During your time at the university, a conflict may arise in your workplace. This page is intended to provide supervisors with resources to resolve conflicts effectively.The presence of conflict is not necessarily a negative thing. If conflict is effectively resolved, it can lead to personal and professional growth. Avoiding conflict is often the easiest way to deal with it. It does not, however, make it go away. Rather it pushes the conflict underground, only to have it resurface in a new form. By actively resolving conflict when it occurs, we can create a more positive work environment for everyone.
In its commitment to ensuring a positive work experience, the University of Oklahoma provides several resources helpful in understanding and resolving conflicts. Supervisors and employees must attempt internal, informal resolution of a conflict. However, if your own attempts at resolution are not successful, HR Employee Relations may be able to help.
If needed, the university provides a formal dispute resolution process. The policy and form can be found below.
Managers play a key role in establishing a safe and secure workplace by setting expectations about workplace behaviors and actively and promptly working to resolve conflict that occurs. Workplace conflict may occur when people’s ideas, decisions or actions relating directly to the job are in opposition, or when two people just don’t get along. Conflict in the workplace may be productive if it leads to positive change, but can also be stressful and unpleasant. Resolving disputes and clashes at work is important for supervisors and employees.
There are many causes or reasons for conflict in any work setting. Some of the primary causes are the following:
Avoiding conflict is often the easiest way to deal with it. It does not however make it go away but rather pushes it underground, only to have it resurface in a new form. By actively resolving conflict when it occurs, we can create a more positive work environment for everyone. Employees must attempt to resolve disputes internally, informally using the Staff Dispute Resolution Process as outlined in Section 3.21 of the Staff Handbook. Employee Relations is available to assist at any step in this process.
There are a number of ways that can be utilized to address workplace conflict.
It is generally believed that either collaboration or compromise are the most productive forms of addressing conflict because there is not a winner or loser but rather a working together for the best possible solution.
Arriving at a positive resolution of conflict is always the ultimate goal. In resolving conflict, it is important to make sure you do the following.
Giving feedback to employees doesn't have to be difficult. Positive feedback, when you tell people they've done well, should be easy. For example:
This is the kind of feedback that everyone likes; the kind that motivates people to perform well consistently. Here are some more practical strategies for improving feedback at work.
Coaching is based on mutual respect, strict confidentiality and trust. A coach believes that people are able to change the way they operate and achieve more if they are given the opportunity and are willing to do something about it.
Questioning is a fundamental skill of coaching. A coach asks questions to:
If you leave them feeling humiliated and resentful, they will be even more reluctant to change. You can't ignore the problem if something is obviously wrong, but there is a difference between criticism and constructive feedback.
Discuss specific behaviors instead of making character judgments. Talking about a "bad attitude" is unlikely to be helpful because the person won't know what they need to change. Telling someone they are incompetent or lazy is a personal attack on their character and will probably lead to an emotional response. Get more information about about coaching and giving feedback in workshops provided by HR Learning & Organizational Development.
The key to giving compliments is conveying your sincerity so that the recipient of the compliment is truly flattered and appreciative of the compliment. An insincere compliment does not convey the same message. If you are giving the compliment for your own personal gain, your lack of sincerity will result in the person receiving the compliment not really feeling touched by your words. To ensure that your compliment is received with the sincerity that you intend, try these tips.
Learning how to give feedback and criticism in a way that the person you are talking to will take it in and learn from it may be a leader’s greatest tool for building an effective team. These are the tools that the best of the best use to make their teams strong.
Consider the tips below the next time you offer a team member constructive criticism so they won't go running for cover or say, "No thank you." Instead they will see it as an opportunity to grow and your team will grow along with them.
Most people say they’re OK receiving constructive criticism. But few people really are. Criticism of any kind hurts, even if it’s done properly.
When someone reacts poorly to constructive criticism, they usually do one of the following.
The key for the person giving the constructive criticism is to be prepared with the following responses.
Sometimes, there’s nothing you can say to make the situation better. It may be time for a break. Suggest a follow-up meeting, providing each person a chance to reflect, and figure out how the constructive criticism will be handled.
Some situations may have you feeling anxious and finding the right words to say at that moment may not come easily. So, next time you are about to face a really difficult situation, try these steps:
You may find these guidelines useful when receiving negative responses.
Remember, feedback doesn't always have to be negative. Start by looking for occasions when you can give positive feedback and remember to plan carefully for the occasions when you have to give negative feedback – and make it constructive. Try some of these ideas and see what happens.
