Conflict Resolution Strategies

This assignment delves into the topic of conflict resolution within a specific workplace. The analysis centers around the role of a mediator in addressing conflicts arising between employees and supervisors, as well as between management and supervisors. It emphasizes the importance of effective communication, understanding diverse perspectives, and developing strategies that benefit all parties involved.

Running head: NEGOTIATION AND CONFLICT RESOLUTION
Negotiation and Conflict Resolution
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

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Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................2
Conflicts in the given scenario........................................................................................................2
Leadership Conflict.....................................................................................................................3
Interdependency Based Conflict..................................................................................................3
Inequality in workload distribution.............................................................................................4
Favoritism....................................................................................................................................4
Conflict of interest and trust issues..............................................................................................5
Steps for resolving the conflicts......................................................................................................5
a) Meeting with the conflicting parties together..........................................................................5
b) Individually interacting with each employee participating in the interaction.........................6
c) Establishing of a common goal...............................................................................................6
d) Discussion of points of disagreement and arriving at a solution.............................................7
e) Removal of barriers to common goals.....................................................................................7
f) Broadcasting of praise impartially...........................................................................................8
g) Committing to the advised solutions.......................................................................................8
Conclusion.......................................................................................................................................8
References......................................................................................................................................10

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Introduction
The workplace, in the contemporary global scenario, id of immense importance in the life
of people in general as a significant share of their everyday life is spent in these places and these
places not only contribute to the professional aspect of an individual’s life but also to the overall
well being of that individual. Therefore, it is of considerable importance for any individual to
work in a healthy environment.
However, in any workplace, issues arise time and again between the different participants
and interest groups which are the constituents of the workplace (De Wit, Greer and Jehn). These
conflicts, most of the times, arise due to lack of communication and understanding between the
different working groups, ego clashes between different levels in the workplace and the
inappropriate distribution of power among different people working in the same place.
The assignment tries to take into account the different aspects of workplace conflicts with
reference to a given workplace situation. The assignment also takes into account the different
strategies, which can be taken to resolve these conflicts and which can help in maximizing the
welfare of all the groups or individuals involved in these conflicts, effectively (Cahn and
Abigail).
Conflicts in the given scenario
In the given scenario, the primary concern is the emergence of a toxic environment in the
concerned workplace, as has been complained by the workers in the concerned company. These
issues came under observation after an in-house review was conducted. Broadly, the issues

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reported were that of low morale, low productivity, high favoritism and differentiation among
the workers, high level of turnover and also a lack of team spirit and faith among the different
levels present in the company (Choi). The primary issues are classified and highlighted as
follows:
Leadership Conflict
This type of conflict arises in the workplace when there arises conflict between the
different leaders present in the workplace. As the employees work under different leaders,
managing different aspects of the operations, if there arise difference between the working styles
and mentalities of the different leaders and then it creates huge level of confusion, group
mentality and de-motivation among the workers (Avruch).
In the current scenario, there are conflicts of this nature arising between the supervisor
under whom the employees are directly working and the person to whom the supervisor reports.
According to the workers, the difference in opinions, working styles and expectations of these
two people often led to open clashes, which made the working environment bitter. The problems
were not solved even after a new person joined as the boss. The conflict being open and known
to all has also led to group division among the employees, which hampers the overall team
mentality in the workplace (Roche, Teague and Colvin).
Interdependency Based Conflict
In any workplace, the individual contribution as well as the group effort of the employees
as a whole matters for the welfare of the company as there are many works which cannot be done
individually and for which the employees depend on each others’ efficiency and commitment.

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In the concerned company there are also issues regarding the commitment of the
supervisor. The workers complained about the frequent late coming of the person and the lack of
diligence and dedication of the same, in providing required guidance and support to the workers
as and when needed. This in turn has created unfavorable environment in the office as the
emergency issue, which arises in the office. The absence of the supervisor has also led to greater
turnover among the employees, as they did not get adequate training and mentoring from the
supervisor, which left them felling less motivated and less willing to work in the concerned
company (Moore).
Inequality in workload distribution
In any workplace, proper allocation of work among the employees is required as
skewness in distribution of workload leads to dissatisfaction and conflicts among the employees.
Due to high turnover and de-motivated environment, many experienced and trained workers
have been quitting and due to lack of adequate training of the new recruits, most of the work
burdens are falling on the few experienced workers. This in turn is affecting their work life as
well as increasing their stress level and as the employees have to work over time (Barsky).
Favoritism
Favoritism in work place is one of the primary reasons behind most of the conflicts in the
work place. It leads to demoralization of the less favored employees and often leads to low
motivation among the more capable workers, which in turn leads to decrease in the overall
efficiency and productivity of the firms.
In the given scenario, in the concerned company, there are accusations regarding the
presence of favoritism in the behavior of the supervisor. As the review suggests, the supervisor

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tends to favor new recruit over other according to a change in his personal priorities, which in
turn is contributing to the conflict and toxic environment of the company.
Conflict of interest and trust issues
In any workplace, conflicts may frequently arise between the different working units and
hierarchies due to the presence of difference in interests and incentives among these groups. In
this context, the current company is also experiencing the same type of situation as there are
clashes between the employees and the supervisor and also between the supervisor and the
higher management. The supervisor has also complained about the issues of lack of support from
the higher problems, especially in the cases of cropping up of issues, where the management to
deal with the issues all by himself left the supervisor alone.
Steps for resolving the conflicts
Given the situation of conflicts in the current workplace scenario, it can be asserted that
much of these conflicts are arising due to lack of understanding and coordination among the
different employees in the company. Avoiding the issues will not solve the problem and may
lead to increase in the intensity of the problem. However, much of which is expected to get
solved if proper mediation is done, specifically by any external mediator, to solve these conflicts
among the employees of the company (Li, Zhu and Gerard).
There may be several steps, which can be taken by the external negotiator, to solve the
conflicts arising in the workplace. The important ones are as follows:

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a) Meeting with the conflicting parties together
The nature of the workplace conflicting, arising in the concerned company being highly
due to misunderstanding and lack of communication, it is important for a direct interactive forum
for the conflicting parties. This is because much of the tensions can be released if these
conflicting personnel openly discuss their issues with each other, stating where the opponent is
right and wrong, in the presence of the negotiator. However, it is of importance for the negotiator
to be always present and actively monitoring the process of open interaction. The negotiator
needs to intervene in case of any employee attacks any other employee on grounds other than
those of the relevant workplace conflict, such that no unfavorable situation arises during the
process of open interaction among the conflicting parties (Fisher).
b) Individually interacting with each employee participating in the interaction
Much of the workplace conflict arises in the companies due to the feeling of the presence
of favoritism and partiality for different individuals. Therefore, when the negotiator to facilitate
easy and free conversations and exchange of opinions among the employees establishes the
discussion forum, it is to be kept in mind by the negotiator that each of the employees should feel
equally important for the process (Cahn). A conflict can be easily solved if the opinions of all the
members are given equal importance. Therefore, it may be an effective conflict resolution
strategy to talk to each of the individuals participating in the forum individually, in the forum
itself and to observe what side they take.
c) Establishing of a common goal
For resolving any kind of conflict in the workplace, it is important to fix a common goal
for the conflicting parties and to make them realize that reaching the common goal will be
beneficial for them. This may help in creating an understanding and tolerant environment among

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the conflicting parties and may thus help in making the resolution of conflicting issues among
them smoother. It is also important for the employees to commit to the objective of resolution of
the conflict and reaching to a mutually agrees set of solutions (Žikić, Marinović and
Trandafilović).
For this purpose, several common goals can be sited in front of the employees, by the
negotiator, before starting the discussion. These goals may include safeguarding the reputation
and goodwill of the company itself, which in turn benefits the firms in terms of revenue and
profitability and also the employees of the company.
d) Discussion of points of disagreement and arriving at a solution
The most crucial part of any conflict resolution and negotiation process is the discussion
of the different issues in which disagreements arise in the workplace. In the given scenario, there
are three conflicting parties in the concerned conflict, which includes the workers, the supervisor
and the higher management. The negotiator thus needs to zero down on the issues of conflict
between the employees and the supervisor and between the supervisor and the higher
management (Dyer and Dyer).
There may arise situations of tensions during this process as every individual is expected
to have his or her share of opinions and interest in the workplace and the interest of one of the
individuals may be conflicting to interest of the other parties. In this situation, it is important for
the negotiator to constantly assert on the fact that the employees need to reach to a common
mutually agreed solution for their own benefit (Kanske).

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e) Removal of barriers to common goals
The discussion regarding the problems and conflicts may result in identifying the actual
barriers, which are causing the differences and miscommunications in the concerned case. Here,
as the main problem of the workers is the way in which their supervisor operates, this can be
treated as one of the primary barriers. Another barrier can be the lack of proper communication
channels between the supervisor and the management. These barriers can be removed by proper
negotiations between the concerned parties where each of them make some compromises and
adjustments such that the interests of all the parties are accommodated as far as possible, which
can in turn lead to improvement of the concerned workplace (Nishizaki and Sakawa).
f) Broadcasting of praise impartially
One of the most effective factors, which encourage the employees to work or participate
in any activity, is motivation. If the employees are made to feel that their capabilities are trusted
on and they are valuable for the organization, then their performances increase to a considerable
extent automatically. Therefore, it can be an effective strategy on part of the mediator, to praise
the employees and make them feel that the mediator has trust on their conflict resolving
capabilities. This should, however, be done impartially such that no unfavorable situation arises
in the procedure of negotiation and the employees do not feel that the negotiator is inclined to
any particular party (Halperin).
g) Committing to the advised solutions
Once the mutual interaction among the workers is done and the set of solutions is being
decided upon, it is important for the negotiator to make the different conflicting parties to
commit to work towards the implementation and appropriation of the set of solutions on which
the parties have mutually agreed (Kerr).

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Conclusion
Handling workplace conflicts can be tricky at times because the mediator needs to deal
with the objectives, perceptions and problems of different conflicting groups working under the
same roof, at the same time. However, as discussed above maintaining transparency can help in
solving the problems easily, especially in the context of the current situation of the concerned
workplace. In the given situation, it can be seen that much of the complains and conflicts are
against the supervisor as his way of working clashes with those of the workers working under
him. The supervisor also has clashes with the higher management, which according to him, is
attributed to the lack of support he gets from the higher managements during the times of
emergency. The mediator can handle all of these accusations by sitting with all the conflicting
parties together, making them listen to the other parties’ point of view and talking clearly about
their own, discussing the individual problems and expectations and then working on the
strategies, which can be beneficial for all the conflicting parties.

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References
Avruch, Kevin. Context and pretext in conflict resolution: Culture, identity, power, and practice.
Routledge, 2015.
Barsky, Allan. Conflict Resolution for the Helping Professions: Negotiation, Mediation,
Advocacy, Facilitation, and Restorative Justice. Oxford University Press, 2016.
Cahn, Dudley D., and Ruth Anna Abigail. Managing conflict through communication. Pearson,
2014.
Cahn, Dudley D., ed. Intimates in conflict: A communication perspective. Routledge, 2013.
Choi, Younyoung. "The influence of conflict management culture on job satisfaction." Social
Behavior and Personality: an international journal 41.4 (2013): 687-692.
De Wit, Frank RC, Lindred L. Greer, and Karen A. Jehn. "The paradox of intragroup conflict: a
meta-analysis." (2012): 360.
Dyer, William G., and Jeffrey H. Dyer. Team building: Proven strategies for improving team
performance. John Wiley & Sons, 2013.

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Fisher, Ronald J. "Third party consultation: A method for the study and resolution of
conflict." Ronald J. Fisher: A North American Pioneer in Interactive Conflict Resolution.
Springer International Publishing, 2016. 37-71.
Halperin, Eran. "Emotion, emotion regulation, and conflict resolution." Emotion Review 6.1
(2014): 68-76.
Kanske, Philipp. "On the influence of emotion on conflict processing." Frontiers in Integrative
Neuroscience 6 (2012).
Kerr, Mary Margaret. "Conflict resolution." (2012).
Li, Ya, Zhichang Zhu, and Catherine M. Gerard. "Learning from conflict resolution: An
opportunity to systems thinking." Systems Research and Behavioral Science 29.2 (2012): 209-
220.
Moore, Christopher W. The mediation process: Practical strategies for resolving conflict. John
Wiley & Sons, 2014.
Nishizaki, Ichiro, and Masatoshi Sakawa. Fuzzy and multiobjective games for conflict resolution.
Vol. 64. Physica, 2013.
Roche, William K., Paul Teague, and Alexander JS Colvin, eds. The Oxford handbook of conflict
management in organizations. Oxford University Press, 2014.
Žikić, Srđan, Aneta Marinović, and Igor Trandafilović. "PROMOTION OF CONFLICT
MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES IN TERMS OF MODERN BUSINESS." Megatrend
Review 9.1 (2012).

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