What is Conflict?

Conflict is the state of high or low level of struggle, argument, or disagreement between two parties. It is a process that begins when one party perceives something she/he cares about is being or will be affected negatively by another party.

In an organization, there are people from different backgrounds, caste, creed, gender, religion, tradition, culture and academic schooling. This means they have different values, interests, attitudes, perceptions and objectives. This means they have a difference in thought processes, working styles and reactions to different situations. Due to such differences in values and interests of individuals and groups conflict arises in an organization. Conflict is a situation in an organization that is a situation of incompatibility of goals and effort to block the attainment of individual or group or organizational goals.

Key Definitions

Defined By	Definition
Stephen P. Robbins	“Conflict is a process in which an effort is purposefully made by one person or unite to block another that results in frustrating the attainment of the other’s goals or the furthering of his interests”
John W. Newstrom and Keith Davis	“Conflict is any situation in which two or more parties feel themselves in opposition. It is an interpersonal process that arises from disagreements over the goals or the methods to accomplish those goals”

Froom the above discussion and definitions:

• Conflict involves series of events in episodic form
• It arises as a result of a difference in goals, interests, working styles, personal variables etc.
• Conflict is perceived mentally and expressed behaviorally by the parties involved in it
• It occurs when an individual or group fail to decide onthe right option and course of action

Causes of Conflict

An organization consists of people, groups, processes, hierarchies, authorities, responsibilities, accountabilities etc. which makes it an integrated complex structure. In such a comprehensive structure, conflicts are bound to happen. Generally, conflict prevails in an organization at an individual, interpersonal and group levels. Individual-level conflict exists within an employee regarding the goal and role of the individual. Interpersonal conflict arises between superior and subordinates or two persons working at the same level. Similarly, inter-group conflicts exist between two formal or informal groups in an organization. Conflict might prevail at any level, it is subject to personal variables, communication status and structure of the organization. Moreover, conflict in an organization could occur due to the following causes:

• Lack of clear and well-defined working systems and policies causes confusion among employees regarding which way to follow during work results in conflict in an organization
• The organization consists of people from different backgrounds, upbringing and schooling with different values, beliefs and interests which differ person to person act as a huge cause of conflict
• Inadequate, untimely and irrelevant information due to poor communication systems contributes to organizational conflict
• Over dominating attitude of management or superiors
• Conflict arises due to no or lack of resources to perform a job
• Policy and psychology of nepotism and favoritism adopted by superiors or management causes conflict
• Improper handling of cultural diversity promotes groups of one culture which tries to dominate minority cultures and finally, conflict arises
• Inequality and unfair treatment based on caste creed, sex, ethical tribes, different ability etc. is a major cause of conflict in organizations
• The weak performance of employees resulting in high dissatisfaction and anger instead of self-realization causes conflict
• A weak system of planning, implementing, decision making and controlling

Understanding Conflict Management

For conflict management, it must be understood that conflict is a part of an organization. Zero conflict situation as opined by the traditional view of conflict management cannot be achieved. It is bound to arise as an organization is a collection of people and such collection of people means a collection of muti-dimensional diversities as understood by human relation view to it. Similarly, all conflicts do not necessarily harm an organization. In fact, some conflicts are good for the growth and progress of an organization which is an interaction view to conflict. This means no conflict situation and all conflicts creating harm to the organization are not true either. So, before conflict management, it should be understood that conflicts are an inevitable part of an organization.

It is important to identify the positive or negative nature of conflict before managing it. Positive conflicts are those which have positive  impact in terms of personal, group and organizational growth. These are called functional conflicts. On the other hand, negative conflicts are those which have a harmful effect on personal, group and organizational relationships and growth. These are called dysfunctional conflicts. Both these conflicts have different outcomes. The outcomes of such conflicts have to be understood before going forward in course of its management.

Conflict Outcomes

Functional Conflicts	Disfunctional Conflicts
Increases group performance through improvement in individual effortsImproves quality of decisions as decisions are taken more consciously Promotes improved creativity and innovations Regular and timely evaluation and initiation for change Better for industrial development and getting ahead in the competition	This leads to negative feelings and discontentmentsReduces group effectiveness Mental disturbance, stress and anxiety Retarded communication Reduces team spirit, bonding and teamwork culture Personal goals become bigger than the organizational goal

The task of conflict management begins with the realization of the existence of conflict in any form either functional or disfunctional. Knowing the favorable outcomes of functional conflicts, the organization should try to maintain them in a manageable way. On the other hand, disfunctional conflicts with negative outcomes should be discouraged and resolved. This is the key essence of conflict management.

Conflict management is the act of transforming conflicts into resolution and negotiation. It is the process of preventing and solving conflicts respectfully and effectively. It is a framework inducing conflict, conflict parties, causes of conflict, the behavior of parties and intention as well as effort to solve the conflict. To prevent conflict situations, an organization has to develop fair strategies and policies for work and workers, develop an effective communication system, arrange sufficiency of resources and redesign job or job-related affairs. If conflict is detected, it has to be solved through proper communication, involvement of mediators, amendment of policies and rules, reformation of a group, organizational restructuring etc. More specifically, conflict management should be understood as under:

• It is developing strategies, policies and procedures in such a way that it cannot facilitate potential conflicts
• It is motivating positive conflicts to increase effort, effectiveness and productivity of individuals and groups for organizational growth
• It is identifying and mapping conflict situations, parties involved in a conflict and causes of conflict
• It is setting up a mechanism to discourage or resolve conflicts  with potential negative outcomes 
• It applies different methods or techniques to resolve conflicts with net mutual benefits for all parties involved in such conflicts

Thomas-Kilmann Model of Conflict Management

Different people react to different conflict situations in a different styles. Basically, in any situation, a person is either co-operation or self-focused. The Thomas-Kilmann model organizes all these factors to manage or resolve any conflict situation. The focus of this model is on two dimensions: Assertiveness and Cooperativeness. Assertiveness is the concern of an individual is on his/her concern. Co-operativeness refers to the degree of focus on other people’s interests during or in a conflict situation. Based on these two dimensions, the model identifies the following five styles for conflict management:

1. Competing (Win-Loose Approach): This is a situation in which one person wins and the other loses in a conflict situation. This is a style in which a person is highly assertive with no co-operativeness. The person acts in a way to fulfill his/her interest even at the expense of others. Such style is suitable for emergencies where there is less time and quick decision is required.
2. Avoiding (Loose-Loose Approach): This is an approach in which one person is neither pursuing his/her goal nor helping others to reach their goal. This is low assertiveness and low co-operativeness situation. This works at the time when there is no chance of winning or when the atmosphere around the situation is emotionally charged. This is a very ineffective style as avoiding is not dealing with or daring to solve any conflict situation.
3. Collaborating (Win-Win Approach): This is a situation when both the parties involved in a conflict get something they wanted from the conflict situation. This is identifying a middle line solution to any conflict. That’s a lot of effort is required in such a style or situation. This is required at the time when the solution is to be derived providing sufficient space for both the conflicting parties. It is highly trust-dependent and driven.
4. Accommodating (Loose-Win Approach):  This is an approach with a high level of co-operativeness and a low level of assertiveness. Co-operativeness such that he/she can go aginst his/her own goals This approach is more effective when the other party is the expert and has the best effective solution to a conflict. This is a preservative approach focusing on the preservation of relationships for the future.
5. Compromising (Loose-Loose Approach):  This is a situation where people in conflict do not get what they wanted.  Parties of the conflict agree upon something else that they initially did not aim for. This is an easy way out for parties wanting not to be in conflict situations for long. This is most suitable for conflicts requiring temporary solutions.

Handling a Conflict Situation

No individuals or organizations want to be in a conflict situation. Still, it cannot be fully avoided. Instead, any conflict situation has to be handled well to reducing its negative and induce its positive impact in any form. Moreover, while handling andy conflict situation, the following strategies have to be used:

• Stay calm and composed if somebody is arguing or shouting at you. It is good not to overreact or answer any argument with aggression or anger.
• Let the other party do the talking and express everything and be a good listener
• Consider the other party’s point of view as during conflict he/she shares and expresses multiple things. Try imagining yourself in the other party’s position and perspective to manage the conflict.
• During conflict let the other party understand you are on his/her side by using words such as “Yes I understand what you say….” During conflict situation
• If a conflict situation turns verbally abusive, try to use as many positive words as you can during an argument or heated discussion.  Even after such effort, the discussion is not close, you put close to it.
• In case of your fault or mistake or you are wrong, admit it quickly and take it responsibly
• Never hesitate to apologize by saying SORRY if you are wrong or saying SORRY can resolve the conflict.
• Visualize the conflict is over and everything is normal
• Never carry any form of conflict byproducts further after it has been resolved