What: Conflicts are natural in teams. Not everyone thinks and resolves issues the same way, which is a good thing but sometimes this can cause conflict. Blanchard LeaderChat says most conflicts come from positions, strategies or opinions. Conflicts also originate with trust issues within the team. Differences in personalities between teammates are another reason for conflicts. Often times, these conflicts go unresolved leading to a lack of productivity.
So What: The acknowledgement of these problems by the team is the first step in resolving these issues. OER Principles of Management says There are two basic types of team conflict: substantive (sometimes called task) and emotional (or relationship). Substantive conflicts are more related to “tasks, goals and the allocation of resources”. OER says emotional conflicts arise from things such as “jealousy, insecurity, annoyance, envy, or personality conflicts. It is emotional conflict when two people always seem to find themselves holding opposing viewpoints and have a hard time hiding their personal animosity”. Resolving/ failing to resolve these issues can make or break a team.
Now what: Now that we know where most issues in a team originate, we can go about finding ways to overcome them. In Group Dynamics for Teams,Daniel Levi makes some good points on conflict management and resolution. He points out how one can be cooperative by encouraging communication, or competitive, which discourages communication. The best way to solve issues within a team is to collaborate because everyone in the team wins, unlike the avoidance, confrontation and accommodation method, where there are winners and losers. According to MindTools, When a team “oversteps the mark of healthy difference of opinion, resolving conflict requires respect and patience. The human experience of conflict involves our emotions, perceptions, and actions; we experience it on all three levels, and we need to address all three levels to resolve it. We must replace the negative experiences with positive ones”. Mind tools has three steps to focus on while resolving a conflict. Step one is to prepare for resolution by acknowledging the conflict and agreeing on a cooperative process. Step two is to understand the situation. Clarify the positions of the team members and list “facts, assumptions and beliefs underlying each position”. Step three is to reach an agreement and celebrate the accomplishment of resolving the issue.
Works Cited:
Witt, David, et al. “4 Types of Team Conflict-And How to Deal With Each Effectively.” Blanchard LeaderChat, 16 July 2015, leaderchat.org/2015/07/16/4-types-of-team-conflict-and-how-to-deal-with-each-effectively/.
Learning, Lumen. “Principles of Management.” Conflict Within Teams | Principles of Management, courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-principlesmanagement/chapter/reading-conflict-within-teams/.
Levi, Daniel. Group Dynamics for Teams. 2017.
BillT, et al. “Resolving Team Conflict: Building Stronger Teams by Facing Your Differences.” Team Management Training from MindTools.coms, http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newTMM_79.htm.
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