Communication & Con ict Management

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 Communication

Communication is the process meant to cause a

change in the recipient‘s consciousness in a
manner intended by the sender.
How does it work?
 Types of communication

1. Nonverbal communication (touch, body language,

gestures, facial expression, eye-contact, meta-
language e.g. volume, rhythm, pace, stress)

2. Verbal communication

3. Wrtitten communication
Everyone’s prepared…
 Barriers to effective communication
- the categories

• language barriers

• physiological barriers

• physical barriers

• system barriers

• barriers related to attitude

 Language barriers

• Even when the parties are communicating in the same

language, the terminology used to compose the message
can be a serious barrier

• jargon, specialized language, abbreviations will not be

properly decoded if the recipient does not know them

• colloquialisms (especially on a regional scale) may

have a similar effect

• meta-language - accent, tempo, tone of voice, etc.

 Physiological barriers

• all kinds of speech and hearing impairment

 Physical barriers

• geographic distance

• multiple communication channels

• incorrect selection of communication channels

 System barriers

• they appear in organizational structures where the

information ow path is disturbed and the information
channels are not properly selected

• lack of understanding of the importance of effective

communication

• individuals do not understand their role in the

communication chain, not knowing what to expect and what
is expected of them and why
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 Barriers related to attitude

• behaviors and beliefs that prevent people from

communicating effectively

• may result from personnel con icts, poor management,

resistance to change or lack of commitment

• remember to be able to overcome such barriers at work and

behave in a professional manner and in accordance with
professional ethics
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 Barriers related to attitude

• jargon, too complicated vocabulary, unknown specialist terminology

• different styles of communication, “four ears” od communication

• emotional barriers, taboos

• lack of attention, lack of interest, lack of signi cance, distractors

• differences of views

• physical barriers to non-verbal communication, inability to observe body language

• language differences, unknown accent

• prejudices, stereotypes, jumping to conclusions

• cultural differences
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Communication
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Communication styles
 Communication styles
• We all communicate in different ways. And that can
cause problems.

• In the 2017 survey conducted by the Economist

Intelligence Unit, the most frequently cited cause of
poor communication at work was a clash of different
communication styles.

• In the words of the survey’s authors, ‘managers need

to tailor their communication styles to those around
them to be effective’.
 Aim of the class

We’ll look at di erent styles of communicating;

We’ll discover the style or styles that we prefer;

We’ll learn how to assess other people’s preferences;

And, most importantly, we’ll discover how to adapt our

own style to di erent situations.
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What’s your communication style?

Have a look at the questionnaire provided on the general

channel. Follow the instructions :)
Understanding your communication pro le
 Push and pull: Managing status
The rst pair of complementary behaviours express our relationship in a conversation.

We can model this relationship using the idea of status. Status is our position relative to each other –
and it’s brutally simple: by de nition, our status can only be higher or lower than that of the person we’re
communicating with. Think of status as being like a see-saw: if we raise our status, the other person’s
status automatically goes down. If we raise their status, our end of the see-saw automatically dips. We
can think of rapport – which we looked at in the previous chapter – as levelling status.

The shorthand for raising our own status is ‘pushing’. The core ‘push’ behaviour is to speak.
Examples of ‘pushing’, in increasing order of intensity, might include making a statement,
persuading, bargaining, criticizing, instructing, invoking rules, demanding, or using force.

Conversely, the shorthand for raising the other person’s status is ‘pulling’, and the core ‘pull’
behaviour is to listen. Other examples, in increasing order of intensity, might include asking a
question, exploring an idea, encouraging, praising, giving way, or obeying.

The behaviours of ‘pushing’ and ‘pulling’ are on a spectrum. Most conversations will include a mix of
both, because most conversations include a mix of speaking and listening. Most of us can do both, and
we can develop our skills in both. But most of us will tend to prefer one set of these behaviours over
the other: put simply, we tend to prefer either speaking or listening.
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Empathizing and systemizing
The second pair of complementary behaviours express how we prefer to
understand the world around us.

1. Empathizing is the drive to identify another person’s emotions and

thoughts, and to respond to them with appropriate behaviour. It arises out
of a natural desire to care for others, and an awareness of how others see
us. We empathize when we sense that someone’s emotions have shifted,
and we wonder why. Empathy helps us tune in to another person’s world,
and pattern-match to their mental models. It stops us offending, insulting
or injuring them. Empathizing starts from the understanding that ours
may not be the only way to look at the world, and that others’ mental
models – their thoughts, feelings and values – matter as much as ours.
Empathizing and systemizing
The second pair of complementary behaviours express how we prefer to understand the
world around us.

2. Systemizing is the drive to understand our environment by constructing systems. A

system is any set of elements that operates on inputs and delivers outputs, according to ‘if-
then’ rules. If it rains, the pond in the garden lls with water. If I ick the switch, then the
light will come on. If I add two to three using the rules of decimal addition, I get ve. If sea
water rises to a certain temperature, coral reefs will die. Systemizing seeks to understand
how things work, and in particular the rules that govern how they work. The great
advantage of systemizing is that it allows us to predict how a system will behave.
Systemizing gives us control over our environment.

Just as ‘pushing’ and ‘pulling’ are on a spectrum, so empathizing and systemizing are
complementary processes. We can all – most of us – both empathize and systemize. But we
tend to prefer one or the other, and that preference will affect our communication style.
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Four communication styles

We can combine these two spectra of behaviour – ‘push’/’pull’, empathize/systemize – to

create four broad styles of communication: Social, Analytical, Functional and
Expressive. (The acronym SAFE will help you remember them.) Most of us prefer one or
two of these styles over the others. Identifying your own preferred styles will help you
extend your skills into other styles – and become a more competent communicator.

A word of caution here. We’re talking here about style; we’re not discussing what kind of
person you are. Most of us can alter our communication style quite easily in certain
situations. For example, we’d behave quite differently at a funeral and at a birthday party
– just as we’d probably dress differently. Changing our behaviour in this way is what the
Economist Intelligence Unit report calls ‘tailoring’ our communication style. You may not
be able to change your personality; but you can choose to behave differently.
 Social: Connecting to others (‘pull’;
empathizing)

The Social style seeks to understand other people, so that we can improve our
relationships with them. We use the Social style to discover what people are
thinking and feeling. This style foregrounds listening over speaking, and asking
questions over making statements. When we make statements in this style, we
use language that expresses emotions openly and connects to other people.

The Social style is the style of the diplomat. When you display this style, people
will turn to you as the team player, the consensus-builder, the peacemaker.
Indeed, this style is con ict-averse and may not be able to deal with personal
criticism easily. And criticism might come from people working in other styles:
the Analytical style, for instance, may become irritated with Social’s ‘touchy-feely’
approach. Under pressure, the Social style might become upset and exasperated.
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 Analytical: Doing the research
(‘pull’; systemizing)

The Analytical style seeks to understand the environment better. We use this style to
understand how things work in the world. This style likes data, numbers and systems for
organizing them. It might become irritated with people who can’t support their opinions
with hard evidence. Like the Social style, Analytical foregrounds listening – or observing
– over speaking. Analytical will pick up the trends and underlying causes of events that
others might miss. When Analytical speaks, it uses speci c, unemotional language –
especially the language of measurement or de nition.

Analytical is the style of the researcher. People turn to Analytical for clear, dispassionate,
logical answers to hard questions. Like Social, Analytical tends to avoid con ict and may
therefore nd it hard to make a tough decision. Others might call this ‘analysis paralysis’.
When confronted with such criticism, Analytical may become terse and even rude.
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 Functional: Making it work (‘push’;
systemizing)

The Functional style seeks to get things done in the world. We use this style to
achieve practical results. Functional foregrounds speaking over listening. It
generates and explains processes: timelines, plans, and deliverables.

Functional is the style of the implementer. People turn to this style to make things
happen, on time and on budget. The Functional style covers all the details. It may
become irritated with the Social style because it’s more interested in processes than
people. It may ally itself with the Analytical style but become impatient with its
hesitation to act. Because it focuses on process and not people, other styles may
nd Functional cold, unresponsive or – worst of all – boring. The Functional style
can therefore lose people’s attention in presentations or meetings.
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 Expressive: Putting on a show (‘push’;
empathizing)

The Expressive style seeks to make an impression on other people. We use the Expressive style to
present, perform and inspire. This style creates the big picture, using images and stories.
Expressive foregrounds speaking over listening; it thinks imaginatively and laterally.

When we use the Expressive style, we’re seeking to engage our audience; indeed, we’ll tend to
see other people principally as an audience rather than a partner in a conversation. An
Expressive speaker is acutely aware of how its audience is thinking and feeling – especially about
the speaker themselves. The ultimate aim of the Expressive style is to change hearts and minds.

The Expressive style is the style of the visionary. It prefers big ideas to irritating details. It nds
its natural home on the podium – or in the pulpit. We call on the Expressive style to tell corporate
stories and challenge the status quo. The Expressive style may nd the Analytical style irritating
and the Functional style pedestrian. Indeed, the Expressive style may lack the necessary patience
to make an informed decision. It may ally itself with the Social style but hijack it for its own ends.

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Understanding others’ styles
Communication and con ict management
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Internal communication
 Internal communication
Internal communication is the communication
inside organisations, between employees.

It includes everything that gets said and shared

inside an organisation.

As a function, its role is to curate, enable and advise

on best practice for organisations to communicate
effectively, ef ciently and in an engaging way.
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 Internal communication

As a function, its role is to create, enable and

advise on best practice for organisations to
communicate effectively, ef ciently and in an
engaging way.
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 Internal communication
The main point that comes up when writing a de nition is that internal (or employee)
communication is:

1. Planned – ie. this is not a random or accidental process.

3. Systematic – ie. it is a process that applies some science and discipline.

4. About in uence – ie. employees can’t always be forced to do things: they have a choice
about what they do and how well they do it so they have to be persuaded.

5. More than ‘telling’ – ie. although awareness is an essential starting point for any
communications campaign, we are also concerned with affecting attitudes and
behaviours.

6. Multi-disciplinary – it is dif cult to avoid the fact that information alone is not a
strong driver of behaviour in the workplace. Communicators expect to work closely with
colleagues across their organisation to ensure that staff are trained, rewarded, motivated
and resourced to do the job being asked of them.
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 Internal communication
In some organisations there is a whole department for internal
communication.

In others, it is an extra work to the PA for the CEO.

As it can be seen in the de nition it is a complex endeavour which

makes it increasingly challenging for internal communicators to
elevate its role to the strategic function it can be.

It is also what contributes to different expectations from different

leadership teams, which make it hard to identify the right skills,
structure and outcomes needed for the function.
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 Internal communication
The skills needed to be successful in internal communication have adapted over the years, and in 2020
The Institute of Internal Communication updated its profession map to re ect the behaviours and skills
needed today:

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 Internal communication - eight golden rules

source: Fitzpatrick and Valskov, Internal Communications: A manual for practitioners.

 Internal communication - importance

The Institute of Internal Communication (IoIC) outlines ve

reasons why internal communication is important today:

• Economic climate

• Importance of delivering great customer experience

• More democratic/consultative

• New technology

• Frequent change

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 Internal communication - importance

Economic climate – lifelong job security is now a

rarity, and so the former social contract of
unquestioning loyalty (from the employee) for job
security (from the employer) has been broken. This
means organisations have to work harder on
relationships with their people.
 Internal communication - importance

Importance of delivering great customer experience

– organisations have realised that a disconnect can
quickly occur between the promises of promotional
activity and what is actually experienced by
customers if employees are not clear about what they
are supposed to be doing or completely behind it.
 Internal communication - importance

More democratic/consultative – organisations

have become less hierarchical and bureaucratic.
People do not just want to be told things – they
expect involvement and dialogue.
 Internal communication - importance

New technology – the ways in which

communication takes place, and the forms that
are now accepted and expected, cannot be
‘controlled’ in the same way as previous
methods could.
 Internal communication - importance

Frequent change – organisations have to keep

modifying how they operate to remain
competitive. It is more challenging to keep
employees motivated and moving in the right
direction in these circumstances.
Why internal communication matters?

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 Holding onto good people

• One of the biggest problems facing organisations today is nding good people
with the right skills. When they have been recruited, IC has a role in making
sure that they want to stick around and feel good about doing so.

• Things that make us stick around include the esteem of our peers, the chance
to do great work, being part of a community and being involved in
something that will make a difference.

• We can help nurture the sense of internal society in so many ways – by

organising the summer barbecue, helping recruit volunteers for a community
project or publicising the fundraising efforts of the obsessive cyclists in the
nance department.
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 Working harder and on the right things

What motivates people to make that extra contribution varies from workplace to
workplace. However, there are two major deciding factors – trust and purpose.

If you believe that your hard work always goes unnoticed or that your boss will
overlook you when it comes to bonus or promotion time you are simply going to
stop trying. The communicator has a role in ensuring that people feel that they
can depend on their employer to value their additional contributions.
 Helping people say the right things

If someone has a dreadful experience with your company, advertising will have
an uphill struggle to convince them that there is anything admirable about your
rm. However, knowing ‘someone who works there’ can overwhelmingly counter
a direct negative experience and any amount of advertising. Someone might read
in the paper that your company is disgraceful because of the products it sells, but
might ignore all the bad press because their neighbour or friend has had a
positive story to tell about their job with them.

Employees are potentially your biggest advocates and can help you win
regulatory approval, shape local attitudes to your planned expansion or
demonstrate your commitment to corporate social responsibility.
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 Supporting major change

As communicators, our interest is broadly in ensuring that people

who are facing change in the workplace:

• are aware that it is coming;

• understand the rationale, what it involves and how it will affect

them;

• are excited or at least not hostile to the change;

• feel able to do the things that are asked of them;

• have a sense of how things are developing and perhaps can see
the change working.
Communication
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Internal communication
What is the natural home for internal
communication in an organisation?

The answer is that it depends on a number of

factors. The main issue is understanding what
the purpose of internal communication in your
organisation is.

It belongs where it can ful l its mission.

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When should IC sit within HR?

HR is one of the main homes for employee

communication.

This is for a large number of reasons, not all of

them particularly strategic.
 There are strengths and questions
associated with the IC function within HR
 HR is a good home for the IC
function when:
• HR employee engagement is a central concern for the
organisation;

• HR is closely aligned with the day-to-day workings of the

organisation – rather than being a centralised department;

• building managers’ skills is central to the mission of HR;

• senior HR managers are open to feedback from the

organisation and do not see communication as a one-way
process.
 Should IC sit in external
communications or marketing?
• When IC is not owned directly by HR it is
most commonly found in the external
communications or marketing department.

• This makes a lot of sense when the

organisation is facing signi cant stakeholder
issues and especially in the age of social
media, when the organisation needs to speak
with a consistent voice.
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Why sitting in marketing or external
communications is a good idea
 Summary
• It is always worthwhile looking at your own organisation
and trying to understand the business logic for where
the communication function is housed. You may nd
that understanding the history of the decision gives you
a powerful insight into the psyche of your employer.

• It might also be logical to have dual reporting lines or a

foot in more than one camp. Perhaps there is sense in
reporting to the director of communications while also
being a member of the HR leadership team?

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Planning Internal
Communication
 Why do we need a plan?
To get communication to work you need to plan it.

Too often communication happens as an afterthought

or turns into a routine exercise, giving the illusion that
communication has taken place when it has not.

Information distributed top-down or despatched with

little thought of the intended audience is not
communication - it is noise.
 Why do we need a plan?
Effective communication happens when you:

• think through the value you want to add to

your organisation,

• target the people you should be addressing,

• work out how to get them on board and,

• consider how to follow up.

The essential questions of IC
planning
 Why communicate – setting your
overall business objective

The critical rst step in your planning is to ask:

‘Why do we want to communicate this and
what are we hoping to get out of it?’
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 Why communicate – setting your
overall business objective
The key questions you need to ask are:

• What is the business need underlying the communication?

• What are the broad goals?

• What do we want to see happening as a result?

• What speci c outcomes do we want to see? (ie what behaviours, actions or

attitudes will we see if it is successful? What will we see if it is unsuccessful?)

• What is the single main goal of this communication?

• What is its principal relevance to the organisation’s strategy?

• What are the three most important speci c actions/processes you want to see?
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 Who is it for?
A deep understanding of your audiences is one of the
essential attributes of the internal communicator.

Planning any programme is impossible without

reference to the people with whom you want to connect.

If we understand the audience, the volume of

information they are already getting and what they
would be interested in receiving, we can tailor our
communications accordingly.
 Who is it for?

This calls for expertise in segmentation.

Your segmentation might be simple – such as

looking at the different needs of departments or
professions, or more sophisticated - such as
dividing your audience by behaviour or
attitude.
 Audience analysis template

• What do they need to KNOW if they are to believe or feel the right attitude or hold a supporting opinion?

• What do they need to FEEL or believe in order to get them to do what we need of them?

• And nally, what is it that we want them to DO as a result of our communication?

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Approaches to segmentation
What is the communication?

‘What’ is not what you want to say – it is what

you want to engage people in, framed in the
context of the audience’s needs, and what you
want to achieve from the communication.
 ‘What’s in it for me?’ (WIIFM) and
‘Why should I care?’ (YSIC)
• How will this affect me?

• Is it going to hurt?

• Will I lose my job?

• Will I have to change the way I work?

• Is this going to make things easier?

• Will this take the challenges out of my job?

• What do I need to know?

• What is your hidden agenda in telling me this?

• Is this just another example of a bright idea from head of ce?

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When is the communication?
Good communication is frequently about timing,
especially when the message is dif cult or comes during a
busy period when attention may be focused elsewhere.

Time it too early and you risk not having enough

information, giving the feeling you are being evasive, ill-
informed and unreliable as the communicator.

Time it too late and you will be ghting an uphill struggle

against rumours, suspicion and cynicism. We always say
the person who tells it rst is usually the most credible.
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 Key questions about timing
• Is the timing of the communication impacted by other
events?

• Will it compete unnecessarily with other key messages?

• If you must wait (eg for nal decisions to be made or for

regulatory reasons) what early information can you give
out to prevent rumours?

• Remember: it is always better to communicate that you

cannot say anything or very little, than to say nothing at
all.
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How will you communicate?

Choosing the right channel is crucial.

IC people need to know which ones are

appropriate and when to use them.

There are channels that push, pull, talk, engage,

build commitment or provide intelligence.
Different communication channels
Thinking about your channels -
examples
 Communication channels
Different channels are received with different expectations
and we should understand them and know how to use them
to the bene t of the messages we want to deliver.

We need understand which channels are going to work best

for our message and protect the value of the channels from
inappropriate messages.

If people come to expect rubbish from the intranet they will

stop using it, if they stop thinking the CEO ever says
anything important they will delete his or her e-mails
unread…
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Channels matrix
Channels matrix
Channels matrix
Channels matrix
Channels matrix
Channels matrix
Communication and con ict management
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Source
 Internal con ict

• We may experience it when we have a

dif cult choice to make; when we are faced
with a moral dilemma; or when we are
tackling a tough personal problem such as
ending an addiction or ending a relationship.
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 Internal con ict

• Internal con ict occurs when part of you

disagrees with the other part of you. This
dissonance, or tension, can create strong
feelings and emotions such as guilt, self-
blame, shame, frustration and anger.

• We may feel like we are going crazy and that

we can’t make sense of the situation.
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 External con ict
• External con ict occurs when an individual (or
a group of individuals), believe that another
individual (or a group of individuals) is
preventing him or her from achieving his or her
needs or goals; preventing access to the
resources he or she requires to achieve his or her
needs or goals; or preventing him or her from
expressing his or her values or beliefs in a way
which he or she considers to be reasonable.
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 External con ict
• Con icts can exist at any level of an organisation and at any stage of
its development.

• Con ict between two employees may arise from a disagreement about
how to complete a particular task or a clash between their personal
values, goals or expectations.

• Within a work team, con icts can result from a change process,
revised working practices, a lack of role clarity or a lack of coherent
leadership.

• Within a project team, con ict may be due to differing priorities,

competition over scarce resources, unclear objectives or remote
working patterns.
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 Functional con ict
• This is constructive con ict.

• The parties are engaged in dialogue and they are focused

on achieving an outcome that is mutually acceptable.

• The parties seek win/win outcomes and neither party

wishes to cause harm to the other.

• It exists where the parties are willing to engage with one

another to generate enhanced levels of insight,
understanding and learning.
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 Functional con ict
• Functional con ict requires open and honest dialogue,
empathy, self-awareness and a willingness to change – to
transform ourselves and our relationships with others.

• This is the kind of con ict that promotes ow and gets

the parties into the ZOPA – the Zone of Possible
Agreement.

• Functional con ict may also be called healthy

disagreement, creative con ict, cooperative con ict or
cognitive con ict.
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 Dysfunctional con ict
• This is destructive con ict. It is harmful, stressful and
costly.

• Dysfunctional con ict generates little, if any, bene t

for the parties, their colleagues or the organisation as
a whole.

• Dysfunctional con ict may also be called affective

con ict, bullying, mobbing, intimidation, harassment,
oppression, discrimination, violence or confrontation.
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 Dysfunctional con ict
• This kind of con ict rarely ends well.

• If left unresolved, dysfunctional con icts will

have a signi cant impact on the psychological,
emotional and physiological wellbeing of
employees and managers.

• It can be insidious, subtle, hard to de ne and

hard to manage. It may be mistakenly written off
as ‘banter’ or ‘letting off steam’.
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 Con ict mode analysis
• In 1974, Kilmann and Thomas identi ed ve modes
for handling con ict that have become part of the
vernacular of con ict management. They help us to
understand how we and others react during con ict.

• The styles are de ned by how much our own needs

and goals matter to us versus how much the needs
and the goals of the other party matter to us.
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Con ict mode analysis
Avoid – ‘The turtle’ (withdrawing)
• Turtles withdraw into their shells to avoid con ict.

• They give up their personal goals and relationships.

• They stay away from the issues over which the

con ict is taking place and the people they are in
con ict with.

• Turtles believe it is easier to withdraw (physically

and psychologically) from a con ict rather than face
it.
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Compete – ‘The shark’ (forcing)
• Sharks try to overpower opponents by forcing them to accept their
solution to the con ict. Their goals are highly important to them and their
relationship is of minor importance.

• Sharks seek to achieve their own goals at all costs. They are not concerned
about the needs of other people. They do not care if other people like or
accept them.

• Sharks assume that one person winning and the other person losing
settles con icts. Sharks want to be the winner.

• Winning gives sharks a sense of pride and achievement.

• Losing gives them a sense of inadequacy and failure. They try to win by
attacking, overpowering, overwhelming and intimidating others.
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 ‘The Accommodate – ‘The teddy
bear’ (smoothing)
• To teddy bears the relationship is of great importance while their own
goals are of little importance.

• Teddy bears want to be accepted and liked by other people.

• They think that con ict should be avoided in favour of harmony and
believe that if the con ict continues, someone will get hurt and that
would ruin the relationship.

• Teddy bears give up their needs and goals to preserve the relationship.

• Teddy bears say: ‘I’ll give up what I want and let you have what you
want in order for us to get along.’ Teddy bears try to smooth over the
con ict and avoid causing harm.
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 Compromise – ‘The fox’ (middle
ground)
• Foxes are moderately concerned with their own goals and
about the relationship with other people. Foxes seek
compromise.

• They give up a part of their goals and persuade the other

person in con ict to give up part of his or her goals.

• Foxes seek a solution to con ict where both sides gain

something – the middle ground between two positions.

• They are willing to sacri ce part of their goals and

relationships in order to nd agreement for the common good.
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 Collaborate – ‘The owl’ (building
consensus)
• Owls highly value their own goals and relationships.

• They view con icts as problems to be solved and seek a solution that
achieves both their own goals and the goals of the other person.

• Owls see con ict as an opportunity for improving relationships by

reducing tension between two people. They try to begin a discussion
that identi es the con ict as a problem to be solved. By seeking
solutions that satisfy both themselves and the other person, owls
maintain the relationship.

• Owls are not satis ed until a solution is found that achieves their own
goals and the other person’s goals and until the tensions and negative
feelings have been fully resolved.
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 Con ict mode analysis

• use the link to go through your own con ict

mode analysis:

https://psycho-tests.com/test/con ict-mode
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Which relationships are most prone to con ict?

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What issues spark con ict?

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How do people behave in con ict?

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Behaviour experienced by employees in con ict,
according to who the con ict was with (%)

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The impact of con ict

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Responding to con ict

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Response to con ict, according to who
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the con ict was with (%)

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Communication and con ict management
mgr inż. Patrycja Paleń-Tondel
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Source
 The lifecycle of a con ict

Every con ict has a de nite lifecycle and most

track the same course.

Each stage of the con ict presents an

opportunity for resolution but also a risk of
escalation if it is not dealt with appropriately.
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Five stages of a con ict

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The ve types of team con ict
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Stage 1 The pre-con ict stage

This stage relates predominantly to the

underlying or root causes of con ict.

There are typical factors that act as antecedents

to the con ict.
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Typical antecedents to the con ict
• change

• role of leadership

• functional, systemic and structural factors

• cultural and political factors

• factors relating to the distribution of resources

or rewards

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Stage 2 The early con ict stage
This leads to a sense of frustration and anxiety for
the parties and the early warning signs may include:

•reduced communication;

•hostility and aggression;

•inappropriate behaviours;

•attempts to isolate one another.

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Stage 2 The early con ict stage
This stage develops as the parties experience
the initial stages of the con ict – often referred
to as ‘ ght, ight, freeze or fall’.

The parties’ positions may harden and

communication become limited and disrupted.

Alliances and cliques begin to form and the

parties blame each other for the problem.
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Stage 2 The early con ict stage

As parties enter the ‘Zone of Negative Con ict’,

divergence between one or more of their needs,
goals or expectations begin to emerge.

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Stage 2 The early con ict stage

At this stage, the parties frequently lose sight of

common ground and focus on the factors that
have driven them apart.

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Stage 2 The early con ict stage
Resolving differences at this early stage and
encouraging the parties to ‘let off steam’, step back
and talk the issues through can be very valuable.

By engaging the parties in a process of open and

honest dialogue, positions can be softened,
behaviours changed, attitudes realigned and
dialogue developed.
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Stage 2 The early con ict stage
If that opportunity is missed the con ict escalates.

The parties see their efforts to seek a resolution as

fruitless and start to doubt that a solution can be found
and question the ‘reasonableness’ of the other party.

Rational communication is replaced with emotional

confrontation, the parties may become more forceful in
pushing their positions. All focus is now on winning.
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 Stage 2 The early con ict stage
At this stage, the protagonists may try to forge
alliances with people they believe will support
and strengthen their position.

In exibility and stubbornness become the daily

routine of the con ict and tactics may appear
confused, irrational and increasingly
aggressive.
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 Stage 2 The early con ict stage
At this stage, the protagonists may try to forge
alliances with people they believe will support
and strengthen their position.

In exibility and stubbornness become the daily

routine of the con ict and tactics may appear
confused, irrational and increasingly
aggressive.
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Stage 3 The mid-con ict stage

This stage often sees the parties engaging in

coercive or destructive tactics to ‘win’ the
con ict (I win/you lose) at all cost.

Often this is a very challenging period for

managers and HR, and is typi ed by increased
grievances, allegations and absence, and stress
for all parties.
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 The blame game
Both parties are convinced they are in the right and that the
threat to their values, needs, goals or expectations is real and
substantial.

The language of blame becomes the language of the con ict:

• ‘You should back down… you are wrong.’

• ‘They always behave like this and should be punished.’

• ‘If it wasn’t for them…’

• ‘You’re the manager; you do something about them…’

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 The blame game
This language is aimed at presenting the other party
as the wrongdoer and in uencing decision makers
to take sides.

It can become increasingly threatening, sometimes

even aggressive and violent.

The parties are being driven by their emotional

responses and may experience symptoms of stress
and anxiety.
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 The blame game

At this stage, the parties may seek external

assistance, sometimes as a tactic to strengthen
their position, sometimes as a genuine cry for
help and support.

Rising sickness levels are one clear symptom of

con ict at this stage.
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 Stage 4 The late con ict stage –
explode or implode
This stage may see the con ict erupt and become
all-consuming.

Alternatively, the con ict could slowly ‘eat away’

to such a great extent that a previously well-
performing team begins to fail and implode.

Either way, the cost of the con ict can be

signi cant and extensive.
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 Stage 4 The late con ict stage –
explode or implode
• In the workplace the parties are at war.

• The smallest spark could result in an all-out offensive and the

normal rules of engagement have been tossed in the bin.

• The parties engage in often brutal and increasingly desperate

attacks and seek to in ict as much damage on the other as possible.

• They will seek to harm their opponent’s reputation, integrity,

power base and alliances.

• They may lash out blindly and may even seek to in ict damage
upon other staff, managers, representatives, mediators or
negotiators.
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 Stage 4 The late con ict stage –
explode or implode

This could be a good time to involve a

mediator.

Trained internal mediators can provide a

valuable resource or you may wish to access an
external mediator.
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Stage 5 The post-con ict stage – the
aftermath
When the con ict is over and it’s time to move on and heal the
hurts. It is time for everyone who was involved in the con ict to:

• Sit down and re ect on what they have learnt.

• Talk and listen.

• Agree a mutual way forward.

• Forgive each other for the mistakes they have made.

The biggest mistake that organizations make is just assuming all

will be well and people can move on after a big con ict.
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Stage 5 The post-con ict stage – the
aftermath

The aftermath of a dif cult con ict, when

handled well is one of the most fertile
opportunities to re-establish team boundaries,
agree new behaviours and frame how con icts
will be managed in the future.
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Measuring the costs of con ict
There are signi cant costs of con ict to organizations. These may be visible or hidden costs.

Unresolved con ict can have a direct impact on 10 areas of the modern organization:

1  Time spent.

2  Absence levels (stress and wellbeing).

3  Employee attrition (turnover) levels.

4  Employee engagement levels and reduced motivation at work.

5  Productivity levels.

6  Reputational damage.

7  Impact on customer experience.

8  Legal costs.

9  Settlement agreements, compensation awards or costs.

10  Overall nancial impact.

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 Visible costs
• Time spent – how much time was spent by each person involved.

• Opportunity costs – what could they have been doing instead of dealing with the con ict.

• Sickness absence.

• Turnover – costs of losing good staff.

• Cover and hiring costs – costs of covering posts or hiring new staff.

• Legal fees – the inevitable legal bills that follow a con ict.

• Compensation awards – these are applied by the tribunal. Where there is proven
discrimination, the awards at an employment tribunal are uncapped.

• Delays on project delivery and associated nes and litigation.

• Regulator nes and costs – costs applied in cases of con ict that result in regulatory or
compliance issues.
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 Hidden costs
• Settlement agreements (out of court payments) –
these are often con dential but can run into tens if
not hundreds of thousands of pounds.

• Reduced productivity.

• Impact on employee engagement/staff satisfaction.

• Impact on customer experience – measured by

increased volumes of complaints and reductions in
repeat business.
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 Intangible costs

• Increased stress, anxiety, depression and other issues

relating to mental health.

• Reduced morale

• Absenteeism

• Insomnia

• Damage to branding and reputation

• Damage to employee brand

 Con ict analysis
The con ict analysis includes ve distinct data
gathering methods:

• Desktop review.

• Surveys.

• In-depth interviews.

• Focus groups.
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 Desktop review

• This is an opportunity to draw together

historical data gathered from existing sources
and processes within your organization.

• The data may be collected from the past 12,

24 or 36 months.
 Desktop review
It is important to prepare a series of questions ready to answer as part of your desktop
analysis:

• Is the data current and accurate? In other words, can you trust it?

• What does this data tell us about con ict and the management of con ict in our
organization?

• How does the data triangulate with other data, ie does it compare with or match any
other data that you have gathered?

• Are there any trends or patterns that are discernible?

• What conclusions can we begin to draw from the data?

• Are there any gaps in the data?

• What research is needed as part of the con ict analysis to ll the gaps?
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 Surveys
• A survey can be a useful way of gathering data from a selection of
your employees.

• There are no hard and fast rules on how the survey should be set
up.

• However, it needs to generate data that will stand up to scrutiny

and from that point of view:

• It is generally better that the respondents can supply their

responses anonymously.

• One must remember to plan the survey carefully and include

various types of questions.
 In-depth interviews
In-depth interviews tend to last for about an hour and can be
carried out face-to-face, by phone or via a video conference.

Allow the interview to ow naturally and avoid making it

sound scripted.

For each question, ask the interviewee to provide supporting

evidence or as much detail as possible.

It is advisable to check with the interviewee if they are happy

for you to record the interview so that you can refer to it later.
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 Focus groups

Focus groups bring people together to discuss a

particular topic or issue.

Used as part of a con ict analysis, focus groups

are a highly effective way of getting people
talking about con ict and generating valuable
qualitative data.
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 Focus groups
Invite a wide cross-section of stakeholders to attend the
focus groups.

Such multidisciplinary focus groups are an effective way

of generating debate and therefore yield more valuable
data for use as part of the con ict analysis.

By conducting a focus group, you are also sending a

powerful message to your stakeholders about your
commitment to listening to them and valuing their
views and experiences.
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 Focus groups

Focus groups tend to last for two to three hours (depending on

size) and are split into roughly four parts:

1. Welcome, introductions and objectives (10 minutes).

2. Con ict: context and analysis (60–90 minutes).

3. Testing potential con ict management solutions (40–60 minutes)

4. Wrap up, next steps and close (10 minutes).

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