Conflict in the Workplace: Can't We All Just Get Along?

Here’s the thing about conflict. It can come out of nowhere. You may be able to relate to the following common scenario: things appear to be fine in your organization. There is a sense of calm flowing above the cubicles. Employees are interacting in a respectful way and are working well as a team. Then your company lands a huge new contract. Everyone is working overtime. Voices are rising and fingers are pointing. The majority of your day is spent playing referee. You walk outside to see if there is a full moon in sight. When you return, there is another employee in your office waiting to complain about a coworker.

Conflict in the workplace is inevitable. When you throw a group of people together in close quarters and put them under some pressure, differences are bound to surface. But the news is not all bad. Some conflict in the organization can be beneficial. Differences of opinion encourage creativity and progress. If addressed early, conflict can also provide insight into larger issues that may be brewing. However, more often than not, employee conflict is left unresolved. When this happens, the boss is seen as someone who is unable to keep peace and harmony in her workgroup. Employees pick up on this stress and may choose to seek greener (and calmer) pastures. If you want to retain your reputation as a leader who has a cohesive team, then you’ll need to learn how to deal with conflict.

Learning how to handle conflict effectively can actually help you prevent conflict from happening in the first place. Follow along with me and you’ll see why this is so. Ask yourself the following questions.

Was I clear in my communication? Conflict in the workplace can occur when a leader is vague, for example, when he doesn’t specify what he expects or who will ultimately be responsible for the task assigned. Be clear when communicating with team members and don’t be afraid to ask people if they understand exactly what you are asking.

Is there one person on my team who seems to be “Captain Conflict?” This is the person who is always leading the charge … in the opposite direction. By now you may have come to the conclusion that this person is doing more to harm the team than good. Consider a new play and tell Captain Conflict he’s just been given free agent status!

Are there enough resources to go around? Conflict often arises when there are not enough resources to go around. When this happens, people immediately shift into a scarcity mindset. They become like kids who are given one piece of chocolate and told to share it with a sibling. All hell breaks lose! Are you asking the impossible? Are you expecting people on your team to get their jobs done without adequate resources? If conflicts are arising, it may be time to reevaluate what you are asking or, at a minimum, to advocate for additional resources so that people don’t hunker down into scarcity mode.

Are you secretly hoping the conflict will go away on its own? I’m sorry, but hope is not a strategy. Conflict doesn’t normally go away on its own. In fact, it usually gets worse when left unattended. Just ask someone who has a disagreement with his spouse before to leaving for work. He may attempt to go home and forget anything ever happened. Of course his partner will quickly remind him that everything is not fine! Address conflict head on the moment it arises. Do this if you really want to restore peace and harmony—both at work and at home.

Am I Passing problem employees on to others? I've seen managers move problem employees around the organization as if they were tires being rotated on a car. Eventually the tread wears thin and performance is affected. Let's all take a vow and promise one another that we won't do to others what we don't want done to us! We'll deal with our problem employees, even if that means we have to be the ones to them them that we won't be driving off into the sunset together.

Excerpt from my latest book, The Magnetic Leader: How Irresistible Leaders Attract Employees, Customers, and Profits.

Check out my latest Lynda.com/LinkedIn Learning course on Transitioning from Individual Contributor to Manager.

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Ready to bring peace and harmony to your organization? Reach out to me at Roberta@matusonconsulting.com to begin the conversation.