Conflict Management and Conflict Research Paper

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Teams, Diversity, Stakeholders, and Organizational Conflict

The role of leadership in managing conflict in interpersonal, team, and organizational contexts in times of change, with a particular focus on downsizing

The term leadership can be defined as the actions an individual takes when he or she directs the activities of a team or group. the behavioral aspects or actions taken by a leader to influence his team and to help the team cope with change are some of the most important aspects of leadership (Abdulaziz Al-Sawai, 2013). Whenever a leader announces change in a company, it is only natural for employees to hope that the outcomes would affect them advantageously. All staffs normally hope that the management or the supervisors will take into account their efforts and needs. Hence, trust between the employees and their leaders is one of the most crucial factors in influencing how employees will react in response to proposed changes (Roy Smollan, 2012). In the modern-day business environment that is characterized by constant economic, political, social and technological changes, organizations must always constantly adapt to thrive. Many organizations have employed strong and effective leaders to guide them through the constantly fluctuating business environment. In order to thrive, organizations must strategize and transform their practices and not just make mere cosmetic changes (Prof. Dr. Didier Cossin & Dr. Jose Caballero, 2013).

Organizational Conflict Management

Many leaders often think that discussions of fundamental terms are not important. However, this is not always true. To take the best and most logical approaches, one needs to carry out a proper, systematic analysis. One must anticipate the implications before taking action. If, for instance, a leader sees a problem and realizes that it is caused by unchangeable human qualities related to perceptions of incompatibility, scarce resources, and interdependence, he or she may readily accept the situation and find out its root causes, provided that he is aware of the need for conflict management in such a scenario (Jacob Bercovitch). To comprehend team leadership, one first needs to understand how teams function. It is only by understanding team functioning, can one better comprehend the role of leadership in facilitating teamwork and effectiveness. This team focus distinguishes team leadership from traditional models of leadership as it mainly focuses on teams as a unit (Frederick P. Morgeson, D. Scott Derue, & Elizabeth P. Karam, 2010). Companies have to revise their strategic planning and place even more emphasis on critical and strategic thinking and leadership (Jennifer Schurer Coldiron, 2011).

To provide better leadership, one needs to focus on relationships for it is only on the foundation of relationships that big achievements and success can be accomplished (The Institute of Cost Accountants of India, 2013). Seemingly, classical organization theorists did not appreciate the effects of conflict on organizations. They thought that conflict was negative to companies and their efficiency and that they ought to be minimized. They came up with rules, chain of command, hierarchy, and the likes to minimize the likelihood of conflict between organization members. This approach was based on the notion that the absence of conflict was the best way to achieve organizational efficiency (M. Afzalur Rahim, 2001). This is partly true but as we will see, conflicts and their management offer more than mere changes on efficiency.

Role of Leadership

Since leadership is key to propelling organizations forward, effective and competent leaders are capable of envisioning a future for the organizations and implementing change in the best way possible should always handle initiation and implementation of big changes in organizations. Organizational leadership is about charm or being dominant and authoritative. It is about having the capability to merge company interests and employee needs in order to achieve common objectives (Wasim Abbas & Imran Asghar, 2010).

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To be a strong and competent leader, one must continuously practice and have an understanding of staff and company needs. This is the only way through which sustainable long-term change can be achieved (Szu-Fang Chuang, 2013). Upon understanding the needs of both the company and the staff, leaders then ought to use their negotiation skills to induce growth. Whenever there is conflict between two parties, there is need for negotiations. Negotiation skills are important for managing intergroup, intra-group and interpersonal conflicts. Since leaders spend a significant amount of time dealing with conflict, there is a need for them to learn how to be better negotiators. Some time they do have to mediate between staffs, other times they are required to negotiate with their peers and superiors (M. Afzalur Rahim, 2001). In either case, being a better negotiator will always help one to manage conflicts more effectively.

2. Analyze the potential external conflicts that may arise among stakeholders that may touch any of the following factors: political, legal, social, cultural, economic, technological, and environmental. Identify the stakeholder group and provide details about the type of conflict the downsizing may have on the group

According to Wassim Abbas and Imran Asghar (2010), there are many internal and external factors including social, cultural, political, technological and global factors that may bring about conflict in organizations. To find out the root causes of such problems one needs to overcome the defensive reactions of some of the members. One also needs to be ready to confront problems that are risky or that may tilt political equations (M. Afzalur Rahim, 2001). The stakeholder group identified here are the staffs.

Political: When some decisions are made, they might be perceived to be against the interests of some stakeholders. Some of these stakeholders may then attempt to use their positions, power or political influence to discredit or manipulate decisions to their favor (Helder Moura & Jose Cardoso Teixeira, 2016).

Social: Employee unions are social organizations. In some cases, they may support a project and in others, they might seek to influence a project to get the most out of it (Helder Moura & Jose Cardoso Teixeira, 2016).

Economic: Economic conflicts may arise due to parties refusing to take cuts or perceiving some proposals as disadvantageous to their economic health.

Technology: Having to choose between different technological alternatives is always a source of conflict. Some employees may think they know certain situations better and insist on continuing using the same technology they have been using (Helder Moura & Jose Cardoso Teixeira, 2016).

Environmental: Measures should always be taken to minimize the environmental impact of projects. If not, conflict will always arise in cases where different parties think that enough has not been done to reduce hazards (Helder Moura & Jose Cardoso Teixeira, 2016).

Stakeholder Management

A key stakeholder is an individual who has a high level of interest or has a lot of influence in an organization or in a project. A key stakeholder has a higher likelihood than other stakeholders of further complicating a conflict if his or her needs are not met. It is, therefore, important to keep a key stakeholder informed and to try and convince them first before announcing any action. Other types of stakeholders include keep-satisfied stakeholders, keep-informed stakeholder, and minimal-effort group. Keep-informed stakeholders simply need to be informed and can potentially become opponents to projects. They include landowners and environmental groups. Keep-satisfied stakeholders hold great influence and are often passive; implying that, conflict can easily be avoided with them by keeping them happy. They include investors and authorities. The minimal effort groups….....

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