Effective Communication & Conflict Resolution
Conflict in an organization is inevitable and often arises from problems in communication. Ignoring conflicts can result in strained relationships, poor morale and employee turnover. The success of a business can be largely dependent upon clear and transparent communication. Managing communication and promoting healthy conflict resolution should be a goal of management. Adapting strategies for healthy conflict resolution in business communication can strengthen the organization.
Prevalence of Workplace Conflict
MyPerfectResume.com conducted a survey of 1,000 remote workers in 2020 that revealed pervasive workplace conflict. Researchers found that 85 percent of survey respondents had felt offended by emails and text messages or comments made during cloud-based video conferencing. Communication problems included lack of transparency, misinformation and aggressive text messages, for example. An astounding 39 percent of workers contemplated leaving their job or actually quit because of the stress of the situation.
Recognize Need for a Mediator
When there is conflict in the workplace that revolves around legal or ethical issues, it may be to the company's advantage to bring in a professional mediator, suggests Indeed Career Guide. This can help ensure that the conflict is resolved while helping to protect the business from possible legal actions that could arise if the situation is not properly handled. For normal, everyday conflicts within the workplace, an in-house facilitator can be used. With everyone following a few conflict-resolution rules, the situation can usually be resolved.
Set Ground Rules
Before the conflict resolution process begins, a set of ground rules should be distributed to all participants. Examples of ground rules could be: avoid generalizations, stay with the current issue, remain seated at all times, take a time out if needed and listen when others are speaking with interruption. Each organization can tailor the ground rules to its particular business, based on the type of conflict and the most common scenarios that disrupt the process of effective communication.
Remain Calm
One of the most important skills in conflict resolution is the ability to stay calm and avoid raising voices when working through an issue. It is often helpful to have a neutral party who can help keep the two in conflict on track. When discussing an issue, employees should try to maintain their cool and keep their voices at a normal volume. Avoid excessive hand movements such as pointing. Having both parties seated can also help avoid escalation.
Take Turns Speaking
Communication and conflict managment approaches should be fair to all parties involved. Many conflicts arise in the workplace when someone feels he is not being heard by the other person. Each person involved in the conflict should be given an uninterrupted time to explain his side of the situation. Setting a timer may be beneficial to keep the conversation moving forward and to make sure each person is given the same amount of time to air his grievances.
A facilitator can ensure there are no interruptions and maintain the schedule. After the person has spoken, the listener should paraphrase what the speaker said and ask if that understanding of the situation is accurate. This gives validation to the speaker and ensures that everyone is on the same page. This should be done after each person speaks.
Find a Solution
After all grievances have been aired, each person should state what her ideal solution to the situation would be. A facilitator can make notes on these solutions and look for common ground. Each person involved in the conflict should agree to the resolution or solution to the problem.
Participants should not be coerced into agreement and should walk away feeling the problem is truly resolved. The role of communication in conflict resolution is to ensure that each participant leaves feeling she has won and has benefited from the exchange.