Workplace Conflict

This is undoubtedly one of the most challenging roles of the leader. Even if he does everything mentioned in this course perfectly, conflict is bound to happen. However, as previously mentioned, the real challenge lies in managing conflict to the benefit of the team. That means valuing differences; viewing conflict as an opportunity to examine our assumptions, ideas and solutions. However, we should also realise that unresolved conflict can be destructive, eroding trust and confidence.

Conflict can occur on different levels:

• Between team members. As previously mentioned, integrating a new member into the team can often create new team dynamics which could lead to conflict.
• Between departments – no matter how efficient a team is within, if it is unable to work with other teams, it is not truly effective. Therefore, conflict on inter-group level needs to be addressed just as promptly as internal group conflict.
• Conflict could also arise between your team and external stakeholders. Again, even the most efficient team cannot be effective if their external relations are not managed well.