Deal with office conflicts carefully

Conflict is described as a serious disagreement or argument between two or more people. Conflicts are bound to happen at workplaces but how you resolve them makes all the difference.

Herbert Zake, a managing consultant at Steadfast Quality Solutions Limited notes that wherever there are human beings who interact with one another, conflicts are bound to arise.

This is because we all have different ways of thinking and doing things. Different outlooks in life and how we want certain things done. That means we are bound to disagree with one another sooner or later.

Understanding conflict

Zake notes that different people deal with conflict differently, some are able resolve it and others are not which can lead to complications.

He adds that you need to know the different kinds of people you work with. Some are accommodative while others are aggressive and confrontational and some may not be willing to compromise which makes it difficult to find a solution to the problem.

While others try to avoid or run away from conflicts.

“Some conflicts may be as small as irritations that do not affect the workflow. But other conflicts can be of big magnitude that they can bring work to a standstill,” he says.

Sometimes conflict is good because it can lead to new ways of thinking and innovativeness to change the status quo.

On the other hand, conflict can be disruptive in a work environment leading to the stalling of activities zaake adds.

Managing work conflict

Isaac Mujuni a human resource manager notes that the best way of managing conflict is by giving the concerned parties an opportunity to be heard and listened to.

Conflicts usually get out of hand when there are no communication channels geared at their resolution.

Zake says so many employers have conflict resolution mechanisms in terms of policies that are part of the human resource manual.

These usually spell out steps that are to be taken when a conflict arises.

These are usually escalated to higher levels depending on the magnitude of the conflict. He, however, notes that minor conflicts can be ignored and they just fade away with time although in many cases, there needs to be an intervention.

“A mediator should be fair enough to listen to both sides and then bring them to a round table so that they can discuss their issues and come up with solutions. Where this kind of mediation fails, then there might be need for an arbitrator who will listen to both sides and come up with a position that will be binding to both parties,” Zaake says.

Mujuni adds that mediating conflict is not easy. But as a manager this will always be necessary as conflicts among your staff will come up from time to time.

How you deal with these conflicts will determine whether there will be disruptions to workflow or not.

Magarate Tumusiime, a counselling psychologist gives us tips on how to avoid conflict at workplaces.

Self control
Even if we can’t control others, we can control how we react in case of arguments. Tumusiime notes that a conflict starts as a simple argument and grows depending on how the parties involved react.
In case an argument is getting out of hand, you can decide to walk away and come back when the person has cooled down or alternatively ask the management to handle the issue.

Avoid violent people
“Some people are big troublemakers and avoiding them could be a good option as you will never have to have a scuffle with them, in case they provoke you, walk away or tell them you aren’t interest in arguing. Avoid all discussion that can lead to a fight at work some of these may include politics, religion, tribal or one’s family,” she adds.

Mind your business
Most people get in trouble for engaging in matters that do not concern them. Do what you are supposed to do and stay out of other people’s lives. If you have a teammate who is not compliant, report to your supervisor, don’t attack them.