How do you manage conflicts in times of crisis?

Knowing how to manage conflicts at work is essential when you know that 85% of employees have already been confronted with this type of situation [1] .In times of crisis, the causes of conflicts are exacerbated, in particular due to latent insecurity, lack of time and lack of perspectives.How, as a manager, how can you best manage conflicts within your teams in order to maintain commitment and performance? At Talentis, we invite you to discover the “D.I.R.E” method:

• Define conflicts
• Identify conflicts
• Empowering teams and resolving conflicts
• What commitments should we make as a team to limit them?

#1 To Manage Conflicts: Define Them

What is a conflict?

A conflict, or a conflictual situation, is a state of opposition between persons or entities. The conflict is fraught withemotions : anger, frustration, fear, etc... The fact that a situation is experienced as a conflict varies depending on the person. For some, a simple disagreement can be seen as a conflict.

What are the visible behaviors?

In a conflict situation, we can observe Behaviors such as:

• The fact of Camp on its positions.
• Lack of openness.
• Accusing the other to be the or part of the problem.

Faced with conflicts, 3 reactions are possible[2]: to flee, to revolt, to submit.

‍

Also to be read:

“Team coaching: a process at the service of collective performance”

‍

#2 To Manage Conflicts: Identify Them

Visible, invisible or latent, who are they?

In business, within teams, The conflicts are multiple :

• Personality shocks.
• Ego conflicts.
• Overwork.
• Poor leadership, poor local management.
• Lack of honesty and open-mindedness.
• Lack of clarity.
• Value differences.

‍

The reasons for these conflicts multiply in times of crisis. :

• Insecurity.
• Lack of perspective.
• Emergency management.
• Lack of time.
• Telework that generates misunderstandings or interpretations.
• Emotional or heightened reactions.

‍

OPP study conducted in 9 European countries.

‍

#3 To Manage Conflicts: Empowering and Resolving Them

Once the conflict has been identified, the important thing is to focus on resolution of this one: “What do we do from now on? instead of: “Why did this happen?” ”

‍

Develop your ability to listen and be open-minded:

Listen with:

• Neutrality : without blaming or praising.
• Tolerance : not shocked, not surprised.
• Benevolence : with real interest.
• Confidence : in the fact that we will be able to find a solution.

‍

Questioning and being open. It's OK that we disagree.

‍

Revise the individual representations:

For Move from misunderstanding to disagreement, See the agreement :

• Identify the difference between your perception and reality.
• Offer your point of view, without presenting it as truth.
• Listen carefully to what the other person is saying.
• Develop mutual understanding: a new reality, on which we can build together.

Accept that you may disagree.

‍

#4 To manage conflicts: establish Commitments as a team to limit them

At Talentis, we advise to engage the team around 3 axes to better manage conflicts.

Create the conditions:

• Accept the principle that conflict is “normal” and make it a subject for dialogue.
• Accept that disagreements are potential performance drivers.
• Establish clear operating rules.
• Clarify roles and responsibilities
• Be exemplary in your behaviors as a manager.
• Work on life balance.

‍

Anticipating conflict situations:

• Ensure that a disagreement does not become a conflict.
• Do not ignore obvious problems in the team, deal with them.
• Practice active listening in order to identify personal conflicts.
• Putting egos aside: playing collaboration.
• Share representations of reality, situations and decisions on a regular basis.

‍

Channel:

• Create spaces to let the unsaid be expressed.
• Give regular feedback on what is going well and what is not doing well.
• Resolutely manage the “makers” of conflict.
• Identify irritants and treat them.
• Express your frustrations without waiting.

‍

To learn how to manage conflicts within teams, there is no magic formula but there are methods. We have just presented a model that Talentis coaches use regularly during team coaching sessions. Since 2003, we have already supported more than 30,000 managers in more than 150 major international groups.