MGMT 311 - Chapter 10
Structural conflict
is the result of structural or process features of the organization. Structural conflict can be horizontal or vertical
Resource Constraints
Incompatible needs and competition over perceived or actual resource constraints can create conflicts of interest. Conflicts of interest occur when someone believes that to satisfy his or her own needs, the needs and interests of someone else must be sacrificed. Conflicts of interest are best resolved by jointly addressing both parties' interests
Conflict
a disagreement that arises when two or more parties perceive a threat to their interests, needs, or concerns. Conflict can be both constructive and destructive.
Avoiding
a passive conflict management style involving ignoring the conflict or denying that it exists. This style reflects a low concern for both parties. When used to manage trivial conflicts, no damage may be done, but it can result in maximum damage when important issues are involved. The goal of avoiding is "no winners / no losers."
Conciliation
A third party builds a positive relationship between the parties, improves their communication, and facilitates their discussion. Conciliation facilitates a discussion and directs the parties toward a satisfactory settlement and may issue a binding opinion if both parties agreed to that ahead of time Conciliation is often the first step in the alternative dispute resolution process. Its goal is to get the parties to better communicate and resolve the problem on their own, although the conciliator may suggest a resolution that the parties can accept or reject.
Arbitration
A third party is involved and usually has the authority to impose a settlement on the parties. Arbitration may be required by a contract or by law, or may be voluntary if the parties agree to it. Although arbitration, unlike mediation, always results in a settlement, it has greater potential to leave at least one party dissatisfied, which could cause the conflict to resurface later.
dysfunctional conflict.
Behaviors that escalate a conflict until the conflict seems to take on a life of its own focus on emotions and differences between the two parties and can degenerate to the extent that the parties forget the substantive issues and focus on getting even, retaliating, or even hurting the other party negatively influences employees, workgroups, and company performance. It leads to feelings of contempt and at least one of the parties withdrawing from communicating. becomes separated from the initial issue and continues even after the original conflict becomes irrelevant or is forgotten
Cultural Issues in Negotiations
Different national cultures have different preferred negotiation styles. For example, Russians tend to ignore deadlines and view concessions as a sign of weakness. Because Americans' desire to be liked is known in other cultures, skilled negotiators from other cultures use this to their advantage by making friendship conditional on the final outcome of the negotiation. When people believe they have been treated disrespectfully as a result of differing cultural norms, the whole project can blow up. Clearly, intercultural negotiation requires paying attention to issues beyond what is being negotiated. Preparation is particularly important when engaging in cross-cultural negotiations.
suggestions for being an effective negotiator
Do not view this as an either/or proposition, negotiating is about compromise Each side should know the other's perception of the issue and their interests Identify what you can and cannot part with Try to identify and use sources of leverage Show the other side that you understand their position Suppress your emotions Know your "BATNA" - Best Alternative to a Negotiated Agreement
De-Escalating Conflict
Even if it does not escalate quickly, unresolved conflict drains employees' energy and reduces their performance. It is obviously easier to manage conflict escalation in the early stages of a conflict. Unfortunately, conflicts are often hard to detect in their early stages. If you are involved in a conflict, one of the best ways to prevent further escalation is to react equivalently to the other party and not overreact. Sometimes under-reacting can trigger de- escalation of the conflict. As a manager, you can reduce conflict escalation by modeling de-escalation processes, and by setting and enforcing limits on conflict escalation. Managers can serve as a conflict resolution facilitator as well. It is also important to continue to monitor conflicts to ensure that they do not reemerge.
Differing Process Goals
Even when we agree about what we are trying to accomplish, we can still disagree about how we should accomplish it. Process conflict reflects conflict about how to accomplish a task, who is responsible for what, or how things should be delegated. Role ambiguity increases process conflict.
Conflict Management Skills
Fortunately, most managers can learn the necessary skills for effective conflict management. Professionals in conflict resolution training suggest four areas of skill development: 1. Listening - including eye contact, rephrasing, and summarizing 2. Questioning 3. Communicating nonverbally 4. Mediating If you are mediating a conflict, ask open rather than leading questions, and use nonverbal cues to show that you are sincerely trying to help. Read nonverbal cues to learn additional information. Mediation skills include open-mindedness, staying nonjudgmental and calm, demonstrating empathy and sensitivity, remaining neutral, respecting confidentiality, and showing flexibility and resiliency. There are strong relationships between certain conflict resolution behaviors and perceived suitability for promotion
Interpersonal Differences
Interpersonal differences are a common trigger of relationship conflict, which is the result of incompatibility or differences between individuals or groups. It can also be triggered by personality, particularly the personality traits of dogmatism and power motivation. Relationship problems often fuel disputes and lead to an unnecessary escalating spiral of dysfunctional conflict. This is rarely a good thing and consistently recognized as a primary source of stress. Relationship conflict is fueled primarily by emotions and by perceptions about the other party's personality, character, or motives. Because relationship conflict is personalized, it tends to become more extreme. Because relationship conflict is not about concrete issues, neither party is really interested in solving the problem and may even try to create new problems. Effective project teams tend to have low but increasing levels of process conflict, moderate levels of task conflict in the middle of the project, and low levels of relationship conflict that increase toward the end of the project Creating a culture of respect and supporting the safe and balanced expression of perspectives and emotions can help to suppress relationship conflict.
Differing Values
People differ in their values and worldviews. These differences are the source of values conflict, or conflict arising from perceived or actual incompatibilities in beliefs about what is good or bad, right or wrong, and fair or unfair. What violates someone's values differs across national cultures. Different events can trigger conflict in various cultural contexts due to different core concerns.
poor communication
Poor communication increases uncertainty, and can thus increase the potential for conflict. Information conflict occurs when people lack important information, are misinformed, interpret information differently, or disagree about which information is relevant. Because email restricts the richness of communication and increases the chances for misunderstanding, conflicts are more likely to escalate when people communicate via email compared to face-to- face or over the telephone.
Alternative Dispute Resolution
Sometimes two parties are unable to reach an acceptable settlement through direct negotiations with each other. In such cases, the parties may involve a third party to overcome the stalemate and avoid a trial. There are three types of alternative dispute resolution: Conciliation Mediation Arbitration
Organizational Structure
Structural conflict is the result of structural or process features of the organization. Structural conflict can be horizontal or vertical. Horizontal conflict occurs between groups at the same organizational level, such as between line and staff employees or between departments such as production and marketing. Vertical conflict occurs across different hierarchical levels in the organization, including conflicts over wage issues or control. Union-management relationships are a classic example of vertical conflict.
Task Interdependence
When one person or unit is dependent on another for resources or information, the potential for conflict increases
Role of Emotion in Conflict
When we are in conflict we often feel emotionally charged. There is an important distinction between perceiving conflict and feeling conflict—conflict is often not recognized until it is felt. Even though the emotional component is most evident in relationship conflict, task and process conflict also can contain high levels of emotion Many people let their feelings and emotions influence how they deal with conflict. Controlling your emotions and staying focused on the issues can help to prevent a conflict from escalating. Assessing and acknowledging the emotions of the other party can also help you to more effectively manage the conflict.
Compromising
a conflict management style in which each side sacrifices something in order to end the conflict. This middle-ground style reflects a moderate concern for both your and the other party's interests. The goal of compromising is "I win some and lose some / you win some and lose some."
Accommodating
a cooperative conflict management style. This style is generally used when the issue is more important to the other party than to you or if you recognize you were wrong. The goal of accommodating is "I lose / you win."
Task conflict
a disagreement about the task or goals. A moderate amount of task conflict is beneficial in the early stages of a project because it increases innovation and generates more alternatives from which to choose. However, task conflict is more likely to be detrimental over time when tasks are complex. Task conflict can be very productive if handled correctly.
Mediation
a. An impartial third party (the mediator) facilitates a discussion using persuasion and logic, suggesting alternatives, and establishing each side's priorities. The mediator suggests a settlement that does not have to be accepted. Mediation is a voluntary and nonbinding process, whereas the results of arbitration are legally binding. If the mediator is not perceived as neutral, he or she is not likely to be effective.
Change
also causes conflict. Indeed, it has been said that change is not possible without conflict. One of the primary drivers of conflict is uncertainty. External changes can also trigger conflict if regulations or changing market conditions change the relative importance of different organizational groups.
Vertical conflict
conflict occurs across different hierarchical levels in the organization, including conflicts over wage issues or control. Union-management relationships are a classic example of vertical conflict.
constructive conflict
conflict that helps build new insights and establishes new patterns in a relationship Constructive conflicts, also called functional conflicts, balance the interests of both parties to maximize mutual gains and the attainment of mutual goals Constructive conflict is a natural, inevitable, and creative force, and can be beneficial to employees and their organizations.
Conflict Escalation
happens when one party involved in a conflict (an individual, small group, department, or entire organizations) first uses an aggressive tactic or begins using more aggressive tactics than the other party. When constructive approaches to conflict resolution are unsuccessful and break down, the conflict escalates.
Conflicts of interest
interest occur when someone believes that to satisfy his or her own needs, the needs and interests of someone else must be sacrificed Conflicts of interest can occur over: -Substantive issues including time, money, and physical resources -Procedural issues involving the way the conflict will be handled -Psychological issues including perceptions of fairness, trust, or interest in participating
Negotiation
is a process in which two or more parties make offers, counteroffers, and concessions in order to reach an agreement. Most managers do a lot of negotiating as part of their jobs. There are two types of negotiation, distributive and integrative
Integrative negotiation
is a win-win negotiation in which the agreement involves no loss to either party. The four fundamental principles of integrative negotiation are: 1. Separate the people from the problem - separate relationship issues from substantive issues, and deal with them independently 2. Focus on interests, not positions - negotiate about things that people really want and need, and not what they say they want or need 3. Invent options for mutual gain - look for new solutions that allow both sides to win 4. Insist on objective fairness criteria - outside, objective fairness criteria for the negotiated agreement are ideal if they exist
Horizontal conflict
occurs between groups at the same organizational level, such as between line and staff employees or between departments such as production and marketing
Distributive negotiation
occurs under zero-sum conditions, where any gain to one party is offset by an equivalent loss to the other party. Distributive negotiation essentially distributes resources among the parties involved. Because distributive negotiation structures the conflict in a win-lose way, it tends to be competitive and adversarial.
Competing
pursuing one's own interest at the expense of the other party. This approach is generally used when the conflict issue is important or to set a precedent. However, this style can escalate the conflict and the loser may try to retaliate. A person who uses threats and ultimatums is using a competing conflict management style. The goal of competing is "I win / you lose."
Collaborating
reflects a high concern for your own interests and a high concern for the interests of the other party. This conflict management style emphasizes problem solving and pursues an outcome that gives both parties what they want. Collaboration helps to build commitment to the outcome, although the communication required to reach a solution can take substantial time and energy. The objective of collaboration is to fulfill both parties' needs with a goal of "I win / you win."
