Is Conflict a Bad Thing?
Sometimes managers, in their commitment to improve workplace productivity and interpersonal relationships, can adopt an unbending attitude toward conflict in the workplace.
Specifically, some managers adopt an approach that all conflict in the workplace is harmful.
They see conflict itself as being a bad thing.
But, is this view of conflict correct?
Is conflict always a bad thing?
In a webinar that I conducted for the Association for Talent Development, I explained the following about conflict in organizations:
Organizational conflict can be debilitating to a manager and negatively harm organizational productivity and employee engagement. Organizational conflict does not have to be dysfunctional—you can leverage it positively with the right strategies.
In that webinar, I went on to explain that there is nothing essentially wrong with conflict. Conflict is not only inevitable in organizations; conflict is necessary.
You can never totally eliminate conflict in organizations. It's inevitable and it's necessary. Effective leaders make conflict a productive force for change instead of a destructive force. Share on XWhat are the Causes of Conflict in An Organization?
In reality, conflict occurs regularly in organization. These occurrences are the normal result of workplace operations.
This means that as a manager you will never be able to totally get rid of conflict in the workplace. Conflict will and should occur at different times.
The following excerpt from my book, Organizational Conflict, Get Used to It and Use It, explains common sources for conflict in organizations as follows:
Conflict is also a part of the cycle of business!
Eight reasons why conflict always exists in organizations are the following:
- different values
- different interpersonal styles
- competing priorities
- limited resources
- past history
- organizational stress
- unclear direction
- opposing strategies
Is Conflict Always a Problem?
The answer to this question is NO!
Managers who view all conflict as a destructive fire that needs to be extinguished at every opportunity are short-changing themselves and their organizations where productivity is concerned.
The truth is that there are some times when you should let conflict occur (just be sure to manage it properly so it doesn’t become unproductive)
Conflict itself is not a problem. Conflict only becomes a problem when the change leader does not know how to work with different personality styles to leverage conflict appropriately.
Under the right circumstances and leadership, conflict can be a productive force in the workplace.
Under the right circumstances and with effective leadership, conflict can be a productive force for change in the workplace. Share on XThis article is accurate to the best of the author’s knowledge.
Content is for informational or educational purposes only and does not substitute for professional advice in business, management, legal, or human resource matters.
