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I.T.E.S.M.
Program Director:	Professor D.J. Bava

Organizational Conflict

• The discord that arises when goals, interests or values of different individuals or groups are incompatible and those people block or thwart each other's efforts to achieve their objectives.

• Conflict is inevitable given the wide range of goals for the different stakeholder in the organization.

– Lack of conflict signals that management emphasizes conformity and stifles innovation.
– Conflict is good for organizational performance although excessive conflict causes managers to spend too much time achieving their own ends.

Types of Conflict

Organizational Conflicts arise due to:

• Changes in technology

• Organizational re-structuring

• Global business demands

• Competitive pressures

Research across organizations reveals that leaders are more apt to demonstrate hard business skills than soft skills.

Sources of Conflict

Personal Problems along the Company are in some cases due the confrontation between bosses and people, some answer to this differences are:
- They don't believe that people can really develop
- They feel they don't get paid to develop others
- They believe they don't have the time for it
- They think they don't know how to develop people
- They think it is someone else's responsibility § 20% of skills are learned from interaction with bosses
While 20% doesn't seem like a significant influence, it still is the SECOND most significant influence!

The Effect of Conflict on Organization Performance

Conflict Management and Confronting Direct Reports

First of all, we are paradoxical

– we oftentimes savor conflict and confrontation, but do we do it when we should? And do we do it in the right way?

• For example, we are not comfortable at handling face-to-face conflict but we are very good at shouting at the bad driver

We are not good at providing negative feedback to an employee but we will carry our view into another arena and be able to express it to others

The reality is
- There is a deep discomfort (for most of us) with confrontation and conflict – being on both the giving and the receiving ends of it
- Let's reframe these terms into the familiar term Feedback

§ Organizational Conflicts should be solved by:

• Finding better ways to manage differences
• Improving the quality of major decisions by mastering effective group process
• Improving employee morale, productivity and work quality by reducing friction that gets in the way of work
• Help them live and work in a more efficient and harmonious manner and to utilize their time and resources more effectively

Power and Politics

Potential Reactions to Source of Power

Source of Organizational Power

Strategies to increase Power

• Control Uncertainty : managers who can reduce uncertainty for the firm increase power.
• Be Irreplaceable : develop valuable special knowledge or skills.
• Be in a Central Position : managers have crucial control over the firm's activities. They increase their power and can influence others.
• Generate Resources : managers who can hire skilled people or find financing.
• Build Alliances : develop mutually beneficial relations with others inside and outside the organization.

Strategies for Exercising Power

• Rely on Objective Information : impartial information causes others to feel the manager's course of action is correct.
• Bring in an Outside Expert : lends credibility to manager's proposal (when the expert agrees).
• Control the Agenda : influence those issues included (and those dropped) from the decision process.
• Make Everyone a Winner : everyone whose support is needed benefits personally from providing that support.