Sunday, August 1, 2010

Conflict Resolution: How to Handle it in the Workplace


As a department manager it is my duty to make sure that my team of employees are doing their work to the best of their abilities and getting along. Once I noticed that one of my employees work was sloppy, I felt that I had to address the situation in a professional manner. I was also starting to receive numerous complaints from customers and his co-workers. Susan Heathfield, from About.com: Human Resources, points out that you can not avoid conflict in the workplace, hoping it will disappear. “An unresolved conflict or interpersonal disagreement festers just under the surface in your work environment. It burbles to the surface whenever enabled, and always at the worst possible moment,” (2010, pg. 1).
I pulled Mr. Smith into my office to address all of the complaints, and his lack of effort on the job. I began telling him that I have appreciated his hard work for the past two years. When you are giving someone bad news, it is not always a good idea to pile the negative information on them. You want to be understanding, but effective at the same time. I would then start to explain to him that I was noticing that he was not giving the same effort that he use to. I notice that his work ethic has been going down hill for the past couple of months. Not only have I notice a difference in his work ethic, but so have his co-workers. I would want him to understand that the team needed him. If he was not getting along with his co-workers, then this affects the team as a whole. The next point that I want to make is that the customers are not happy with his customer service. I would ask Mr. Smith, what seems to be the problem?
One conflict resolution technique that I would use, according to E.A. Lewis Consulting, is to listen attentively. He explains that you may need to let the person vent to get their frustrations off of their mind and listen. I would give Mr. Smith the opportunity to tell me what he has been thinking, and feeling, for the last couple of months. A good manager would hear how their employees feel and what their frustrations are.
Once I have heard Mr. Smith’s side of the story, I would present him with a contract and explain what is in the contract. I would let him know that I expect for him to pick up his workload and to work as hard as he use to. He needs to treat the customers with more respect and kindness. He would also need to make sure that he worked as a team member and respect his co-workers. No matter what is going on in his personal life, he needs to leave it outside of the office. If Mr. Smith agrees to these terms, he will sign the contract and improve his work ethics. If he fails to meet the terms in his contract, then he will be terminated.
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1 comment:

  1. Prodigal Altar BoyAugust 7, 2010 at 6:54 PM

    I like the way you brought the assignment to life. Instead of going generic, you gave everybody names and put yourself in the middle of the exercise.

    ReplyDelete

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