How to handle team conflict

Teams are when a group of people come together to with the same goal. Teams go through five stages of development Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing and Adjourning. Team conflict is most likely to occur in the storming phase when team members are competing for power and relationships have not yet developed.

When conflict does arise, there are styles to handle conflict: Competing, Avoiding, Compromising, Accommodating and Collaborating. (Daft, R. L. 2014 P.317). Competing using power to pursue your own interests. Avoiding when you ignore the concerns of others. Compromising to find mutually acceptable solution. Accommodating by ignoring your position and satisfy the other individual. Collaborating by working with the other individual to find a solution that satisfies all concerns. Depending on the situation, the leader must make the decision as to which method to take.

If the leader decides to fix the issue, they have several methods to alleviate through bargaining, Negotiating, Integrative Negotiation, Distributive Negotiation, Mediation and Facilitating Communication. Each depends on the severity of the issue and the communication level between those involved.

We all come from different backgrounds and experiences. It is amazing that we can communicate and get along in any form. The leader needs to be aware of the differences of the followers and try to build team cohesiveness.