Conflict – Symptoms, Causes and Resolution.

1. What are the symptoms of the conflict? Symptoms include:
• Not completing work on-time or to quality goals
• Not returning phone calls, e-mails or requests for information
• Gossip, complaining, hostility, finger pointing, verbal abuse
• Not attending meetings, absenteeism
2. What caused the team conflict? Causes include:
• Poor or no communication
• Lack of clarity in purpose, goals, objectives, team and individual roles, resources and support
• Poor time management
• Lack of leadership and management
• Team members bored, not challenged, not really interested
• Personality conflicts
• Personal problems
3. What are the steps to resolve the conflict?A. Define the problem - Don’t start solving the problem. Defining the problem often contains the solution.
B. Gather data - Collect facts, that are actual, observable, and measurable, not hearsay or opinions.
C. Analyze the data - Analyze dynamics. Instead of saying we have personality conflicts, ask: Are team members able to work with each other or not? Have they been trained on different personalities?
D. Choose the best solution - Consider your observations and make a decision. Realize that you can’t always be right. If it doesn’t work, evaluate it and retry.
E. Implement and refine - Construct a plan with actions, timing and measurements that address each problem. Don’t try to fix everything at once. Work on one or two areas Be sure to:
• Attack the problem, not the person
• Focus on what can be done, not on what can’t .
• Encourage different opinions and honest dialogue
• Express feelings in a way that does not blame
• Accept ownership for your part of the problem
• Listen to understand the other person’s perspective before giving your own.
(From Conflict Management Seminar – Dr. Mimi Hull)