Conflict: Obstacle or Opportunity

How to Understand It, Resolve It, and Grow From It

Conflict has been described as a dangerous opportunity. When people resolve conflicts quickly and respectfully with a positive attitude, they become better business partners, increase their productivity, and provide effective responses to customer needs.  Alternatively, unresolved conflict impedes progress, creates unproductive tension, wastes large amounts of emotional energy, and can create debilitating stress and low morale. Conflict can drive creative process, improve collaborative partnerships, and delivers better results. But it can also threaten professional reputations, destroy trust, and hinder alignment and execution. We all have a stake in resolving conflicts in ways that preserve both the quality of our work, and the strength of our working relationships.

The key to managing conflict is to effectively manage the challenging conversations that need to happen including initiating conflict resolution, facilitating creative tension and differences of opinion, and addressing difficult issues. This session is designed to engage participants in an exploration of the tools and communication strategies that enable them to effectively manage conflict, facilitate constructive exchange of perspectives, and manage difficult conversations.

Learning Objectives

  • Respect constructive conflict as a necessary component of effective team work
  • Discuss sources and specific practical examples of conflict
  • Understand one’s own strategy in resolving conflict
  • Understand the dynamic that this strategy creates when working with other people
  • Manage the emotional side of conflict
  • Learn listening skills and communication strategies for facilitating constructive exchange of perspectives
  • Learn how to facilitate constructive conflict from your role as supervisor or employee
  • Learn strategies for managing difficult conversations
  • Practice formatting conversations to effectively manage conflicts
  • Apply these strategies to real workplace examples