The document discusses conflict resolution in the workplace. It defines conflict resolution as addressing differences to find common ground and work together peacefully. It provides examples of common workplace conflicts between coworkers, managers and supervisees, and clients/customers. It then outlines skills like active listening, perspective taking, and problem solving that can help resolve conflicts. Finally, it provides a 10 step process for resolving conflicts that includes staying calm, finding a resolution, and checking that agreements are lasting.

1. Teamwork & Conflict Resolution

2. What is conflict resolution?
• Conflicts in the workplace can arise when two or
more parties have different objectives, opinions or
styles. Conflict resolution is the art of addressing
those differences and finding common ground
that enables everyone to work together
peacefully. Sometimes, the person who resolves
a conflict may be a neutral party or mediator while
at other times, they may be someone involved in

3. What is conflict resolution?
• The ability to resolve conflicts is often seen as a
leadership trait. People who can identify conflicts,
acknowledge different opinions and build a
consensus are valuable to many organizations.
They make it more likely for personal differences
to be set aside so work can continue.

4. Examples of conflict in the workplace
• In the workplace, you may experience conflict
with a coworker, manager, vendor or client or
customer. Here are several examples of common
workplace conflicts:

5. Conflicts between coworkers
• Conflicts between coworkers may arise because
of different work styles and personal habits. They
can also arise from personal prejudices and
cultural differences.

6. Example 1
• Sarah regularly cleans out the shared refrigerator
in the break room. One day, she unknowingly
throws out Martin’s leftovers. The next day, Martin
discovers his food is missing and erupts at Sarah.
She responds by saying he should have clearly
marked his food. They both leave this exchange
feeling angry: Sarah feels under-appreciated for
the work she does to clean the office while Martin

7. Example 2
• Connor and Eli are assigned to a new project.
Connor already has an overwhelming workload
while Eli has more availability. Assuming that Eli
will take the lead, Connor doesn’t attend a few
meetings and neglects several tasks assigned to
him. Meanwhile, Eli doesn’t have insight into
Connor’s existing workload and interprets his lack
of initiative as laziness. Eli begins loudly

8. Conflicts between supervisors and supervisees
• There is an inherent power imbalance between
managers and their direct reports, which can
make conflicts between them difficult to navigate.
However, with patience and understanding, both
supervisors and supervisees have the ability to
resolve these disagreements.

9. Example 1
• Nadia is a sales manager who often steps in to
help her team members when there are
challenging moments. While some people
appreciate this, others have complained that she
is overly involved and micromanaging. A few
people on her team go to HR with their
complaints about her management style.

10. Example 2
• Derek is an outspoken leader who responds well
to people who are similarly vocal and extroverted
in group settings. However, a member of his
team, Sam, is shyer and prefers to express
themselves in one-on-one settings or writing.
After several of their ideas are overlooked in
strategy sessions, Sam tells Derek that they feel
demoralized and is considering other job

11. Conflicts between service providers and clients
•Disagreements between vendors and
their clients or customers can often arise
because of unclear communication or
expectations.

12. Example 1
•During the holiday season, Diana places
an order online for a gift for her
daughter. She receives an email after
the order is placed informing her that the
item is out of stock. She calls customer
service, upset that she will not receive

13. Example 2
•Carly’s company is redesigning its
website. She is working with a design
agency to create a new website. It was
her understanding that the project fee
includes sourcing images for the site,
but the agency believed that her team

14. Example conflict resolution skills
•Before we discuss the steps you can
take to resolve conflict, let’s cover the
skills that can help you navigate it
successfully. With each skill, there is an
example of how to apply it in different
scenarios.

15. Active listening
•Active listening is a crucial part of
conflict resolution. An employee
might be approached by someone
about a way in which their behavior
is disruptive, and by actively
listening, they can understand the

16. Bias for action
•Having a bias for action means assertively
seeking out the next steps rather than
waiting for someone else to do something. In
conflict resolution, this could manifest as a
coworker noticing they may have upset
someone else and actively seeking to
address that with them as soon as possible.

17. Perspective taking
• Perspective-taking is the ability to understand
someone else’s point of view. You can ask
yourself: "What are their thoughts, triggers and
observations?" For example, a client may call
customer service because they are confused
about how to use the company’s product. Even
though the customer service agent who receives
the call may understand clearly how to use the

18. Facilitation
•When there is conflict, you can arrange
the environment around you to make
resolution easier. For example, a
manager who oversees two different
groups might bring those groups
together in a comfortable conference

19. Mediation
•Mediation is when a neutral third party is
involved in the resolution of a conflict. A
mediator can be a trained professional,
someone from an outside group (such as
HR), or a person outside the conflict who
can provide an objective perspective. In
addition to all the other skills listed here, a

20. Problem solving
•Problem-solving skills help you
determine the source of a problem
and find an effective solution. During
conflict resolution, a manager might
use their problem-solving skills to
identify areas of compromise

21. Responsibility
•The ability to hold people responsible
for their actions is important in
conflict resolution. For example,
when an agreement is reached, an
HR representative may need to
check in a few days later to make

22. How to resolve conflict in 10 steps
•Stay calm and maintain steady body
language
•Find a private, comfortable place to discuss
the conflict
•Acknowledge that a problem exists
•Agree to find a resolution

23. How to resolve conflict in 10 steps
• Take note of what triggered the conflict
• Identify opportunities for compromise
• Agree on a plan for resolution
• Check in to make sure the agreement is lasting
• Involve HR or another third party if the conflict
continues

25. Teamwork & Conflict Resolution
When a work group begins to work as a team,
productivity and efficiency are increased. Teams
not only improve their work output, they also
develop the ability to police themselves and
resolve internal team conflicts. A team leader who
understands the various elements of teamwork
that assist in conflict resolution can better prepare
the team to take care of issues as they arise and

26. Equality
Equality in a team means that the team develops
methods for delegating responsibility and
performing work tasks that are equally effective for
all team members. It prevents team members from
feeling alienated from the rest of the group and
helps to build a strong sense of team purpose.
Encouraging a uniform distribution of responsibility
within a team helps prevent conflict. If conflict
happens because one or more team members feel

27. Respect for Hierarchy
A team develops its own hierarchy, designed to keep
the group running smoothly and effectively. But conflict
can arise when some members of the group feel that it
would be better served if their ideas were more
prominent in the team decision-making process. The
team needs to respect the group hierarchy to maintain
productivity. The one thing that can degrade the
hierarchy is ineffective leadership. This is where strong
team conflict resolution policies come into place. The

28. Support and Feedback
A team develops its own way of supporting
members and providing pertinent feedback.
Without team members supporting each other and
offering necessary feedback on work performance,
the group has no way of improving its productivity.
Conflict can arise when group members do not
communicate with each other and individuals do
not know if their performance within the group is

29. Diversity
Diversity can cause conflicts among team members.
Intolerance of diverse backgrounds can cause internal
conflict, and those kinds of conflicts are resolved by
developing an understanding for each other or by
dismissing the intolerant parties. But one aspect of
diversity that can create conflict is a feeling of
inadequacy. Team members with more experience or
that have a strong understanding of their job duties can
make other group members feel inadequate. Team

30. Diversity
Diversity can cause conflicts among team members.
Intolerance of diverse backgrounds can cause internal
conflict, and those kinds of conflicts are resolved by
developing an understanding for each other or by
dismissing the intolerant parties. But one aspect of
diversity that can create conflict is a feeling of
inadequacy. Team members with more experience or
that have a strong understanding of their job duties can
make other group members feel inadequate. Team