Employee Motivation

We’ve previously discussed workplace conflict and its potential to disrupt the activities and productivity of a business. While a manager or business owner can take as many steps as possible to create a positive work environment, conflict is going to occur. It is inevitable that a group of people working together and interacting on a regular basis will eventually experience disagreements which, if left unmanaged, can snowball into major issues. There are several things good leaders can do to manage and help resolve conflict in the workplace.

Start With Listening

Oftentimes, when coworkers are butting heads with one another, one or both of them feel they are not being heard. Taking the time to listen to each person’s grievances will show them you assign importance to their concerns. In some cases, simply being able to talk through the problem resolves the hurt feelings that compounded the issue.

Face the Problem

Many people, leaders included, do not like conflict. Some will even go out of their way to avoid it or pretend it doesn’t exist. For a business, this is a terrible idea. With personnel conflicts, ignoring will not make it go away. If an employee reaches out with a problem, schedule a time to meet with them as soon as possible. If you notice the issue before they mention it, go ahead and contact them. Get out in front of the issue. There are many things managers and business owners can do to resolve conflict when it arises in the workplace. Our next post will highlight a few more of these tactics.