QUALITY ASSURANCE PROJECT

Conflict Management

The purpose of this module is to develop participants’ facilitation and training skills to enable them to enhance a team’s ability to

identify and resolve conflict

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QUALITY ASSURANCE PROJECT

At the end of this module participants will be able to:

Describe the positive and negative aspects of conflict

Recognize the source of a disagreement Determine when and how to apply five conflict

resolution styles Determine how to deal with resistance

Objectives

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QUALITY ASSURANCE PROJECT

Content

• Understanding Conflict

• Conflict Resolution Styles

• A Positive Approach to Resistance

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QUALITY ASSURANCE PROJECT

Conflict …

… occurs when the concerns of two or more people appear to be incompatible and they disagree

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QUALITY ASSURANCE PROJECT

Conflict

• Necessary and integral part of realistic and effective teamwork

• Essence of sound decision making

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QUALITY ASSURANCE PROJECT

Disagreement is necessary

• Broadening perspectives

• Discovering alternatives

• Stimulating creative interaction

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QUALITY ASSURANCE PROJECT

Negative Consequences

Decrease in productivity

Unpleasant emotional experience

Breakdown in work relationships

Reduced sharing of relevant information

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QUALITY ASSURANCE PROJECT

Negative Consequences

Increased stress

Excessive use of time

Inappropriate allocation of resources

Disruption of decision-making process

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QUALITY ASSURANCE PROJECT

Positive Benefits

Opportunity to change bothersome things

Openness and relief of tension

Clarification of people’s ideas

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QUALITY ASSURANCE PROJECT

Positive Benefits

Better understanding of of others

Stimulation of healthy interaction

Increased motivation and creativity

Increase in identified alternatives

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QUALITY ASSURANCE PROJECT

Conflict Management Dispel negative notions about conflict

Recognize the sources of disagreement

Adopt a variety of conflict resolution styles

Express, appreciate, and manage resistance

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QUALITY ASSURANCE PROJECT

Replace negative associations of conflict with knowledge of the positive aspects of conflict

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QUALITY ASSURANCE PROJECT

RecognizeSources of Disagreement

Facts

Methods

Goals

Values

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QUALITY ASSURANCE PROJECT

Learn, practice, and adopt different conflict resolution styles for different situations

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QUALITY ASSURANCE PROJECT

Conflict Resolution Styles

Avoidance– Non-confrontational

– Ignore or deny issue

Accommodation– Agreeable

– Non-assertive

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QUALITY ASSURANCE PROJECT

Conflict Resolution StylesCompetition

– Confrontational– Assertive– Aggressive

Compromise– Assertive– Cooperative

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QUALITY ASSURANCE PROJECT

Conflict Resolution Styles

Collaboration / Consensus– Respectful

– Mutual support

– Assertive

– Cooperative

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QUALITY ASSURANCE PROJECT

Avoidance

Justification• Disagreement too

minor

• Disagreement too great

• Need more facts

Consequences

• Default decisions

• Unresolved issues

• Self-doubt

• Loss of creativity

• Lack of credibility

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QUALITY ASSURANCE PROJECT

Accommodation

Justification• Not worth damaging

relationships

• Need for harmony

• Issue is vital to other

Consequences

• Decreased influence

• Unmet needs

• Loss of self-esteem

• Lose best solution

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QUALITY ASSURANCE PROJECT

Competition

Justification• Must demonstrate

superiority

• Unpopular or “right”

action is needed

• Quick action

Consequences

• Win/lose

• Reduced communication

• Damage to relationship

• Must “sell” solution

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QUALITY ASSURANCE PROJECT

Compromise

Justification• More than one way

to do something

• No perfect solution

Consequences• No one is satisfied

• Short-lived solution

• Lose sight of larger issues or values

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QUALITY ASSURANCE PROJECT

Collaboration/Consensus

Justification• Need for mutually

beneficial solution• No concessions are

desired

Consequences• Lost time on minor

issues• Decisions swayed

by people unfamiliar with situation

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QUALITY ASSURANCE PROJECT

Specific Conflict Situations

• Misunderstanding perceptions

• Disagreement over course of action

• Defense of ego: person feels attacked

• Interpersonal conflict

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QUALITY ASSURANCE PROJECT

Adopt Positive Approach to Resistance

Express, appreciate,

and manage resistance

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QUALITY ASSURANCE PROJECT

Resistance Strategies

Typical Approach

• Breaking it down

• Avoiding it

• Discounting it

Positive Approach

• Surfacing

• Honoring

• Exploring

• Rechecking

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QUALITY ASSURANCE PROJECT

Surfacing the Resistance

1. Make expression of resistance “safe”

2. Ask for it all

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QUALITY ASSURANCE PROJECT

Honoring the Resistance

1. Listen

2. Acknowledge

3. Reinforce notion that resistance

is permissible

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QUALITY ASSURANCE PROJECT

Exploring the Resistance

1. Distinguish authentic resistance from “pseudo” resistance

2. Probe the resistance

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QUALITY ASSURANCE PROJECT

Rechecking the Resistance

Recheck the status of the current resistance and the agreements that have been made

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QUALITY ASSURANCE PROJECT

Guidelines forDealing With Resister

• Not possible to eliminate all resistance

• Record resister’s objections on paper

• Once resistance is workable, thank the

resister and move on

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