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How to Successfully Manage Conflicts in a Project Team?

Workplace conflicts should not be taken lightly as it can have a significant impact on the productivity of the project team. The conflict can be blamed on different values, personalities, and lifestyles of the team members. Whatever the reasons for the conflict, it should not be treated lightly at all.

Friction within a workplace can make the office feel more like a war zone. Here are three important tips that can greatly help project managers to handle and resolve conflicts within the workplace.

1. Understand the Problem

The first step in resolving the conflict between the employees is to understand the problem. The project manager should consider meeting with the employees separately. It’s important to listen to both sides of the story as a neutral umpire. When people are upset about a situation, airing out the grievances can help in resolving the conflict. The employees should be allowed to speak their minds that will help in getting to the root of the conflict.

Avoid any bias with any party when finding out the facts regarding the problem. Only once a project manager completely understands the points of all the involved parties, any action can be taken to resolve the conflict.

2. Know the Right Timing

Keep in mind that not every conflict is bad for the organization. Sometimes it can lead to a healthy competition resulting in innovation, improvements, and creativity. In other words, it is not in the best interest of the organization to resolve every conflict. Most experts state that while conflict generally has a negative impact on the workplace, a certain degree of conflict can, in fact, be beneficial for the company.

So, timing is everything when it comes to handling conflict. A project manager should apply discretion when it comes to handling conflict in the workplace. The manager should intervene only if the conflict between the feuding employees negatively impacts the performance of the entire team.

3. Develop Clear Action Plan to Resolve the Conflict

Once the conflict has been identified, the project manager should take concrete actions to resolve the problem. It’s important to set clear steps that can help in reducing the conflict. In case the conflict is more complex, you should consider bringing in an outside conflict management specialist to resolve the problem. The focus should be in effectively resolving the conflict between the feuding parties.

In the end, how a project manager deals with conflict can make or break a team. It’s important to view the conflict in the context of its overall effect on the organization. Only if the conflict negatively affects the organization should a manager act to resolve the problem. In this context, the use of an online collaboration software is invaluable as conflict will be minimized within the workplace due to improved communication and less face-to-face interaction between the employees.