
“Set expectations early, beginning with the job interview and again during the first days of employment.” 3. “If people don’t understand what the organization, their manager, or their teammates expect, confusion and conflict can result,” Mitchell added. Knowing what is expected of them can help employees feel more comfortable, thus alleviating conflict-causing tension. Consistently applying this principle changed the communication habits within my company, making it possible for everyone to voice their opinion.” “I established a principle where was not acceptable. “I once worked with a company where people would often interrupt ,” she said. Miki Feldman-Simon, founder of IAmBackatWork, made it a point to have set expectations at her company from the start. Anything you or your colleagues need from each other should be clearly defined and expressed. Managing expectations – both in terms of what you expect from others and what they expect of you – is one of the most important things a team can do to facilitate better communication. “Get good information by varying the types of questions you ask, such as open-ended questions, close-ended questions, fact-based questions or opinion-based questions,” Gamlem said. Similarly, in their book, The Essential Workplace Conflict Handbook (Career Press, 2015), authors Cornelia Gamlem and Barbara Mitchell said getting to the source of a problem involves honest conversations and a little detective work. It’s important to address the issue immediately and transparently.Įrin Wortham, director of talent at Headspring and former people engagement manager at Insights Learning and Development, agreed that fast resolution retains a sense of harmony in the workplace and advised leaders to encourage open dialogue during these discussions. “Not addressing the conflict until a later time allows resentments to simmer,” Nick Kamboj, CEO of Aston & James LLC told Business News Daily. Instead of ignoring or avoiding conflict, accept it and work towards addressing it immediately. When a conflict arises among your team members, action should be taken quickly to resolve it. Here are five ways to resolve conflict – and improve colleague relationships – through better communication.

How to resolve workplace conflict through communication Key takeaway: Effectively resolving workplace conflict can improve your organization and increase your bottom line. With the right communication strategies in place, you can turn a potential crisis into a productive discussion. While a mismanaged conflict can be detrimental to your business, a properly handled conflict can save your business time and money, as well as improve colleague relationships, employee performance, retention rates, communication skills and workplace culture.

Importance of conflict resolution in the workplaceĮffective conflict resolution skills and policies are imperative in the workplace. There are several communication strategies that employers, managers, HR directors (and even employees) can master to successfully resolve workplace conflict in creative ways. How you handle those conflicts can make a world of difference to the success of your company. Whether it’s a misunderstanding over who did what, a clash of ideas or a tangle of personal relationships, conflict is inevitable in any workplace.


Unresolved conflict can impact your company culture, employee performance and retention, and bottom line.
