Is conflict in the workplace inevitable? Workplaces reflect society where there are differences in ideas, interests, values, perceptions and culture, so perhaps so.
But conflict does not have to be destructive or negative. That friction, when well-managed, can be a catalyst for learning, improvement and vital change.
So, in this month’s ‘Focus On’, we’re looking at a very small sample of the training materials available to Trainers’ Library® members that help equip managers and teams with the skills necessary to manage conflict situations proactively and productively.
Understanding Conflict
This is a great starting point for any training around conflict. It includes several different activities, including a video activity, that get participants thinking about what conflict is, why it occurs, the behaviours exhibited in times of conflict and the phases of conflict.
Managing Emotions
It’s difficult to approach conflict situations rationally, to treat differences as shared problems, or to find solutions when emotions are running high and everyone is blaming one another.
That’s why emotional intelligence has an important role to play in conflict management and why it’s important to be able to separate the behaviours being exhibited from the problem.
Here are some modules that will help you raise participants’ awareness of their own and other’s emotion-driven behaviours and show them tools and approaches that will help them manage both.
The first of these modules focuses on self-awareness, the second on awareness of others and empathy.
Building on the self-awareness piece, this module helps participants explore further how emotions affect their behaviours and identify strategies that will help them control those emotions more effectively.
This module encourages people to reflect on their emotional reaction to other’s people’s behaviours and teaches them how to better manage situations where they have to work with people they find ‘difficult’.
“I used this module with a group of team leaders on a workshop on dealing with conflict. The delegates enjoyed and benefited from discussing and sharing ideas on how to deal with difficult people. I would recommend this module to anyone running a workshop on managing conflict alongside The Anatomy of Conflict and Fight, Flight or Friendship.”
Managing the Process
Leading people through conflict to a successful outcome, isn’t just about teaching people to manage their emotional responses to difficult situations, it’s about having processes that support empathy, fact finding and shared solution finding.
Here are just a few of our modules that will help with this.
This practical, engaging, and perhaps surprisingly fun module explores five different approaches that can be used to manage conflict – Avoidance, Accommodation, Compromise, Competition and Collaboration - and the advantages and disadvantages of each.
If we had to pick a top fifty from Trainers’ Library’s 1,000 plus modules, this would be in that list. With participants placed in teams, representing different groups of employees in a restaurant with serious issues, this is an activity that powerfully illustrates what happens when blame dominates.
Over several ‘rounds’ you’ll then gradually introduce a process that will help them, not just resolve the conflict, but introduce real and significant improvements that are good for the individuals involved in the conflict, the business and its customers!
We cannot recommend this activity enough!
And finally, one of our members’ all-time favourite activities – Island of Opportunity.
Can the communities resolve their differences and avoid conflict, whilst trying to find a way to divide the island and its resources in a way that satisfies everyone’s needs?
Well that really depends on their ability to put into practice everything they’ve learned from the preceding training!
Final Note
As always, this Focus On highlights a tiny selection from the modules on our chosen topic and there are always others available.
Hopefully, though, it’s given you some food for thought and ideas that will help you enable others to manage conflict situations and lead their teams through conflict in a way that delivers real and positive change for everyone involved.