LYCEUM OF THE PHILIPPINES UNIVERSITY- LAGUNA

COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING AND COMPUTER STUDIES

ENGINEERING MANAGEMENT
“MANAGING ORGANIZATIONAL CONFLICT, POLITICS AND
NEGOTIATION”

Montero, Justine
Pugales, John Harold
BSCE 2-2

Engr. Kim Carlo Lat

Instructor
 Managing Conflict, Politics, and Negotiation

Organizational Conflict

Organizational conflict is the discord that arises when goals, interests or values of different
individuals or groups are incompatible and those people block or thwart each other’s efforts to
achieve their objectives.
Conflict is inevitable given the wide range of goals for the different stakeholder in the organization.

Types of Conflict

 Interpersonal Conflict
This is the type of conflict between individuals due to differences in their goals or values.
 Intragroup Conflict
This is the type of conflict within a group or team.
 Intergroup Conflict
This is the type of conflict between two or more teams, groups or departments. Managers
play a key role in resolution of this conflict
 Interorganizational Conflict
This is the type of conflict that arises across organizations.
Sources of Conflict

 Different Goals and Time Horizons

Conflict occurs when different groups have differing goals and focus.
 Overlapping Authority
Conflict may occur when two or more managers claim authority for the same activities
which leads to conflict between the managers and workers.
 Task Interdependencies
When one member of a group or a group fails to finish a task that another member or group
depends on, causing the waiting worker or group to fall behind.
 Different Evaluation or Reward Systems
Conflict arises when a group is rewarded for achieving a goal, but another interdependent
group is rewarded for achieving a goal that conflicts with the first group.
 Scarce Resources
This arises when managers can come into conflict over the allocation of scare resources.
 Status Inconsistencies
Some individuals and groups have a higher organizational status than others, leading to
conflict with lower status groups.
Conflict Management Strategies

1. Functional Conflict Resolution

Management strategy wherein conflict is handled by compromise or collaboration between
parties.
2. Compromise
Each party is concerned about their goal accomplishment and is willing to engage in give-
and-take exchange to reach a reasonable solution.
3. Collaboration
Parties try to handle the conflict without making concessions by coming up with a new
way to resolve their differences that leaves them both better off.
4. Accommodation
Management strategy where in one party simply gives in to the other party.
5. Avoidance
Management strategy wherein two parties try to ignore the problem and do nothing to
resolve the disagreement.
6. Competition
Strategy wherein each party tries to maximize its own gain and has little interest in
understanding the other’s position.

Strategies Focused on Individuals

 Increasing awareness of the sources of conflict

 Increasing diversity awareness and skills
 Practicing job rotation
 Using permanent transfers or dismissals when necessary

Strategies Focused on the Whole Organization

 Changing an organization’s structure or culture

 Altering the source of conflict
Negotiation

Negotiation happen when parties to a conflict try to come up with a solution acceptable to
themselves by considering various alternative ways to allocate resources to each other

Third-party negotiator. This is an impartial individual with expertise in handling conflicts who
helps parties in conflict reach an acceptable solution
Mediators. Are the person who facilitates negotiations but no authority to impose a solution
Arbitrator. This person can impose what he thinks is a fair solution to a conflict that both parties
are obligated to abide by

Classification of Negotiation

1. Distributive Negotiation. In this negotiation, parties perceive that they have a “fixed pie”
of resources that they need to divide. They take a competitive adversarial stance and see
no need to interact in the future. They do not care if their interpersonal relationship is
damaged by their competitive negotiation
2. Integrative Bargaining. In this negotiation, parties perceive that they might be able to
increase the resource pie by trying to come up with a creative solution to the conflict. They
view the conflict as a win-win situation in which both parties can gain and handled through
collaboration or compromise

Strategies to Encourage Integrative Bargaining

 Emphasizing superordinate goals. These goals that both parties agree to regardless of the
source of their conflict
 Focusing on the problem, not the people
 Focusing on interests, not demands
 Creating new options for joint gain
 Focusing on what is fair
Organizational Politics

Organizational Politics.
The activities managers engage in to increase their power and to use power effectively to achieve
their goals or overcome resistance or opposition.

Political strategies. Specific tactics used to increase power and use it effectively to influence and
gain the support of other people while overcoming resistance

The Importance of Organizational Politics

Organizational Politics can be viewed negatively when managers act in self-interested ways for
their own benefit. This is also a positive force that can bring about needed change when political
activity allows a manager to gain support for needed changes that will advance the organization.

Political Strategies for Increasing Power

Political Strategies for Gaining and Maintaining Power

 Controlling Uncertainty
Reduce uncertainty for others in the firm
 Being Irreplaceable
Develop valuable special knowledge or skills
 Being in a Central Position
Have decision-making control over the firm’s crucial activities and resources
 Generating Resources
Hire skilled people or find financing when it is needed
 Building Alliances
Develop mutually beneficial relations with others inside and outside the organization

Political Strategies for Exercising Power

Political Strategies for Exercising Power

 Relying on Objective Information

Providing impartial information causes others to feel the manager’s course of action is
correct.
 Bringing in an Outside Expert
Using an expert’s opinion to lend credibility to manager’s proposal
 Controlling the Agenda
Influencing those issues included (and those dropped) from the decision process.
 Making Everyone a Winner
Making sure that everyone whose support is needed benefits personally from providing
that support.

Conclusion
In conclusion, management skills and functions are an important attribute of an organization that
can make or break it. As a future Civil Engineer, we must be ready to handle our environment
especially the organization's we work with. Identifying the conflicts, knowing politics and a good
negotiation will make our organization be ready for the future competencies and also our future
investors that will make our Organization be better and larger.

References:

McGraw, H.I. ( 2016) Managing Conflicts, Politics, and Negotiation

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