needs to be changed, don't wait for disaster, set a meeting and discuss what needs to change. Keep the focus on results and facts.

As a project manager, I prioritize encouraging feedback and open dialogue within the team. Creating a culture where everyone feels comfortable sharing ideas and concerns fosters collaboration and continuous improvement, ultimately leading to better project outcomes.

While feedback tools facilitate consideration, cultivating a culture embedded with transparency and respect serves as the cornerstone for effective collaboration. In diverse environments, fostering a sense of belonging is crucial. This can be achieved through encouraging inclusive dialogue, where individuals openly share their perspectives. Also, supportive feedback, highlighting strengths and potential for improvement, further empowers individual contributions. Each team member possesses unique qualities, and leadership plays a critical role in promoting an open and transparent dynamic. Strategically involving diverse voices in meetings, town halls, etc allows for wider participation & enriches the collective decision-making process.

Encouraging respectful and open communication is paramount for any team. Fostering a psychologically safe space for disagreement and making mistakes is even more important than the tools you use.

Feedback when used routinely, in the right way can support the emergence of a growth mindset culture within your team. Not only can this enable your team to navigate difference in an empowered way, but it can also ensure a level of curiosity and even excitement about conflicts as an important catalyst for growth.

As a team, addressing conflicts promptly and constructively is vital. I belive in encouraging open communication, active listening, and facilitating resolution discussions help prevent escalation and maintain team cohesion, fostering a positive working environment.

Shying away from addressing conflict is one of the biggest mistakes a team can make. A team should acknowledge conflict, appreciate the facts resulting in the conflict and work together, respectfully embracing the flaws, to find a resolution.

I actually believe an element of team conflict to be inevitable and actually a positive thing. If everyone blindly follows and agrees, you have a team of sheep. It's important, however, to make sure this conflict doesn't become 'negative' - affects productivity, becomes personal etc. At that point action needs to be swift - calling affected parties together to resolve their differences usually helps if this is done quickly enough. If left unchecked, this type of conflict festers and spreads, becoming a much worse problem

Addressing an issue promptly is highly recommended. Waiting for people to get along without guidance usually isn’t successful.

In order to manage conflict within a team, collaboration technologies should be used to maintain open lines of communication, use project management platforms to increase work.Frequent video conferences can also offer a forum for candid conversations and dispute resolution.

Recognizing achievements and acknowledging team efforts boosts morale and motivates individuals to continue performing at their best, fostering a positive and rewarding work environment.

Every small win should be given a shout out. Everyone should be encouraged to say something positive about team members every month, and then talk on areas of improvement if any. To avoid conflicts acknowledge everyone's efforts.

Tenha listado sempre todos os integrantes do time, e faça questão de citá-los sempre que for falar do time, um a um, pois o simples verbalizar do nome, ou uma simples foto postada, cria uma sensação de pertencimento muito grande, pois não é somente quem faz o gol que ganha o titulo.

Recognizing achievements is a great way to boost morale and motivate others to contribute more. One might feel positive and be willing to contribute more.

In my experience, a person who feels valued and has a sense of belonging will automatically perform better that what he was in the past when he did not have that feeling. A small thank you, a simple round of applause in front of the team, a small chat with Director or other RH can go a long way. Apart from this we can use technology tools like Powerpoint and canva to create great Visual Thank you Slides!

Um dos princípios da gestão de conflitos é o aprofundamento na compreensão das necessidades dos atores envolvidos. Essa primeira análise nos ajuda a identificar o objeto de conflito, que deverá ser isolado dos demais elementos dessa estrutura. As origens mais comuns de conflito em equipes de trabalho, geralmente, estão em torno de falta de comunicação, papéis (job description) indefinidos ou conflitantes, desalinhamento de expectativas, falta de feedback e empatia. Promover espaço seguro, estabelecer diálogo aberto, clareza de funções e padrões de conduta e valores, com certeza podem facilitar a resolução de conflitos manifestos e latentes. Ou, em último caso, dar oportunidade para a "regulação" das relações por meio de acordos.

É preciso entender que pessoas são diferentes. Um dos grandes desafios enquanto gestores é colocar em prática a equidade. Oferecer exatamente a cada indivíduo o que ele (a) precisa de forma que a pessoa sinta se parte do todo, sinta parte da resolução dos problemas, sinta se parte integrante da equipe e entenda o quanto pode contribuir para a instituição bem como para o seu próprio crescimento.

A gestão de conflitos é essencial para promover um ambiente de trabalho saudável e produtivo. Inicialmente, é crucial identificar os sinais de conflito, como comunicação deficiente, desconfiança ou divergências frequentes. Uma abordagem proativa envolve a criação de canais eficazes de comunicação, incentivando a expressão aberta de ideias. Ao detectar um conflito, é fundamental compreender as raízes do problema. Isso pode exigir reuniões individuais para ouvir as perspectivas de cada parte envolvida. Em seguida, desenvolver estratégias de resolução, priorizando o diálogo construtivo e a busca por soluções mutuamente benéficas, é crucial.

There are three (3) principles that quickly resonated with me that create a culture where everyone feels valued and empowered to contribute their best —transparency, leading by example, and actively seeking feedback. Naturally, transparency lays the foundation for trust and clarity, ensuring everyone is informed and aligned on important matters. Leading by example reinforces our commitment to collaboration and constructive conflict resolution, inspiring others to follow suit. Then regularly inviting feedback empowers every team member to contribute their perspectives—allows us to continuously improve our processes to better serve our collective goals.

Diagnosing what the conflict is about is the key to the suitable solution, and the effective way to move on, As much as a conflict may slow down work and affect coworkers personally, it can also be leveraged to gain experience and improve team performance. The preferred way is letting the team leader or middle manager to step in. If there is still discomfort or bad feelings between team memebrs than it’s time to take control, have a team meeting and analyze the problem, in order to lead the team to the correct options to it. As a leader - you can’t be over protective boss. This will disable your team abilities. Your job is to educate your team to get along independently.