Managing Conflict (Nicely) in the Office

Two heads (or three or more) are better than one. This sage advice is the backbone of managing conflict within the workplace. Remember that the value of differing professional opinions is the opportunity to strengthen your company’s end product. When your employees butt heads during meetings or team collaborations, you can un-ruffle feathers—and use feedback to your advantage—if you simply know how.

How to handle employee conflict nicely (and constructively)
Differing employee opinions can help you uncover potential issues with a product or service, and can also help the team come up with new, more creative solutions. However, if a meeting or employee interaction has begun to take a turn for the worse, try the following:

  • Find humor in the situation. Nothing diffuses tension better than humor. It’s only work, after all! If employees are getting heated, calm them with a funny, topical story. They’ll be more focused to tackle the subject constructively and with level heads.
  • Encourage open discussion and brainstorming. If someone has presented a viewpoint that seems extreme, ask for further evaluation of this idea. For example, “If we shorten the work week, how could this affect productivity? Let’s brainstorm possible outcomes.” This can help the team flush out weak ideas (without directly exposing them as weak ideas) and also help employees develop multiple new solutions.
  • Be inclusive. Leaving out someone’s comment or thoughts can create negative feelings. When presenting viewpoints, use “and” (rather than “or”) to be inclusive. For example, “We could purchase paper from a different source, and we could choose to use less paper.”
  • Try to reach a conclusion that incorporates multiple viewpoints. It’s possible a solution is not simply black and white. Unless it weakens the end product, a solution that incorporates multiple ideas might be beneficial.
  • Ask questions. This is also a technique to help employees flush out ideas that may not be the best. For example, you could say, “Help me understand your motivation and what is behind this solution. I am trying to understand what you mean and how it might help us.”

Evaluate how you’re doing
After a meeting or discussion, evaluate if you have managed conflict properly. Look for warning signs of employee unrest:

  • Decreased collaboration. When employees feel their opinion doesn’t count, they may stop offering it.
  • Bad attitudes. Do your employees seem happy and productive or just the opposite?
  • Arguments. Has tension caused employees to argue amongst themselves?
  • Complaining. An unhappy employee may simply wind up in your office, voicing his or her concerns. Is this happening more frequently?

Don’t let conflict diminish the productivity of your team. Use it to create a mutual respect between employees by keeping it positive. As a result, your workforce will be a better place for everyone. After all, the whole is greater because of its many parts!

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