I heard from a middle manager who struggles with his senior manager’s unclear delegation and occasional absence of direction. The senior manager constantly shifts assignments, switching up what’s urgent today and what’s important tomorrow with... Continue reading
Sometimes the right thing for an organization to do for a customer and the fair thing to do for an employee are both really obvious but in direct conflict with each other. This story shows... Continue reading
Let’s say you’ve identified a problem in your organization -- something that’s not working well or isn’t working at all, something that you know should be fixed or changed. And let’s say you’ve already analyzed... Continue reading
We may talk about the importance of not making assumptions, but we all make them, automatically, all the time. We tend to believe that other people are more like us than not, which explains some... Continue reading
It’s normal to be “conflict-averse.” Most of us tend to try to avoid creating bad feelings among people. We shy away from anything that seems like a secret, can’t be helped, or isn’t worth getting... Continue reading
In some organizations, the fear of overt, explicit conflict -- and the pain and disruption that it can engender -- is even stronger than the fear of leaving existentially damaging problems unaddressed. You may have... Continue reading
In the last few posts on conflict, we’ve been assuming that the opponents in the conflict are working in good faith. But not all conflicts are straightforward disputes, that can be resolved merely with extra... Continue reading
No matter what you’ve told your team members about working things out together, and how you’ve tried to address the underlying structural problems that can trigger conflict among co-workers, folks are still showing up in... Continue reading
Executives ask me frequently: Why do they have to get involved in their subordinates’ conflicts? Why don’t they just work these things out themselves like adults instead of acting like they’re in high school? After... Continue reading
After a conflict, when you’re working your way toward agreement, with mutual respect and the necessary data in hand, a kind of horse-trading often takes place: “I’m willing to compromise on these dates and give... Continue reading
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