Team Conflict ManagementTeam Conflict Management

ADVANTAGE SESSION #15ADVANTAGE SESSION #15

for Kelley School of Businessfor Kelley School of Business

X420 ClassX420 Class

presented by Richard D. Attiyehpresented by Richard D. Attiyeh

Team Conflict ManagementTeam Conflict ManagementTeamwork is essential, but any group effort can degenerate into argument and anger….

As a member of the As a member of the team, or as a team team, or as a team leader, the goal is to leader, the goal is to avoid or eliminate avoid or eliminate conflict.conflict.

To do this effectively, To do this effectively, one needs to one needs to understand the root understand the root causes of team causes of team conflict.conflict.

Research shows that the most significant Research shows that the most significant roadblock to effective teamwork is….roadblock to effective teamwork is….

There are other times when rigid behavior is unreasonable….

Sometime it just makes sense to inflexibly follow the rules…

Research indicates that the major factor in Research indicates that the major factor in unreasonable unreasonable rigidityrigidity is… is…

Among working teams, Among working teams, self esteemself esteem is a major fear is a major fear factorfactor

Fear, and rigidity in belief or opinions, can lead to anger and conflict.

Some personalities Some personalities may try to bully other may try to bully other team members to get team members to get their way.their way.

Other personality types may internalize their anger until they explode.

Fear frequently manifests as angry behavior

Some team Some team members simply members simply turn their backs on turn their backs on the team effort the team effort altogether…..altogether…..

Basically, people tend to Basically, people tend to fall back on rigid fall back on rigid approaches to problem-approaches to problem-solving when other solving when other avenues do not seem to avenues do not seem to be available.be available.

The ways in which team conflict The ways in which team conflict occurs are as varied as the occurs are as varied as the individuals who make up the teams. individuals who make up the teams. As long as rigidity of thought and As long as rigidity of thought and attitude rules the day, there can be attitude rules the day, there can be no effective solution.no effective solution.

So, what do you do?….

The solution to creating compatible teams is simple, The solution to creating compatible teams is simple, but it sure is not EASYbut it sure is not EASY..

You must create and support a team environment of

OPENNESS, TRUTH, HONESTY and SELF-AWARENESS.

”SERENITY”

OPENNESSOPENNESS AttitudeAttitude PosturePosture EnvironmentEnvironment

TRUTH and HONESTYTRUTH and HONESTY WordsWords DeedsDeeds

SELF-AWARENESSSELF-AWARENESS MentalMental PhysicalPhysical

BEWARE!BEWARE!As the “official” team leader, or a manager, there are many As the “official” team leader, or a manager, there are many

ways of committing “teamicide”. A short list of the most ways of committing “teamicide”. A short list of the most common teamicide techniques include:common teamicide techniques include:

Defensive managementBureaucracyPhysical separationFragmentation of people’s timeQuality reduction of the productPhony deadlines

Defensive managementDefensive management ““People who feel untrusted People who feel untrusted

have little inclination to have little inclination to bond together into a bond together into a cooperative team.”cooperative team.”

NOTE: All quotes taken from Peopleware: Productive Projects and Teams, by Tom DeMarco and Timothy Lister

The only red tape your team needs is the finish tape….

BureaucracyBureaucracy “ “Mindless paper pushing is a waste.” It cripples Mindless paper pushing is a waste.” It cripples

productivity and team spirit.productivity and team spirit.

Physical separationPhysical separation When what could be a tightly coherent team is When what could be a tightly coherent team is

scattered over floors or in different buildings, scattered over floors or in different buildings, casual interactions are sacrificed. Casual casual interactions are sacrificed. Casual interaction is essential to team formation.interaction is essential to team formation.

Fragmentation of people’s timeFragmentation of people’s time ““Fragmentation is bad for team formation” Fragmentation is bad for team formation”

and bad for efficiency.and bad for efficiency.

Quality reduction of the team’s productQuality reduction of the team’s productAlmost always referred to as a “cost-reduced” product, Almost always referred to as a “cost-reduced” product,

but even when the result is deemed acceptable (less but even when the result is deemed acceptable (less quality for cheaper and earlier delivery), it can kill a quality for cheaper and earlier delivery), it can kill a team.team.

Phony deadlinesPhony deadlines Tight deadlines can be challenging. Phony ones Tight deadlines can be challenging. Phony ones

are just deadly.are just deadly.

A flexible approach to internal team dynamics orA flexible approach to internal team dynamics orthe hurdles a team faces is essential.the hurdles a team faces is essential.

I found out that if you are going to win games, you had better be ready to adapt.~ Scotty Bowman (Hall of Fame hockey coach)

Trust builds a team….Trust builds a team….

Trust is the lubrication that makes it possible for organizations to work.~ Warren Bennis

Honesty is essential in Honesty is essential in building trust and dealing with team conflictsbuilding trust and dealing with team conflicts

Dare to be honest and fear no labor.~ Robert Burns

Teams made up of dynamic, creative individuals Teams made up of dynamic, creative individuals will almost always will almost always

suffer from periods of conflict.suffer from periods of conflict.

Team PlayerTeam Player You have worked with six colleagues of the technical support group for almost a year now, and the team has accepted you. The group manager depends upon your team to sort things out among themselves when conflicts of opinion arise since she has undertaken responsibility this past year for the company’s first national consulting venture. The support group is a pretty independent team, but they’ve earned it with excellent performance and dependability. Each member of group has their own personality quirks, but you have noticed that during staff meetings or planning sessions one individual – Vern - seems to get angry very frequently.

During a brainstorming session about realigning staff support responsibilities, Vern is getting visibly more frustrated and upset. He is not the smoothest talker, and has a tendency to interrupt when he has a point he feels he must make. This causes miscommunications and a little resentment among the rest of the team members. In turn, they tend to be defensive and dismissive when Vern butts in. Finally, almost predictably, Vern jumps top his feet and yells, “Oh give me a break. This is a bunch of crap and you all know it. I’m out of here.” he storms out of the room, leaving a shocked silence in his wake.

Vern is, however, perhaps the best staff support person in the group. He has excellent technical skills, and despite being one of those folks who is not verbally adept, he has been able to establish a rapport with the folks for which he provides technical support that has been very useful for the group as a whole. When it comes to finding out which way the corporate winds of change are blowing, or to breaking bad news to the system users, Vern is the man to which the team turns.

After Vern slams the door, the rest of the group looks at each other. One says that they have to come up with a new support plan since next month they’re being tapped to provide tech support for the new national consulting initiative. Another points out that it would be a bad idea to try and decide anything about staff support without Vern involved. Everyone agrees that a break is in order. Should you:

1) Suggest that someone can go and bring Vern back to the table.

2) Use the break to call the team manager and let her know that all hell has broken loose?

3) Use the break to talk to Vern privately, find out what his suggestions are, and convince him to come back to the table saying that you, for one, want to hear his ideas discussed.

4) Le events take their course and try to lean from the situation.

WHY?

Team Player, Part 2Team Player, Part 2 Your support group has been stretched, providing internal staff technical support as well as assisting your manager’s project team in developing and implementing the company’s first venture into national consulting. One of the more annoying factors involved is the necessity for many meetings each week which must be conducted by video conferencing. These are time-consuming and sometimes not particularly productive since there is a tendency for each locale to go off on tangents that, while important t the project, may not be of concern to all sitting in on the meeting. One of the team members in your office – Carol - is an old acquaintance who has befriended you. She is ambitious, and you two are both well-suited to be considered candidates for promotion to the position of contract tech supervisor once this national project is up and running in a year or so. That is, assuming that your company and the project group can pull it all together so that the national consulting support contract is valid at it’s scheduled start date in a year. During these seemingly endless video conferencing meetings your friend Carol is often asked to use her unique expertise to address certain technical issues. She then has a tendency to run on about the various possibilities and pitfalls in almost excruciating detail, and although your manager (in another city) is patient it is obvious that Carol has lost most of the other conference participants. It is apparent to you that in this kind of situation the best way to handle things is to give a succinct answer and arrange to work with the questioner in more detail after the video conference.

Finally, during one of the video conferences, the discussion gets hated and generally focuses on areas where Carol’s expertise can be very telling. Yet, every time she begins to talk she is either ignored or cut off mid-sentence. After this happens a few times, she abruptly leaves the meeting. When the other participants notice that she has gone a few minutes later, you tell them she was ill and had to leave. You don’t tell them that you noticed tears in her eyes.

Should you:

1) Do nothing and watch from the sidelines.

2) Talk to Carol to see that she’s okay.

3) Talk to Carol, ask her what the problem was and if you could help.

4) Talk to Carol, ask her what the problem was, and when she responds that they were very disrespectful tactfully suggest that perhaps she needs to try a different video-conferencing modus operandi. Suggest that she save the detailed analyses and discussions for off-line because the video conferencing type of meeting works best as a touch-the-bases kind of thing.

WHY?

You canYou canhelp overcome team conflict by ….help overcome team conflict by ….

…BUILDING A WINNING TEAM

Team Conflict ManagementTeam Conflict ManagementEVALUATION QUESTIONSEVALUATION QUESTIONS

USE: USE:

– a. Strongly agreea. Strongly agree

– b. Agreeb. Agree

– c. Disagreec. Disagree

– d. Strongly d. Strongly disagreedisagree

– e. Don’t knowe. Don’t know

1. I found the presentation material easy to understand.

2. This Advantage session increasedMy knowledge of the subject presented.

3. I will be able to use some of the Information from this session in the future.

4. The presenter was well prepared for this Advantage session.

5. This presentation should be repeated in future semesters.