Leading through Conflict

1. Leading through Conflict Presented by: Dr. Amy Wallis, Professor of Practice Wake Forest University School of Business

2. “If the two of us agree on everything, then one of us is unnecessary.” Anonymous

3. What causes conflict? • Incompatible personalities/values • Unclear job boundaries • Competition for limited resources • Unreasonable rules or expectations • Dependence on one another to get work done • Inadequate communication • Extreme time pressure • Decision making styles Adapted from Filley, 1975.

4. Three types of conflict Relationship Conflict Task Conflict Process Conflict Conflict over what task we are seeking to accomplish, the goal of the task, the purpose of our shared work. Conflict over how we will accomplish our goal or complete the task, the process we will undertake. Conflict over how we interact or feel about each other, which influences how we work together. What? How? Who?

5. Some Tools for Your Toolbox

6. Styles of handling conflict Collaborating Competing Assertive Compromising Assertiveness Unassertive Accommodating Avoiding Cooperative Uncooperative Cooperativeness

7. What you can do • Recognize your own style and when it works and doesn’t work for you • Adapt to fit the situation • Acknowledge others’ styles and that each style works under some circumstances • Help others use their styles to the benefit of the group or team • Ask questions to understand underlying motivations • Don’t assume that others behave in a certain way for the same reasons you would

8. Balancing advocacy and inquiry Explaining Asserting Dictating Dialoguing Exploring Politicking High ADVOCACY Sensing Bystanding Withdrawing Interviewing Clarifying Interrogating Low High Low INQUIRY Adapted from The Fifth Discipline Fieldbook by Peter Senge.

9. What you can do • Seek opportunities to understand others’ reasoning • Ask questions that deepen your clarity on the other’s position • Identify shared goals and interests • Use these as a basis for decision-making • Determine your patterns of advocacy and inquiry in conflict, and adapt when needed

10. How to have a good fight From “How Management Teams Can Have a Good Fight”, HBR.

11. What you can do • Use the “contact hypothesis” to support group cohesion • The more exposure groups have to one another, the less intergroup conflict they will experience • Build “programmed conflict” into your daily life • Create opportunities for task conflict and process conflict to occur • Brainstorming • Appointing a devil’s advocate

12. Questions? Comments? Concerns?