Great leaders take control of turning their destructive workplace conflict into positive opportunities for growth. They understand that unresolved conflict equates to disruption, disunity, lowered morale and diminished productivity.
When I discuss this with my coaching clients, we talk about the importance of the leader as facilitator. You see, as a facilitator in employee conflict resolution, it’s your job to guide the process by using effective steps that people will understand and follow:
- Resolving conflict is a private matter between the opposing employees and their leader. It is a personal encounter conducted by the leader, with the goal of helping each person take away value and agreement.
- The leader affirms the values and principles everyone in the organization is to strive for, which includes teamwork, cooperation and fairness.
- A mediation process is used to hear out each side, value their perspectives and help each party understand the viewpoint of the other. The mediator acts to facilitate communication between the parties by identifying issues, brainstorming for options and allowing the parties to reach a voluntary agreement.
- The leader guides each participant to offer viable solutions. The suggestions are reviewed, modified and discussed until an agreement can be reached. This is generally not as difficult as it may appear. Solutions are often simple, but people in conflict often don’t see them without help.
- The parties are led into an implementation and follow-up process where progress can be monitored and reviewed. This is a critical time for strong support from the leader.
Leaders who have developed softer skills will have the most success in conflict resolution. Your empathy, authenticity and active listening are critical in developing trust in you, and the process.
What do you think? How do you take control in destructive workplace conflict? I’d love to hear from you. You can call me at 561-582-6060, or, I can be reached here or on LinkedIn.
