adminsmooth, uninterrupted flow between organisations, within groups and individuals, with everyone holding similar unopposed views.
Conflicts are sometimes a positive drive towards achieving an objective. Conflict can be valuable to groups and organisations. It has been shown to increase group outcomes when managed properly.
Conflict significantly affects employee morale, turnover, and litigation, which affect the prosperity of a company, either constructively or destructively. Turnover can cost a company very dearly.
Whichever type of change it is, conflicts are bound to happen. Conflict happens when one party perceives that its interests are being opposed or negatively affected by another party. Some refer to it as struggles that arise when the goal-directed behaviour of one person or group blocks the goal-directed behaviour of another person or group.
Conflicts can occur either within organisations, within and between groups, within and between individuals.
I must hasten to say that conflicts are not to be seen as a single phenomenon with identical features. All conflicts are unique, and each conflict exists within its own overall context and framework. The conflict cycle and its phases begin with structural instability before leading to manifest social unrest and violence, and finally to sustainable peace and conflict resolution.
Sources of organisational conflict
One would ask of the exact origins of conflict. For most organisations, scarce resources form a major potential source of antagonism. As long as resources at employee disposal are not sufficient, there is bound to be competition.
Secondly, overlapping authority will create a fair share of conflict. I have worked with a sizeable number of organisations who have “dubious” reporting structures. One person reporting to more than three superiors! At the end of the day, where does authority and control lie? Who then gets the final say?
Task interdependencies between departments are the order of the day for most companies. These heavily rely on the success of the other department for them to execute their task. However, when one member of a group fails to finish a task that another member or group depends on, causing the waiting worker or group to fall behind, tension can be created resulting in conflicts and clashes between departments.
Change brings about the differentiation of tasks and roles which causes feelings of gain and loss among individuals. Some individuals and groups will have a higher organisational status than others. The status differences that arise may result in conflict if not managed appropriately.
When implementing change, top management needs to be aware of the need to change organisational structures and policies to suit the change. Conflict arises when employees are evaluated for one thing but expected to do another. The performance appraisal system will need to be changed to suit the new roles of the employees to prevent conflict with immediate supervisors.
If the terms of reference for the objectives and that of the roles differ there may be serious conflict that may result in difficulty in implementing change effectively.
In any change project or initiatives, priorities have to be agreed. Conflict may arise if priorities are at variance. Different functions should not have incompatible goals such as finance required to focus on cost management while operations required focusing on increasing service. The timing for achievement of these goals cannot coincide without conflict.
Conflict is inevitable if change initiatives do not include a reconciliation of individual values and organisational values. A discord in the values of the organisation and those of the staff members may result in a conflict of direction.
There are instances when new systems are introduced into the company that are complex and unfriendly to the user. If these are introduced without appropriate training and induction, users will be hesitant to use them and hold on to the old. The symptoms could be anything from strikes, output restrictions and falling productivity, quality or even sabotage of the change process.
Conflict management
Conflicts can be minimised. Perhaps, the most ideal would be to solve the problem — Find joint solutions to the problem and share responsibility to see which one works and which one does not. This may be time consuming but beneficial in the long run.
When implementing change the manager needs to identify the resources that will be required before proceeding and make sure these are provided. To manage conflict effectively you must create an open communication environment by encouraging employees to talk about work issues.
On the other hand, managers must clearly communicate work priorities and responsibilities. Some companies have even gone as far as seeking for mediation efforts with independent mediators and arbitrators.
The mediator’s role must be able facilitate communication between the parties, assist them in focusing on the real issues of the dispute, and generate options that meet the interests or needs of all relevant parties in an effort to resolve the conflict.
I also have seen success when companies make a deliberate attempt to empower individuals. As people become empowered, they begin to develop an ownership attitude in which they see conflict resolution as directly affecting their own bottom lines.
As people are empowered in their decision-making, their work becomes more motivating. As a result, they are more committed to their work and are more inclined to work through conflicts on their own. Conflict is not to be deplored. It is an inevitable result of progress and change and it can and should be used constructively.
The growing complexity of organisations requires that a manager deals with the new concepts of threats effectively. As organisations grow and become more open- managers must be ready to tackle the complexities of conflicts. It is more beneficial to adopt a strategic and proactive approach to managing organisational conflicts.
Remember the saying from one of our griots — “Smooth seas do not make skillful sailors.”
Till next week, May God richly bless you.
l Shelter Hamandishe-Chieza is a Management Consultant. She holds over a decade of management experience and is at the final stages of a Master of Business Administration degree with a reputable local university. She can be contacted at [email protected]
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