Although conflicts in the workplace are rather common, many are completely avoidable. By taking a few preparatory steps, employers can help prevent workplace disagreements before they happen. Use these simple conflict avoidance techniques to maintain a peaceful environment in the workplace and enjoy a reduction in workplace stress and a boost in employee productivity.
In a survey conducted by Workfront — formerly AtTask — 64 percent of respondents consider confusion about roles and responsibilities to be a major cause of workplace conflict. Managers can prevent disagreements by providing the clarity that employees crave. Whenever a new member joins a department or team, managers should ensure that everyone understands the new person's role. This prevents disagreements from arising when people try to load responsibilities onto the new person or begin to feel resentful because they don't understand what the new member is doing.
It's a good idea to have a written document that explicitly defines each employee's role. Putting vital information down in writing reduces the risk of arguments arising over who should be completing that overdue report or chasing up those missing accounts.
Similarly, using project management software can reduce confusion over deadlines. Program this software to automatically remind employees of upcoming deadlines, reducing the potential for arguments about overdue work.
Even when all employees are clear about their roles in the workplace and the tasks they need to complete, potential exists for disagreements to arise. When workers spend several hours a day together, week after week, personalities might clash. Even tiny disagreements, such as one employee being irritated by his neighbor eating loudly at her desk, can escalate into huge conflicts if the people involved don't deal with the situation promptly. The solution is to put a conflict resolution process in place so that employees can resolve their disagreements quickly and easily.
Training managers to mediate minor disagreements is a big part of keeping the workplace free from conflict. Employers should consider sending managers on training courses to teach them to become effective listeners and negotiators. These skills are essential for conflict resolution. Managers must listen to all parties involved in the disagreement and encourage them to work together to find a solution that satisfies everyone.
Employees should feel comfortable raising problems with their supervisors. Companies can set up regular meeting times to give employees a chance to share their concerns before they develop into deep resentments. The sooner managers and human resources staff members take action to resolve employee concerns, the less likely those concerns are to turn into long-lasting conflicts.
Supervisors and managers must treat everyone in the organization equally and fairly. Almost everyone has some unconscious biases, even those who are openly committed to equality. Employers must train their supervisors to recognize and address common stereotypes, such as those about gender or race, to help ward off lazy patterns of thinking — for instance, assuming that women are more argumentative than men. Such assumptions can sometimes lead to supervisors unfairly taking sides in conflict resolution scenarios.
In particular, all managers need to undergo sexual harassment training. Sexual harassment is a big problem in many workplaces in all types of industries, so it's vital that managers have a clear understanding of how to effectively deal with both misunderstandings and actual abuse of this nature. In fact, in California, Maine and Connecticut, state law obliges employers to provide supervisors with specific training of this nature.
With a little effort and preparation, employers can prevent disagreements at work before they occur. To maintain a harmonious atmosphere in the workplace, employers should train managers in conflict resolution and create an environment in which employees feel confident about and comfortable with sharing their concerns. Using project management software and written documents to clarify employees' roles, responsibilities and deadlines can also help to prevent arguments. When conflicts do arise, the best approach is to deal with them quickly and efficiently, resolving them before they develop into long-lasting disputes.
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