Reflection – Conflict Resolution

Reflection – Conflict Resolution

Scenario

One conflict I experienced at the workplace was caused by an office romance between a male supervisor and one female subordinate staff. Things were going well with the sales and marketing department subordinate staff, which consisted of about ten staff members. These workers had various responsibilities such as; customer service, scheduling appointments and meetings, answering customer questions, demonstrating products to customers, and closing sales. These responsibilities were many for only ten workers; it was work that was supposed to be done by at least twelve workers. The staff worked overtime and even during weekends to meet the targets. Things worked well until two female staff got involved in romantic relationships with supervisors within and outside the department. It started off as a casual relationship but later on, turned into a serious dating relationship coupled with sexual escapades. These ladies started absconding duties and lazing around, not performing as they used to because they knew their supervisors would not confront them about it.

Sometimes, the supervisors took the women on business trips for several days using excuses like they had gone to conduct marketing research in various places.  The amount of work overwhelmed the remaining eight employees, and the productivity dropped drastically. Complaints were made by the top management about the department’s performance and, even further, warnings of sacking. The in-fights within the staff against the ladies increased, and this stiffed productivity even further. Thus, romance in this department led to an ethical dilemma that destroyed the workplace environment. It reached a level where the management decided it was good to examine and review the department’s work after realizing that there was a significant conflict.  An urgent conflict resolution was needed for this department to be better again.

 Approach to conflict resolution

Some of the steps I could take to resolve such a conflict are; first, I would restate the policies and expectations. The workers who engaged in romantic relationships probably did not know or understand the policies and expectations at their workspace (Kusi, 2019). As a human resource professional, I would clearly outline and communicate behavior expectations to the employees. One point that should be noted is that office relationships are not a problem. However, the critical question is whether the relationship affects productivity (Beard, 2021). If the relationship affects productivity, as seen in the scenario, it can become an issue that causes resentment, disharmony, and hatred among the employees. Thus, such problems that are perceived as a conflict of interest can best be addressed by clear policies that outline what employees need to do.

The second step I would take to address the situation is encouraging disclosure of employee relationships where there is a conflict of interest. Employees are not supposed to disclose their relationships if they are minor. However, suppose the relationships can cause issues at the place of work and affect productivity. In that case, the parties involved in the relationships should make the relationships known to the human resource team and co-workers (Lickey, Berry, & Berry, 2009). In this case, I would ask the persons in the relationships to open up to clear gossip, let people know that they are in a relationship, and advise them to focus on the work to ensure that productivity is not affected (Gallo, 2019). There are many benefits of disclosing a relationship; transparency alone can help fix some conflicts of interest issues. Opening up can also help the organization resolve issues that may arise later.

Acting in good faith is another step I would take in resolving the conflict. I understand that it is always a mistake to jump to conclusions or punish the employees involved through disciplinary actions before ascertaining (Lickey, Berry, & Berry, 2009).  The best way to manage such a challenge is to apply the general rules of the organization; this helps in fulfilling good faith obligations.

References

Beard, G. (2021). Workplace Romance Gone Bad. https://www.worklogic.com.au/resources/newsletters/workplace-mediations/workplace-romance-gone-bad/

Gallo, A. (2019). How to Approach an Office Romance (and How Not To). Harvard Business School.  https://hbr.org/2019/02/how-to-approach-an-office-romance-and-how-not-to

Kusi A. (2019). Conflict of Interest – An Interracial Office Romance Novel: Orchard Inn. Our Peaceful Family,

Lickey, N., Berry, G & Berry, K. (2009). Responding to Workplace Romance: A Proactive and Pragmatic Approach. The Journal of Business Inquiry 2009, 8, 1, http//www.uvu.edu/woodbury/jbi/volume 8 100-1

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Reflection – Conflict Resolution

Conflict is inevitable. Identifying challenging or potential conflict situations and addressing them early on can be helpful to everyone involved. However, there are times when conflict management strategies are not enough, and the situation calls for conflict resolution. For human resource professionals, the first step in conflict resolution is taking on the role of investigator, which requires being an active listener and asking questions to understand the perspectives of each of the parties involved. It is critical to refrain from taking sides or imposing your own opinions at this stage, as the discovery process is an essential part of conflict resolution.

Begin by taking time to consider workplace situations in which you have been involved, heard about, and/or read about. Conceptualize your own example of a situation in an organization that might require an HR professional to be involved with conflict resolution.
Then, complete this Assignment by reviewing the Learning Resources for this week and identifying other key resources you may need in order to respond to the following key points in a 2- to 3-page academic paper.

Part 1: Describe Your Conflict Resolution Scenario
Provide a 1-page summary of your conflict resolution situation, including the following information:
The setting
The parties involved and each person’s role within the setting and in the conflict
The sequence of events that led up to the possible need for conflict resolution and the actions and motivations of each of the parties involved.

Part 2: Explain Your Approach to Resolving the Conflict
After reviewing a variety of conflict resolution strategies and approaches, take time to develop your own, i.e., a series of steps that you recommend using in this situation. You can choose one of the conflict resolution approaches from the resources OR combine steps from various resources. Be specific as you explain your rationale, making sure that you articulate your reasons for each of the steps you include.