Managing Conflict, Politics, and Negotiation

Managing
Conflict,
Politics,
and Negotiation
Chapter 17
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Learning Objectives
1. Explain why conflict arises, and identify the
types and sources of conflict in
organizations.
2. Describe conflict management strategies
that managers can use to resolve conflict
effectively.
3. Understand the nature of negotiation and
why integrative bargaining is more effective
than distributive negotiation.
17-2
Learning Objectives
4. Describe ways in which managers can

promote integrative bargaining in
organizations
5. Explain why managers need to be attuned to
organizational politics, and describe the
political strategies that managers can use to
become politically skilled.
17-3
Organizational Conflict
 Organizational Conflict
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.
17-4
Organizational Conflict
 Conflict is an inevitable part of organizational life
because the goals of different stakeholders such
as managers and workers are often
incompatible.
 Organizational conflict also can exist between
departments and divisions that compete for
resources or even between managers who may
be competing for promotion to the next level in
the organizational hierarchy.
17-5
The Effect of Conflict on
Organizational Performance
17-6
Types of Conflict
17-7
Types of Conflict
 Interpersonal Conflict
Conflict between individuals due to differences in
their goals or values.
 Intragroup Conflict
Conflict within a group, team or department
17-8
Types of Conflict
 Intergroup Conflict
Conflict between two or more teams, groups or
departments.
Managers play a key role in resolution of this
conflict
 Interorganizational Conflict
Conflict that arises across organizations.
17-9
Sources of Conflict
17-10
Sources of Conflict
 Different Goals and Time Horizons

Different groups have differing goals and time
horizons.
 Overlapping Authority
Two or more managers claim authority for the
same activities which leads to conflict.
17-11
Sources of Conflict
 Task Interdependencies
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.
17-12
Sources of Conflict
 Different Evaluation or Reward Systems

A group is rewarded for achieving a goal, but
another interdependent group is rewarded for
achieving a goal that conflicts with the first group.
17-13
Sources of Conflict
 Scarce Resources
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.
17-14
Conflict Management Strategies
Functional Conflict
Resolution
Handling conflict by
compromise or
collaboration
between parties.
17-15
 Compromise
each party is concerned about not only their goal
accomplishment but also the goal
accomplishment of the other party and is willing
to engage in a give-and-take exchange to reach a
reasonable solution.
17-16
 Collaboration
both parties try to satisfy their goals by coming
up with an approach that leaves them both better
off and does not require concessions on issues
that are important to either party.
17-17
 Accommodation
An ineffective conflict-handling approach in which
one party, typically with weaker power, gives in to
the demands of the other, typically more
powerful, party.
17-18
 Avoidance
An ineffective conflict handling approach in which
the parties try to ignore the problem and do
nothing to resolve their differences.
17-19
 Competition
An ineffective conflict handling approach in which
each party tries to maximize its own gain and has
little interest in understanding the other party’s
position and arriving at a solution that will allow
both parties to achieve their goals.
17-20
Strategies Focused on Individuals
Increasing awareness of the sources of conflict
Increasing diversity awareness and skills
Practicing job rotation or temporary assignments
Using permanent transfers or dismissals when necessary
17-21
Strategies Focused on the
Whole Organization
Changing an
organization’s
structure or culture
Altering the source
of conflict
17-22
Negotiation
 Negotiation
method of conflict resolution in which the parties
consider various alternative ways to allocate
resources to come up with a solution acceptable
to all of them.
17-23
Negotiation
 Third-party negotiator
An impartial individual with expertise in handling
conflicts and negotiations who helps parties in
conflict reach an acceptable solution.
17-24
Third-party Negotiators
 Mediators
facilitates negotiations but no authority to
impose a solution
 Arbitrator
can impose what he thinks is a fair solution to a
conflict that both parties are obligated to abide
by
17-25
Example – NC Association of
Family Mediators
 The
North Carolina Association of Professional Fa
mily Mediators
("NCAPFM") is the state-wide professional
organization for family mediators.
 Most members have private practices for
providing mediation services to the public.
17-26
Distributive Negotiation
 Distributive negotiation
Adversarial negotiation in which the parties in
conflict compete to win the most resources while
conceding as little as possible.
17-27
Distributive Negotiation
 Distributive negotiation
Parties perceive that they have a “fixed pie” of
resources that they need to divide
Take a competitive adversarial stance
See no need to interact in the future
Do not care if their interpersonal relationship is
damaged by their competitive negotiation
17-28
Integrative Bargaining
 Integrative bargaining
Cooperative negotiation in which the parties in
conflict work together to achieve a resolution
that is good for them both.
17-29
 Integrative bargaining
Parties perceive that they might be able to
increase the resource pie by trying to come up
with a creative solution to the conflict
View the conflict as a win-win situation in which
both parties can gain
Handled through collaboration or compromise
17-30
Negotiation Strategies for Integrative
Bargaining
17-31
Strategies to Encourage
 Superordinate goals
goals that both parties agree to regardless of the
source of their conflict
17-32
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.
17-33
 Political strategies
Tactics that managers use to increase their power
and to use power effectively to influence and gain
the support of other people while overcoming
resistance or opposition.
17-34
The Importance of
 Politics
Can be viewed negatively when managers act in
self-interested ways for their own benefit.
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.
17-35
Political Strategies for
Increasing Power
17-36
Political Strategies for Gaining and
Maintaining Power
Strategies
Controlling Uncertainty Reduce uncertainty for others in the firm
Making Oneself Develop valuable special knowledge or

Irreplaceable expertise
Being in a Central Have decision-making control over the

Position 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
17-37
Political Strategies for
Exercising Power
17-38
Strategies for Exercising Power
Strategies
Relying on Objective Providing objective information causes
Information others to feel the manager’s course of
action is correct.
Bringing in an Outside Using an expert’s opinion to lend

Expert credibility to manager’s proposal
Controlling the Agenda Influencing which alternatives are

considered or even whether a decision is
made
Making Everyone a Making sure that everyone whose

Winner support is needed benefits personally
from providing that support.
17-39
Video: CH2M Hill
 How does CH2M Hill deal with cultural

conflict in the global marketplace?
 What conflict strategy is most often used?
17-40

Managing Conflict, Politics, and Negotiation

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Managing

4. Describe ways in which managers can

 Different Goals and Time Horizons

 Different Evaluation or Reward Systems

Increasing awareness of the sources of conflict

Increasing diversity awareness and skills

Practicing job rotation or temporary assignments

Using permanent transfers or dismissals when necessary

Making Oneself Develop valuable special knowledge or

Being in a Central Have decision-making control over the

Generating Resources Hire skilled people or find financing when

Building Alliances Develop mutually beneficial relations

Bringing in an Outside Using an expert’s opinion to lend

Controlling the Agenda Influencing which alternatives are

Making Everyone a Making sure that everyone whose

 How does CH2M Hill deal with cultural

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