Chapter Eleven

Managing Conflict and Negotiating

Getting Things Done Sequence

Managing Change Leadership Influence, Power, and Politics Managing Conflict Note: menu of options available to you in an organizational setting

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Chapter Eleven Outline

A Modern View of Conflict
A Conflict Continuum Functional versus Dysfunctional Conflict Antecedents of Conflict Desired Outcomes of Conflict

Major Sources of Conflict

Personality Conflicts Inter-group Conflict Cross-Cultural Conflict

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Chapter Eleven Outline (continued)

Managing Conflict
Programming Functional Conflict Alternative Styles for Handling Dysfunctional Conflict Third-Party Interventions: Alternative Dispute Resolution

Negotiating
Two Basic Types of Negotiation Added-Value Negotiation

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Conflict
Conflict: A process in which one party perceives that its
interests are being opposed or negatively affected by another party.

Functional conflict serves the

organizations interests while

dysfunctional conflict threatens

the organizations interests.

Exercise

Distinguish between the Southwest Airlines and Gateway stories. Are these comparable?

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Antecedents of Conflict

Incompatible personalities or value systems. Overlapping or unclear job boundaries. Competition for limited resources. Interdepartment/intergroup competition. Inadequate communication. Interdependent tasks. Organizational complexity.

11-3b

Antecedents of Conflict (continued)

Unreasonable or unclear policies, standards, or rules. Unreasonable deadlines or extreme time pressure. Collective decision making. Decision making by consensus. Unmet expectations. Unresolved or suppressed conflict.

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Desired Outcomes of Conflict

Agreement: Strive for equitable and fair agreements that
last.

Stronger relationships: Build bridges of goodwill and

trust for the future.

Learning: Greater self-awareness and creative problem

solving.

Personality Conflicts

Interpersonal opposition driven by personal dislike or disagreement Workplace incivility Examples:

Miltons radio Trash talk in the office Slurs Personality differences

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Tips for Managers Whose Employees Are Having a Personality Conflict

1.

2. 3.

4. 5.

Follow company policies for diversity, antidiscrimination, and sexual harassment. Investigate and document conflict. If appropriate, take corrective action (e.g., feedback or behavior modification). If necessary, attempt informal dispute resolution. Refer difficult conflicts to human resource specialists or hired counselors for formal resolution attempts and other interventions.

Intergroup conflict

In-group thinking

Other groups are all alike Positively and morally correct Outsiders as a threat Differences exaggerated.

11-6 Figure 11-1

Minimizing Inter-group Conflict: An Updated Contact Model

Recommended actions:
Work to eliminate specific negative interactions between groups (and members). Conduct team building to reduce intragroup conflict and prepare employees for cross-functional teamwork. Encourage personal friendships and good working relationships across groups and departments. Foster positive attitudes toward members of other groups (empathy, compassion, sympathy). Avoid or neutralize negative gossip across groups or departments.

Level of perceived Inter-group conflict tends to increase when:

Conflict within the group is high There are negative interactions between groups (or between members of those groups) Influential third-party gossip about other group is negative

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Skills and Best Practices: How to Build Cross-Cultural Relationships

Behavior
Be a good listener Be sensitive to the needs of others Be cooperative, rather than overly competitive Advocate inclusive (participative) leadership Compromise rather than dominate Build rapport through conversations Be compassionate and understanding Avoid conflict by emphasizing harmony Nurture others (develop and mentor)

Rank
1 2 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Tie

Managing conflict

Programmed conflict

Defend or criticize ideas Based on relevant facts Avoid personal or political preferences Disciplined role playing Devils advocacy Dialectic method

Programmed conflict techniques

11-8 Figure 11-2

Five Conflict-Handling Styles

Concern for Others

High

Integrating

Obliging

Compromising

Low

Dominating

Avoiding

High
Concern for Self

Low
Source: MA Rahim, A Strategy for Managing Conflict in Complex Organizations, Human Relations, January 1985, p 84. Used with authors permission.

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Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Techniques

Facilitation: Third party gets disputants to deal directly and
constructively with each other. between disputants.

Conciliation: Neutral third party acts as communication link

Peer review: Impartial co-workers hear both sides and render
decision that may or may not be binding.

Ombudsman: Respected and trusted member of the

organization hears grievances confidentially. own solution.

Mediation: Trained third-party guides disputants toward their

Arbitration: Neutral third-party hears both sides in a court-like

setting and renders a binding decision.

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Negotiating
Negotiation: A give-and-take decision-making process
involving interdependent parties with different preferences.

Distributive negotiation: Single issue; fixed-pie; win-lose.

Integrative negotiation: More than one issue; win-win.

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An Integrative Approach: Added-Value Negotiation

Clarify interests. Identify options. Design alternative deal packages. Select a deal. Perfect the deal.

Negotiating Zone

Zone defined in monetary terms Add other issues

Soft-money Non-monetary issues

Package possible? How are min-max positions established during actual negotiations?