Conflict

Conflict can be basically summarised as a disagreement between parties in terms of personal needs, interests and concerns. Mullins (2010) defines it as ‘behaviour intended to obstruct the achievement of some other person’s goals;’ it is based on the ‘incompatibility’ of goals and arises from contrasting behaviours.

Personal conflict I have encountered is in the form of working within a group for a school film project. The main issues arose due to numerous plotlines being discussed, and the fact that several team members had personal ideas on how to execute and portray the storyline of the film in order to meet the brief we’d been given. This, as Mullins (2010) states, led to opposing members of the group partaking in behaviour intended to restrict others from developing their own ideas. Consequently, the group ran far behind schedule, with a substantial amount still to do with the deadline days away.

As a result, in order to resolve the conflict that had arisen, an impartial team member took charge of communication and organisation in order to persuade all members of the group to negotiate leeway on individual stances and discuss a solution which would satisfy everyone. As a result, the filming of the project was broken down in such a way to allow all members to incorporate their individual ideas within different aspects of the film.

Primarily, it was the impartiality of the self-appointed team leader which allowed them to have an influence on the group, as the person in question was not biased to one particular side. Mullins (2010) describes exercise of power, such as in the example given, a ‘social process’ which helps to explain how different people influence the actions and behaviour of others. In turn, according to the theory by French and Raven, there are many sources of power on which ‘the influence of the leader is based’ (Mullins 2010), such as referent power, reward power and expert power.

Referent power is based on the identification peers have with the leader. This is likely to be based on the fact that the leader commands their respect and esteem due to personal characteristics, reputation etc. An example of this could be the ‘impartial group member’ within the group I worked in for the school film project, where it was their level-headed communication and organisation of the team which caused the group to give them universal respect and acknowledge their assertion of authority.

In turn, reward power refers to people’s perception that the leader has the resources to give out rewards, and that complying with their orders will lead to receiving said rewards. This could be in the form of a department manager or such being able to reward good performance with job promotion, motivating employees below them to increase their efforts in order to achieve good job performance.

Expert power, on the other hand, is based on the ‘subordinate’s perception of the leader as someone who is competent and [has] knowledge or expertise in a given area.’ (Mullins 2010).  Such power is based on credibility, and could refer to long-term and respected members of any organisation, who have experience of dealings within the company. A specific example could be a long-term successful football manager, whose experience would make them a respected figure within the footballing community, and allow them influence over lesser managers and such.

In general however, according to Mullins (2010), there are also many strategies which can be used to overcome conflict at work, the first of which being to clarify goals and objectives. Unclear objectives often create conflict as employees become frustrated in trying to perform assigned tasks. Therefore, such clarification helps to reduce misunderstanding and aid employee efficiency.

Furthermore, a strategy should also be implemented to improve interpersonal and group skills, whereby employees would be able to improve communication skills and learn to empathise with the other person’s viewpoint. Such a strategy would thus help reduce disagreements of points of views and encourage cooperation.

Leadership and management styles should also be analysed in order to resolve conflict. A more personal and supportive style of leadership and behaviour would help manage conflicts, for example, by creating an atmosphere of trust to engage employees.

Conflict can also be resolved through the provision of non-monetary rewards, in the form of a more satisfying job and workplace. This involves addressing things such as training, flexible working hours, and ensuring work remains interesting and challenging, in order to create a content and satisfied staff.

Changing organisational processes, moreover, may also help reduce conflict. Such processes include the authority/hierarchy structure, methods and patterns of communication, and unnecessary bureaucratic procedures, all of which can be altered in order to resolve conflict and again ensure a satisfied workforce.

Conclusively, however, my research into the topic of conflict not only shown me the various reasons for which it can arise, but also the methods that can be put into place in order to resolve and reduce it, thus creating an efficient workforce.

References:

Mullins, Laurie J. (2010) Management and Organisational Behaviour. 9^th ed. Essex: Pearson