Conflict: An Agent for Success at Your Center

As a manager at your ALLIANCE center, you are responsible for creating a work environment that is harmonious and which enables your employees to thrive at what they do. Ensuring this allows for better employees, better service, satisfied clients and better revenues.

Avoidance and resolution are frequent topics when discussing conflict in organizations. It's important to recognize that while conflict is usually uncomfortable, all conflict is not bad. In fact, conflict is necessary for effective problem solving and for effective interpersonal relationships. When people can disagree with each other and lobby for different ideas, your center is healthier. Disagreements often result in a more through study of options and better decisions and directions.

Knowing how to raise issues and participate in meaningful conflict is critical to your center's success. Below are ALLIANCE's recommended guidelines for encouraging meaningful conflict at your NETWORK center.

Hire Assertive Employees

First, hire people who you believe will add value to your center with their willingness to problem solve and debate. You can assess candidates for these qualities by asking behavioral interview questions and find out how assertive they are. Listen for situations in which the candidate has stood up for his beliefs, worked with a team to solve problems or pushed an unpopular agenda at work. As a manager, you want a harmonious workplace at your ALLIANCE center, but not at the sacrifice of everyone success.

Train Employees for Healthy Conflict

Provide center employees with training in healthy conflict and problem solving skills. Empower your employees to drive the success of your center. Give your staff education and training so that they know how to stand up for their beliefs comfortably. Help your employees develop skills in interpersonal communication, problem solving, conflict resolution, and non-defensive communication. Provide training in goal setting, meeting management, and leadership to help your team exercise the freedom of speech that will ignite success at your center.

Create a Healthy Environment for Conflict

Set clear expectations to create a center environment where healthy conflict is encouraged. Foster a center culture that is conducive to expressing differences of opinion. Encourage healthy debate about issues and ideas so that differences are expected and normal. Place emphasis on common goals at your center, so that everyone is moving in the same direction, and healthy conflict about how to meet those goals is respected. As a center leader, you can ask staff members to express their opinion before saying your own, and letting people know that you want them to speak up when they disagree or have a different opinion from the majority.

Recognize and Reward Conflict

Recognize and reward center employees who take a stand and support their position. You might try publicly thanking people who are willing to disagree with the direction of the group. Your center's recognition system, bonus system, and performance management process can reward employees who practice personal organizational courage. Employees who speak up to disagree or propose a different approach even in the face of pressure to agree with the group should be recognized. They lobby passionately for their cause, but when all the debating is over, the support the decisions made by the team just as passionately.

ALLIANCE's Quotable Quips on Work:

• "The brain is a wonderful organ. It starts working the moment you get up in the morning, and does not stop until you get into the office." - Robert Frost
• "I like work: it fascinates me. I can sit and look at it for hours." - Jerome K. Jerome
• "Hard work never killed anybody, but why take a chance?" - Edgar Bergen