Submitted by:

Anupam Roy
Gurpreet Kaur
Vijayakumar Kattamanchi
Himanshu Sharma
1

INTRODUCTION TO CONFLICT:

CIRCLE OF
CONFLICT

Conflict Management is the process of limiting the negative aspects of conflict while increasing the positive aspects of
conflict. The aim of conflict management is to enhance learning & group outcomes including effectiveness &
performance. It involves dealing with disputes in a rational , balanced & effective way.

CAUSES OF CONFLICT:

two main causes of conflict to be interdependence among team members, and inconsistent goals. The
interdependence is the hardest for me to manage.

According to psychologists Art Bell and Brett Hart, there are eight common causes of conflict in the workplace. Bell
and Hart identified these common causes in separate articles on workplace conflict in 2000 and 2002.
The eight causes are:
Conflicting resources.
Conflicting styles.
Conflicting perceptions.
Conflicting goals.
Conflicting pressures.
Conflicting roles.
Different personal values.
Unpredictable policies.

Top 4 Causes of Conflict in the Workplace and How to Overcome It:

Conflict has a bad reputation. Most often, conflict is associated with raised voices, heated debates, and high frustration. While these
associations are sometimes accurate, particularly when destructive behaviors are present, it is important to consider the benefits of
productive conflict: creativity. The famous adage, two heads are better than one is precisely about the advantages of conflict, for it assumes
that two minds will have separate perspectives, experiences, and ideas. Diversity and communication are hallmarks of a great team, and the
occasional root of clashes in the office. Conflict is a good thing; its our response that makes conflict either a creative or destructive process.
Here are a few common causes of conflict in the workplace, and some suggestions of how to navigate the occasional storm:
1. Personality Differences
The workplace brings together a wide array of personalities. Building awareness of personality differences is an important first step on the
road to valuing and leveraging those differences. Differences give us more in terms of problem solving and creativity, and differences in the
workplace go way beyond personalities. In the myriad of different backgrounds, genders, cultures, political and religious beliefs, there are
countless opportunities for ruffled feathers. The best cure is respectful communication. Whether the issue involves an offense to core values
or simply the irritation of pet peeves, it is important to share perceptions and establish boundaries. Too often, people avoid difficult
conversations in hopes that a problem will just go away, which of course it rarely does. By addressing an issue promptly, it improves the
chances for a peaceful resolution and common understanding. But if its put on the back burner, emotions may surface when anger levels are
high, and increase the chances of an unproductive, high volume blowout.
2. Non-Compliance with Rules and Policies
Whether you are pestered by anothers disregard for company policy, or are rebelling against a rule yourself, non-compliance is a common
gateway to office conflict. Rules are usually in place for a reason; so whichever side of a policy dispute you may find yourself, you should be
clear about why a rule is in place, and what the consequences are for slip-ups. If agreement cannot be reached between differing parties or
the rules themselves, it may be a good idea to look for a helpful mediator to resolve the issue. Just remember to keep the focus on the issue,
not the person.
3. Misunderstandings
Botched communication is one of the top reasons for conflict in and out of the office. A great way to proactively decrease the potential for
crossed wires is to avoid making assumptions by creating a team or partner agreement. These customized agreements become the rules of
the road for the relationship and help to clarify for colleagues and teams, the dos and donts of workplace behavior and communication.
Once there is agreement on how to behave, misunderstandings can be further reduced by being skillful at effective listening, giving full
attention, being genuinely interested, catching non-verbal messages, paraphrasing, and showing a willingness to collaborate. While its never
fun to document issues, if your thorough attempts to communicate effectively arent working, keeping a record of communications can be a
safety net when dealing with frequent mis-communicators.
4. Competition
Sometimes quotas and incentives can make it easy to forget the big picture. We stop seeing others as team members and start to see them
as competitors. Healthy competition is a good motivator, but sometimes it inspires anti-productive behavior and unsavory results. The best
defense in a highly competitive environment is managing your own emotions. Accept what emotions arise and deal with them positively.
Tired of always coming in second or third? Start focusing on competing with yourself rather than others. Remember that one persons 3
success is good for the team on a whole.

CONFLICT RESOLUTION
MODEL

STAGES IN CONFLICT CYCLE

EMOTIONAL ENERGY & CONFLICT CYCLE

In any relationship there is underlying emotional energy. Relationship is characterized by underlying resentment, destructive
emotional energy or negative feelings, the parties are predisposed to engage in conflict.
1.At first the level of emotional energy in a relationship & the degree of residual conflict are MODERATELY HIGH.
2.The emergence of open conflict in each episode begins with a Triggering Event a precipitating occurrence that shifts the
balance of powers or changes a situation.
FIRST CONFLICT EPISODE:
Conflict is handled using a Forcing Approach which suppresses the open conflict but results in considerably higher level
of emotional energy than existed at first. The relationship is therefore even riper for a subsequent episode of the
conflict, which promptly breaks out following another triggering event.
SECOND CONFLICT EPISODE:
It is handled using a WIN/WIN problem solving approach which results in lowering levels of emotional energy in the
relationship .This increases the level of mutual respect & builds the gravity of the relationship. Use of WIN/WIN
approach not only results in suppression of the overt manifestations of the conflict but alters the nature of the
relationship itself such that future conflicts are much less likely to occur & those conflicts that do occur are much less
intense.

CONFLICT MANAGEMENT

NEGOTIATION

Negotiation is a process by which people resolve

disagreements.
Structured negotiation follows a number of stages from
preparation through to implementation.
If possible, a WIN-WIN approach is more desirable than a
bargaining (WIN-LOSE) approach.
This involves seeking resolutions that allow both sides to gain,
while at the same time maintaining good working
relationships with the other parties involved.

NEGOTIATION BASICS

THANK YOU !