Conflict and Negotiation

Learning goals

• Conflict, whether it is expressed or not, is a normal process of social interaction.

• Conflict needs to managed effectively. • Different ways to manage conflict: need to

have flexibility to and wisdom to decide which one is most effective.

• The are of negotiation: cooperation vs competition.

Everyone

• Write down a situation on a sheet of paper in which you experienced disagreement/conflict—best if work, student group, or volunteer organizations. Current one would even be better. Who was conflict with: what was the source of conflict. Did it get resolved. How? Will turn it in later for points. Something you can share with others.

conflict

• Book definition: a process when one party perceives that another party has negatively affected, or is about to negatively affect something that the first party cares about.

• Implies that conflict appears to be negative.

Question

• Conflict destroys harmony

• OR

• Conflict is the means by which harmony is created.

Is conflict

• Functional—improves performance over the long term

• OR

• Dysfunctional—hinders performance over the long term.

Examples of Functional conflict

• Saturn and Car manufacturer Union and Management

• Book lists Tokyo String quartet p. 389

• Management style promotion of conflict among subordinates (Eisner and Disney).

Stage V: Functional OutcomesStage V: Functional Outcomes

• Improve quality of decisions

• Boost innovation and creativity

• Allow for interest and curiosity

• Vent problems and tensions

• Promote self-evaluation

Examples of Dysfunctional Conflict

• Organizational change efforts. Dragonfly airlines (often vertical conflict).

• A person voted against me when I was promoted to Full Professor.

• Problems between store managers and warehouse.

• Between production and R and D.

When does functional conflict become dysfunctional?

• Unresolved conflict

• Character/Personality attributions

• Conflict interferes with trust

• Communication impediments

• In Hong Kong—reflect on conflicts. Which is most common? Share and meet in teams.

Stage V: Dysfunctional Stage V: Dysfunctional OutcomesOutcomes

• Impede communication

• Reduce cohesiveness

• Replace goals with infighting

• Halt group functioning

• Threaten group survival

Conflict and Unit PerformanceConflict and Unit PerformanceU

nit

P

erfo

rman

ce

High

Low Level of Conflict High

A B C

Situation

A

B

C

Conflict Level Conflict Type Internal Characteristics Outcomes

Low or none

Optimal

High

Dysfunctional

Functional

Dysfunctional

Apathetic, stagnant

Viable, innovative

Disruptive, chaotic

Low

High

Low

The Conflict Process

Antecedent Conditions:Antecedent Conditions:• CommunicationCommunication• StructureStructure• Personal VariablesPersonal Variables

PerceivedPerceivedConflictConflict

FeltFeltConflictConflict

Overt Conflict:Overt Conflict:• Party’s BehaviorParty’s Behavior• Other’s ReactionOther’s Reaction

IncreasedIncreasedGroupGroup

PerformancePerformance

DecreasedDecreasedGroupGroup

PerformancePerformance

Conflict-HandlingConflict-HandlingIntentions:Intentions:• CompetitionCompetition• CollaborationCollaboration• AccommodationAccommodation• AvoidanceAvoidance• CompromiseCompromise

Stage IPotential Opposition

Stage IIIIntentions

Stage VOutcomes

Stage IVBehavior

Stage IICognition and Personalization

Be familiar with whole model for exam

• Highlight more important elements.

What causes conflict?

• Case Brenda and Compensation.

• What is causing this?

Book Lists

• Communication—too much, too little, incorrect information, miscommunications.

• Structure—different goals, different reward systems, different work styles, different leadership styles. Mostly interunit conflict.

• Personality—authoritarian, differences in personality (such as decision making styles). Come to Personality later in the course. Agreeable/adaptable people avoid conflict.

Meet in Teams to discuss what could be done to prevent this.

• Good management is the prevention of dysfunctional conflict.

Stage 3 intentions conflict management

• Strategies to approach perceived or felt conflict.

• Self test complete know. Turn it in for participation points later. Share results with team members. Feedback for more effective groups in a bit.

collaborating

• Problem solving. One side expresses concerns, other side expresses concerns, find common goal. Work to find a creative solution the meets the concerns of both sides. Sides agree only when mutually acceptable. No pressure is applied.

• Easier with perceived conflict

accommodating

• Cooperation--the other side is right.

• Easy to do, hard to say for competitive people.

• Depends on level of importance or perceived threat.

competing

• I’m right and rationalize why.• Argumentative.• Resorting to strong power strategies--Use of

Coercion--I will do X.• Sometimes use incentives (leads to obliging

by other side).• Win at all costs.• Normal with felt conflict

Avoiding

• Some find this easy to do.

• Problems disappear. (Mountains and molehills).

• People with more work experience more likely to do this.

Compromising

• Mutual give and take. Neither side gets their goals met.

• Less than perfect solutions.

• Lots of negotiation.

Effectiveness

• Good supervisors say collaborating and accommodating are used more frequently

• Poor supervisors say collaborating and competing used more frequently.

Research also suggests

• May be effective to use anyone at any time.• Avoiding--heated• Competing--quick solutions; resources to

counter resistance.• Compromising--values (no clear right and

wrong).• Accommodating—do not pick fights you

are going to loose.

Good Managers need the skills to do all of these! Hard for some to do given personalities and natural

tendencies.

Negotiation

• Available Resources

• Primary Motivations

• Primary Interests

• Focus of Relationships

• Fixed Amount

• I Win, You Lose

• Opposed

• Short-Term

• Variable Amount

• I Win, You Win

• Congruent

• Long-Term

IntegrativeBargaining

DistributiveBargaining

BargainingCharacteristics

The Two Types ofThe Two Types ofNegotiating StrategiesNegotiating Strategies

The Two Types ofThe Two Types ofNegotiating StrategiesNegotiating Strategies

Role play

• Count off by 3s.

Summary and feedback

• Go back to conflict. Reflect: Functional/ dysfunctional. Think of your current intentions for conflict management. Use the same or different. How can you apply the concepts if Different. What did you do successfully?

• Two things you can do to address conflicts?Current/future conflicts.