Handling Team Conflicts

What Can Cause Conflict?

The underlying basis of conflict is a “clash of interests, values, actions, views or directions” that brings disagreement among people. People disagree because they see things differently or want different things. Some people simply think a different way or are prone to disagree, the so-called “contrarians.”

Conflicts — like change — can be negative or positive. As a team manager, you play a large role in determining which direction they’ll go. When a disagreement arises, you can help resolve the situation through various conflict resolution techniques. Without resolution, the impact can head down a negative path. A direction you’re better off bypassing.

Conflict can originate from any number of sources. Team members may want more recognition, increased pay, greater independence, even higher status. Identifying the source of conflict, therefore, can be difficult.

People view things differently.

Conflicts arise when individuals interacting in the same situation see things differently. This can be due to differences in understanding, world outlook, education, background, perception, disposition, where they gained their experience — the list goes on.

For example, the “glass half-full” of one person can be “half-empty” to another. Both experience the same thing, but in a very different manner.

People have contrasting value systems.

What’s important to you may hold little meaning to the fellow beside you. How values are ranked depends on societal norms, political and religious ideology, ethics, and sense of right and wrong.

People hold different job positions.

There’s got to be a boss. There’s got to be an “underling.” If the person on top flaunts or overplays their status, it can create issues with the individuals below them. Compensation also can play a role when one person feels another is not pulling their weight according to their pay scale.

People can be fearful.

Real or imaginary, an individual’s concern about something that may or may not happen in the future can cause conflict. On a program, key project, or team assignment, a person can fear failure, setbacks, embarrassment, reprisals, even job demotion. All of these can get in the way of effectively carrying out project work, which in turn leads to conflict.

People think differently.

Some ways of thinking encourage disagreement, leading to conflict situations. Certain thinking styles may be useful in some situations, but ineffectual or even perilous in others.

People are encouraged to disagree.

In some situations, such as sports or games, conflict is necessary, tolerated and sometimes even pleasurable. Go team!

What creates conflict on a team?

Don’t be afraid of opposition. Remember, a kite rises against — not with — the wind.

— Hamilton Wright Mabie

Fortunately or unfortunately — depending on how you look at it — some confrontations are positive, even necessary. They can help keep projects on track, identify when a program or assignment has gone astray, or when it’s time to shake up the way work is approached. Other conflicts delay progress, increase tension, and ultimately take up too much psychological space.

As team manager, it’s important for you to understand what can create conflict on a team. By recognizing these situations, you can manage them before they do damage.

Causes of team conflict

Ambiguous roles

Who’s on first? Often, team members lack a comprehensive understanding of what’s being asked of them. ??What are each team member’s expectations as well as how do such expectations relate to the team’s expectations.

This includes understanding the values expected to be demonstrated consistently, as well as what is acceptable and unacceptable conduct (see my previous article on this topic). A good manager takes the time to explain each person’s tasks and the expectations for timeframes and outcomes and how it relates to the team’s expectations.

Activity priorities

Whether it’s a milestone or not, all activities should be prioritized. The reality is team members frequently juggle multiple program, projects, or assignments simultaneously. If they aren’t cognizant of the importance of each of their tasks, delays can result — along with conflicts.

Activity dependencies

Some activities can’t start until other activities are completed. If Harold is waiting on Arnold who’s holding up Maria, all of them get testy. Everyone should know how their work impacts all the other team members up and down the line.

Working in silos

Team members often work independently, either remotely or in a different location from other team members. When team members are unaware of what others are doing and are not communicating with one another, barriers emerge. As team manager, you need to bring the team together to discuss program, project, or assignment status and remove barriers to progress and completion. Frequently remind everyone how they fit into the bigger picture.

Poor communications

Without continuous and proper communications, the left hand doesn’t know what the right hand is doing. Communicate, communicate, communicate. You really cannot over communicate. It’s oil for the team machine.

Productivity deficiencies

When a team member perceives another team member’s performance as poor — that they are not contributing their full share — friction can arise. This includes when the perception is that another team member's workload is less than that of others.

Scope changes

Imagine you’ve spent three weeks building a plan to implement a new infrastructure for a key program or practice. All of a sudden, you receive a scope change specifying a switch to a different priority, vendor, or client. Your first reaction might well be anger toward upper management or even the customer. After all, you now have to redo your hard work!

Schedule changes

Shortened schedules, lengthened schedules — either can cause angst. Shortened could mean more work, longer hours, less pay. Lengthened could mean continuing a boring program or project with people you don’t like.

Denied resource requests

What if a request for additional resources is submitted and is denied? That could mean more hours with fewer resources to do the work. Not to mention being told, “No.”

Team manager style

Heavy handed or hands off, both of these management styles can create fractious situations. A wise team manager gets to know the team and applies the right discipline at the appropriate time.

How do you handle conflict?

If your only tool is a hammer, you will see every problem as a nail.

— Gambian proverb

Be prepared for conflicts to happen at any time — they’re part of the business you’re in. Remaining calm, listening to others, and acknowledging that everyone’s opinion matters are key ingredients in dealing with conflict situations.

You can increase the chance of achieving a collaborative resolution if you follow some simple guidelines.

Guidelines for handling conflict

Listen to both sides.

Depending on the conflict, listen to both sides separately and together. Figure out exactly what the problem is. Keep an eye on nonverbal cues. Body language, tone and demeanor might tell you everything you need to know about how they’re feeling. Help them get over any anger they harbor before delving into the conflict. Put them at ease.

Acknowledge individual feelings.

Just because you acknowledge an individual’s situation or issue, doesn’t mean you agree with their position. But everyone wants to feel they are valued and their opinion matters — even if it’s irrational or emotional in nature. This is when your soft skills can shine.

Don’t take sides.

If either side senses you’re predisposed to the other side, they’ll consider the decision process unfair and accept no solution other than their own. Further, you will trigger the perception of favoritism, a perception that will undermine you for sure.

Encourage alternative solutions.

Encourage participants to create alternative solutions, instead of strictly adhering to their original solution. Have they thought about this? What about that? By exploring other options, those in conflict may find they share similar ideas. They could even discover they’re more alike than not.

If there seems to be no area of compromise, suggest participants develop a set of criteria for rating solutions, instead of arguing strongly for a single fix. Don’t “gloss over” any solution, even if you feel it has no merit. Provide ample time to explore each alternative.

Take the best course of action.

It’s time to be a proactive team manager — deal with it! Ascertain the situation, the alternatives and come up with the best solution or steps to follow. However you choose to deal with the situation, keep the goal in mind: To do what’s best for the team goal and the team as a whole.

Dealing with difficult people

Through the course of everyday business, you’ll run into individuals who make productivity difficult — if not downright impossible.

Failing to deal with difficult people and, most importantly, remaining embroiled in conflict, can tag you as a person “unable to handle disagreement like a mature professional.” Worse, you might also be labeled a “difficult” person. It’s a hard label to escape.

Complaining about a difficult coworker or situation can earn you the title of “whiner.” Managers wonder why you can’t solve your own problems. Team members get fed up with your negativity. The boss could decide you’re “high maintenance.” If the situation continues, the organization may simply tire of you and replace you with a more cooperative person. You could lose your job.

These situations won’t improve if left unaddressed. Instead, conflict continues to simmer just below the surface until it erupts counter-productively at work. It’s far better to take a little time, try and understand exactly what’s happening and why, and address the difficult person with objectivity and emotional control. Take the high road.

What are some conflict resolution techniques?

Quarrels would not last long if the fault were only on one side.

— Fran?ois de La Rochefoucauld

Conflict can arise because of something as simple as a misunderstood communication, a lack of mutual understanding — even a typo. There is no single “best” method for resolution.

There are techniques, however, that can significantly improve your ability to diffuse a rocky situation. By learning these five conflict resolution techniques, your ability to diagnose a conflict and apply the most appropriate strategy improves.

Conflict resolution techniques

Collaboration

Considered the optimum method of conflict resolution, collaboration is finding common ground, or a win-win solution that satisfies the conflicting parties. It requires a willingness to accept the valid interests of the other party, while protecting one’s personal interests. To arrive at the best solution, disagreement is addressed openly, and alternatives are discussed. Together, the parties work toward a mutually desirable outcome. This technique involves high cooperation and low confrontation.

Example: Three weeks after a final policy was approved, the CEO asks for a new practice to be added. The team is furious, however, because they were on schedule to begin implementation on Monday. To diffuse the situation, the team manager holds a brainstorming session with key team members to try and determine a solution. After everyone exhausts their ideas, a vote is taken that yields the best solution to the situation. Conflict managed!

Compromise

When conflicting parties have relatively equal power and mutually independent goals, the answer often is a compromise. It’s considered a lose-lose scenario because each party typically gives up something to reach a solution.

Example: After estimating the staff size needs of a key project, the team manager identified the need for an additional member to be borrowed from another department. Once the borrowed member is in place, the project gets underway. But a week later, the borrowed member’s functional manager says he needs the member back for a higher-priority project. In exchange, he’ll provide two part-time workers who are equally qualified. Although it will require time to “ramp up” the new part-time workers, the team manager agrees, because the solution meets the project needs.

Accommodation

When one party is dispassionate — they have little to lose or little to gain — accommodation is a good strategy. It plays down differences and stresses commonalities, while involving high cooperation and low confrontation.

Example: The department director asks the team manager to mentor and coach a new hire when she begins her first assignment. The team manager is concerned he doesn’t have adequate time, but to support the department director’s direction, he agrees to help. Such disinterest will show.

Avoidance

The avoidance conflict resolution technique is used to steer clear of a direct confrontation by having the parties agree — even if they’re opposed to the outcome. On a team, this can be dangerous when goals are sidestepped. On other occasions, taking the time to simmer down can let “cooler heads prevail.”

Example: The team is in an estimating session for how long the work will take and the administrative support needed. ?Luis and Candy each have independent estimates for their two activities that share dependency. They can’t agree and have been in a heated exchange for five minutes. The team is getting anxious to get to other estimating tasks. The team manager asks Luis and Candy to table their discussion until the following day, after they’ve looked at each other’s underlying assumptions.

Forcing

In this win-or-lose technique, one party asserts their viewpoint at the potential expense of another. Forcing takes a self-centered approach, with high concern for personal goals and low concern for team relationships. It can be useful, however, when unpopular but necessary decisions must be made.

Example: The department director informs the team manager he will conduct an evaluation of team work progress on Tuesday. The team manager tells the director she has a new employee starting on Monday and asks if the evaluation can be postponed a week to allow the new member to produce some results. The director responds, “OK. I’ll just let my boss, the CEO, know your lack of concern about meeting the company’s client requirements.” The work progress evaluation is scheduled for Tuesday.

Is a single conflict resolution technique always the answer?

Before you speak, ask yourself: Is it kind? Is it necessary? Is it true? Does it improve on the silence?

— Sai Baba of Shirdi

Sometimes, you’ll find yourself in a situation that doesn’t have a simple resolution. A situation when you must try multiple techniques to manage the conflict and set things right. Think back to that definition of conflict — a “clash of interests, values, actions, views or directions.” Conflict isn’t necessarily overt and subject to shouting matches. Let’s look at a case study that illustrates this point.

Case Study

State of disarray

Herb is the team manager on a yearlong process to conduct an evaluation of client needs. The scope of the project includes interviewing client’s and documenting the current state of Process A. Once that work is underway, another team will work on a new, more efficient process — Process B.

Herb feels fortunate to have just hired Ray, an experienced professional, to conduct the interviews and document Process A. Ray has a great deal of experience in interviewing clients, as well as defining detailed process states. Since Process A is the basis for determining Process B, it’s imperative the details are complete, clear, and accurate. Having Ray on the team is a great benefit!

Three weeks into the project

Ray delivers 20 client interview transcripts and an inventory spreadsheet documenting Process A’s state. Herb is pleased with Ray’s progress and considers that Ray is on a learning curve.

Eight weeks into the project

Herb realizes Ray is not meeting his deadlines. When asked, Ray explains he has a lot on his plate since he is also working on several other projects that demand a lot of his time and he is concerned about being overwhelmed. Herb knows Ray is a professional and doesn’t want to make him uncomfortable. He’s certain Ray will make up the time. Herb informs the Process B team that Process A input will be delayed.

Four months into the project

Ray is still behind. In fact, Herb hasn’t seen any additional interview transcripts and doesn’t know what work has been completed or even started. Herb calls Ray into a meeting to ask when he’ll have additional deliverables ready. Ray and Herb review Ray’s schedule and workload. Based on Ray’s availability, Herb adjusts the work schedule by pushing deadlines back, but also creates a deliverable deadline every three days. Ray agrees to meet the new deadlines but expresses concern about the short turnarounds. Three days later, Ray sends two additional interview transcripts and an updated completion spreadsheet. He continues to meet his three-day deadlines.

Not a ray of hope

With the new input from Ray, the Process B team gets rolling. However, they soon recognize inconsistencies between the interview transcripts and the documentation of several Process A states. To understand what they’re looking at, the Process B team asks client sponsors to review the documentation and are told, “This describes how we did things a year ago.”

Unsure of what has happened or why there are inconsistencies, Herb enlists the help of Zabrina, another professional, to review Ray’s deliverables. After reviewing Ray’s work, Zabrina finds multiple instances of outdated information and inaccurate client descriptions. Herb asks Zabrina to interview the client’s again and correct Ray’s work before it goes to the Process B team.

Over time, Herb finally had realized Ray was writing Process A client descriptions as quickly as possible and missing key details, or without interviewing the clients at all. Herb removed Ray from the team.

Too many, too late

Herb tried multiple resolution techniques to manage the conflict of late and subpar deliverables from Ray. Each resolution technique seemed reasonable at the time, but the issue was never squarely addressed or resolved.

So, what techniques did Herb apply or not apply and were they effective?

• Collaboration: Herb didn’t use collaboration and missed opportunities to do so at eight weeks and four months.
• Compromise: Herb compromised when he adjusted the schedule at four months. This was not an effective technique, because he and Ray didn’t discuss what the real problem was — why is Ray late? The compromise pushed Ray into taking shortcuts.
• Accommodation: At eight weeks, Herb accommodated Ray’s delayed schedule assuming he’d pick up the pace later. But without knowing more about the issue, Herb allowed a small problem to snowball.
• Avoidance: Herb avoided the conflict of subpar quality by asking Zabrina to fix the issues. This increased costs and lengthened the project schedule.
• Forcing: Herb used forcing when he removed Ray from the team. This could have been avoided by talking more openly about the issues early on. However, in the position Herb found himself in when he removed Ray, it was an effective resolution technique.

?How do you prevent conflict?

When you’re at the edge of a cliff, sometimes progress is a step backwards.

— Author unknown

?A dark cloud of tension and uncertainty hangs over you when conflict is active. The gossip mill churns, time is wasted and fear replaces productivity as focus is lost.

Progress slows to a crawl while waiting for the next outburst, argument or subversion. What can you do when conflict threatens to derail the team and potentially accomplishing the expectations of the team?

Work to prevent it.

To effectively ward off conflict, heed some useful tips.

Nip conflict in the bud.

You’ll often experience hints of potential conflicts to come; sense things may get out of hand. Act! Don’t let those niggling feelings turn nasty.

Hold regular status meetings.

Maintain daily communications with your team members. To prevent surprises, ensure communication channels are open, and communicate clearly and frankly about goals and priorities.

Ensure “tech speak” is understood.

People with technical backgrounds often struggle to communicate with people who lack the same background. At times, the two groups may appear to speak a different language: What does, “She lacks bandwidth” mean? What’s “hyperconnectivity”? Is “scalability” a good thing or a bad thing? When one side is speaking technical or business jargon the other side doesn’t comprehend, frustration can develop rapidly. Time to step in and translate.

De-emphasize project role hierarchy.

Team members in strict organizational hierarchies with little access to organizational leaders often feel condescension, which results in conflict. Strive for an open, democratic and respectful atmosphere. Hey, you’re all on the same team!

Don’t let things get personal.

Avoid personalizing issues. Instead, stick to the facts. If you see a discussion is headed down the personality path, change its course.

Avoid the blame game.

He said, she said — don’t go there. Encourage team members to take ownership of issues and solutions.

Foster mutual respect.

Results will suffer if your team doesn’t respect one another. Championing an environment that nurtures and promotes respect will aid in their willingness to agree and compromise.?