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Conflict in the workplace can have awful consequences. A large UK study found that of the 10 million people who experienced conflict at work, just under 900,000 took time off work, nearly 500,000 resigned, and more than 300,000 employees were dismissed. \(1\)

But, while conflict can make people feel sick, stressed, or angry, it also presents opportunities for growth, innovation, and stronger relationships when managed effectively.

Our live virtual[ ](https://www.thegrowthfaculty.com/event.php?eventId=a1J9g000000QkkpEAC)[Emerging Leaders Program](https://www.thegrowthfaculty.com/blog/emergingleadersprogramsummary) covers [having difficult conversations](https://www.thegrowthfaculty.com/blog/communicationskillsforgreatleadership) within its **communication** module. As well, our masterclass [Radical Candor with Jonny Camara](https://www.thegrowthfaculty.com/blog/feedbackteamradicalcandor)[ ](https://www.thegrowthfaculty.com/event.php?eventId=a1J9g000000QvxuEAC)dealt with feedback "dance" of **caring personally** while **challenging directly**. Aside from these wonderful lessons, let's look at what _not to do_ , plus examples, strategies, and communication skills to navigate and resolve conflicts successfully.

**Firstly, Defensive Avoidance Does Not Resolve Conflicts**

Avoiding or withdrawing from a conflict rather than confronting it directly \( _“No, no, it’s fine, really”_ \) is known as “defensive avoidance.”

It’s a common conflict resolution strategy that leaders or team members adopt when faced with conflicts or uncomfortable situations.

Totally understandable. You want to protect yourself from potential harm, discomfort, or negative emotions associated with conflict, so you ignore it – hoping the conflict will resolve itself.

What you get is temporary relief but it often fails to address the underlying issues and can lead to negative consequences in the long run.

**What Happens When Conflict Resolution Is Avoided?**

Several consequences arise by pretending everything is okay when it’s not.

**The monster grows two heads**

When conflicts are avoided, unresolved issues tend to accumulate over time, potentially exacerbating the conflict. It’s like the monster has grown two heads. What may have started as a minor disagreement can escalate into a more significant problem if left unaddressed. Avoiding conflict allows tensions to fester, making resolution more challenging in the future.

**You weaken trust and stymie communication**

[Trust ](https://www.thegrowthfaculty.com/blog/buildtrustinworkplace)is eroded among team members or colleagues. When conflicts are consistently avoided, it sends a message that open and honest communication is not valued. Over time, this lack of communication can weaken relationships, hinder collaboration, and diminish overall team effectiveness.

**You miss those opportunities to grow**

By avoiding conflicts, team members and leaders miss out on opportunities to grow and improve. Managed well, conflicts can clear the air, address underlying issues, find creative solutions, and foster personal and professional development.

**You create a toxic culture**

Unresolved conflicts can create tension and stress within the workplace, leading to backstabbing, a[ toxic workplace](https://www.thegrowthfaculty.com/blog/Toxicworkplaceculture), and decreased productivity and disengagement among employees.

When conflicts are avoided, individuals may become preoccupied with the unresolved issues, affecting their ability to focus on their work and contribute effectively to the team.

**6 Conflict Resolution Skill Examples for Leaders**

If you accept conflict is an inevitable aspect of any workplace, it pays to learn why it happens and how to deal with it.

- **Conflict: Difference in Work Styles**

- **Resolution Skill: Effective Communication and Active Listening**

Leaders should encourage open communication and active listening to understand each person's preferred work style. Michael Bungay Stanier says that by having a constructive “keystone conversation,” you can learn to [work with \(almost\) anyone](https://www.thegrowthfaculty.com/blog/workplacerelationships). It certainly helps to establish guidelines that accommodate different work styles while ensuring productivity and collaboration.

- **Conflict: Miscommunication or Misunderstandings**

- **Resolution Skill: Clear Communication and Clarification**

As research professor Dr Brené Brown is famous for saying, [being unclear is unkind](https://www.thegrowthfaculty.com/blog/BrenBrown4reasonsbeingUnclearisUnkind). Leaders at all times should promote clear and concise communication to address miscommunication or misunderstandings. People tend to fill an information vacuum with assumptions or false information.

If colleagues and leaders can communicate clearly, show they care, and practise [radical candour](https://www.thegrowthfaculty.com/blog/radicalcandorgivingfeedback) \(caring personally while challenging directly\), it goes a long way to resolving conflicts arising from communication breakdowns.

- **Conflict: Task or Role Ambiguity**

- **Resolution Skill: Problem-Solving and Negotiation**

Leaders should facilitate problem-solving discussions to clarify tasks or roles that are causing conflict. As accountability expert Mark Green taught [our accountability masterclass](https://www.thegrowthfaculty.com/blog/accountabilityproductivity), every team member should know the answer to the question: _What is expected of me in my role?_

By engaging the parties involved, leaders can gather input, define responsibilities, and negotiate agreements that provide clarity and alignment with organisational goals.

- **Conflict: Personality Clashes**

- **Resolution Skill: Emotional Intelligence and Mediation**

Leaders should leverage their emotional intelligence skills to manage conflicts resulting from personality clashes. While [taming their “advice monster,”](https://www.thegrowthfaculty.com/blog/advicemonsterdemotivatingteam) they can act as mediators, encouraging open dialogue, and helping individuals understand each other's perspectives.

By focusing on building empathy and finding common ground, leaders can facilitate conflict resolution.

- **Conflict: Resource Allocation Disputes**

- **Resolution Skill: Collaboration and Win-Win Solutions**

When money or time is tight, there is bound to be competing needs or preferences regarding the allocation of those resources. The resolution here is to define clear objectives and establish transparent criteria for resource allocation, based on the priorities and strategic goals of the organisation – taking into account stakeholder input. This helps provide a fair and consistent framework for decision-making.

- **Conflict: Interdepartmental Conflicts**

- **Resolution Skill: Facilitation and Collaboration**

Operating in silos, power struggles, different priorities. It’s no wonder conflicts between departments are common. Leaders can facilitate conflict resolution by organising meetings where representatives from each department can voice their concerns and perspectives. By fostering cross-departmental communication and collaboration both during and outside instances of conflict, leaders can help the departments find common ground and work towards shared goals.

**How Conflict Resolution Skills Avoid Dysfunction**

“Fear of conflict” is named by Patrick Lencioni as one of the [5 dysfunctions of a team](https://www.thegrowthfaculty.com/blog/fivedysfunctionsofateam) in his book of the same name.

Here’s what he says about it:

_"Conflict is a good thing on a team, but not inter-personal conflict. It’s ideological conflict – conflict around ideas – conflict around the pursuit of truth._

_"When there is trust you can argue without the sting. When we don’t have conflict around ideas and issues we get_**_‘artificial harmony’_**_which eventually ferments into conflict around people. They start to dislike each other."_

Biting the bullet and leaning into conflict helps in these ways:

**Fostering a Positive Work Environment**

When conflicts are addressed promptly and constructively, employees feel heard and valued. This leads to increased job satisfaction, engagement, and productivity.

**Enhancing Collaboration and Teamwork**

By encouraging open communication and problem-solving, conflicts that stay above the personal can be transformed into opportunities for brainstorming, creativity, and innovation. When team members feel safe expressing their opinions and concerns, they can work together more cohesively.

**Retaining and Attracting Talent**

Skilled leaders who can address conflicts professionally and respectfully create a high-performance culture that fosters growth, development, and employee satisfaction. Prospective employees are more likely to join an organisation that values open communication and conflict resolution.

**Communication Skills to Resolve Conflict**

1\. **Active Listening**

This is fully engaging with the speaker, showing empathy, and seeking to understand their perspective without interruption. By listening attentively, leaders can identify the underlying issues causing the conflict and work towards finding common ground.

**Tip:** Michael Bungay Stanier suggests you keep the conversation going by asking _“And, what else?”_

2. **Nonviolent Communication**

Nonviolent communication focuses on expressing oneself assertively while being considerate of others' feelings and needs. It involves using "I" statements to convey thoughts and emotions without blaming or criticising others. By using nonviolent communication techniques, leaders can de-escalate conflicts and create an atmosphere of mutual respect.

**Tip:** Read the [story](https://www.thegrowthfaculty.com/blog/radicalcandorgivingfeedback) of Radical Candor coach Amy Sandler being corrected by her boss for interrupting her team members. He began with: _“I know how much you care about your team and you’re going to lose them. I believe you can be a great manager, and a great manager lets their team shine.”_

3. **Emotional Intelligence**

[Emotional intelligence](https://www.thegrowthfaculty.com/blog/emotionalintelligence) plays a vital role in conflict resolution. Leaders with high emotional intelligence can understand and manage their own emotions while empathising with others. By recognising and validating emotions, leaders can defuse tension and find collaborative solutions to conflicts.

**Tip** : Seek out [leadership development training](https://www.thegrowthfaculty.com/blog/leadershipdevelopment) that deals with[ soft skills](https://www.thegrowthfaculty.com/blog/measuresoftskills). Emotional intelligence and self-awareness are essential skills for building high performance teams.

**Communication Strategies to Resolve Conflict**

[Leadership training](https://www.thegrowthfaculty.com/blog/emergingleadersleadershiptraining) in communication skills and conflict management skills are among the most important things you can do for your career, to develop your emerging leaders, and to ensure your organisation’s success. Communication strategies to resolve conflict could encompass:

- [**Developing psychological safety at work**.](https://www.thegrowthfaculty.com/blog/psychologicallysafeworkplaces) Encouraging open dialogue by creating a safe and inclusive space for employees to express their concerns. Emphasise the importance of active listening, respect, and constructive feedback. Attend seminars and [events on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion \(DEI\)](https://www.thegrowthfaculty.com/event.php?eventId=a1J9g000000Qjd5EAC). Work to uncover the root causes of conflicts to guide discussions towards resolution.

- **Seek Win-Win Solutions.** Having both parties feel satisfied with the resolution doesn’t always happen, but leaders should facilitate discussions that focus on common interests and shared goals. By exploring creative solutions together, leaders can foster cooperation and build stronger relationships among team members.

- **Mediation and Negotiation**. Leaders should possess mediation and negotiation skills to resolve conflicts between team members or departments. By acting as a neutral third party, they can help individuals find common ground and reach mutually beneficial agreements.

- **Emotional Regulation**. Conflict management requires leaders to have good [soft skills](https://www.thegrowthfaculty.com/blog/measuresoftskills) so they can regulate their emotions and remain calm and composed during tense situations. As Michael Bunting says in his [book Vertical Growth](https://www.thegrowthfaculty.com/blog/verticalgrowth), this requires self-awareness. By modelling emotional regulation, leaders can encourage others to approach conflicts with a level-headed and solution-oriented mindset.

**Invest in Your Learning With Membership to Growth Faculty**

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Reference:

1\. Workplace Conflict Statistics 2023: Costs & Outcomes, [Gitnux Market Data](https://thegrowthfaculty-my.sharepoint.com/personal/christine_growthfaculty_com/Documents/Workplace%20Conflict%20Statistics%202023:%20Costs%20&%20Outcomes)

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Conflict Resolution Skills in the Workplace: Skills, Strategies & Examples

Beware the cost of pretending everything is okay when it’s not

Keep informed
Stay Inspired

Conflict Resolution Skills in the Workplace: Skills, Strategies & Examples

Beware the cost of pretending everything is okay when it’s not

Keep informedStay Inspired

Keep informed
Stay Inspired