THis is a marketing ppt. Use it to understand a lot more about conflict strategies etc.

1. Conflict- causes and
Strategies
Aaron Abhilash
Assistant Professor
NMIMS Hyderabad

2. • According to SR Robbins
“Conflict is a process in which an
effort is purposefully made by a
person or unit to block another
that result in frustrating the
attainment of others goals or
furthering of his or her
interests.”

3. • Conflict can be defined as a difference that exists between needs, values,
and interests of individuals or groups in an organization.
• Conflict is any situation in which two or more parties feel themselves in
opposition. It is an interpersonal process that arises from disagreements
over the goals or the methods to accomplish those goals.
• Conflict can be constructive, and it can be destructive. The distinction is
based on how the conflict is managed.
• There are both advantages and limitations for the conflict.
• Conflict can happen within an individual, between the individuals, in a
group etc.

4. Causes of the conflicts
Scarcity of resources:
• People require resources or means to perform their tasks, duties and
responsibilities.
• If the resources are limited, the competition would be high.
• In a competitive environment, conflict easily arises, because every one
would be trying for the same resource which is actually not sufficient.
• Example:
• Law students and Engineering students having a conflict when trying to
book the one and only seminar room in the college at the same time.

5. Task interdependence:
• If there is interdependence on each other in the work process, then
the expectations on one another exist in a team
• Since the performance levels are not uniform among the employees,
the unmet expectations can lead to conflict.
• Example: Manager wants his subordinate to prepare a report for his
meeting and failure from employee end to do so will lead to conflict.

6. Goal difference:
• The goal is the basis for organizational performance.
• All activities of the individuals concentrate on achieving
predetermined goals.
• Therefore, if individuals in the same group initiate different goals it
may cause conflict among group members.
• Because of the goals, the priorities also differ among the individuals.

7. • For example, a sales manager’s bonus may be tied to how many sales
are made for the company.
• As a result, the individual might be tempted to offer customers
“freebies” such as expedited delivery in order to make the sale.
• In contrast, a transportation manager’s compensation may be based
on how much money the company saves on transit.
• In this case, the goal might be to eliminate expedited delivery
because it adds expense.
• The two will enter into the conflict until the company resolves the
conflict by changing the compensation scheme

8. Lack of role clarification:
• People of a company perform various roles that are interrelated to
one another.
• The absence of role exposition among people generates conflict. It
can create role conflict.
• For example, role conflict between production and marketing
managers.
• Thus, it is necessary to make a proper division of work and delegation
of authority on the basis of responsibility.

9. Poor communication:
• Communication is the means of exchanging guidance, instructions,
and suggestions between the members of the organization.
• The poor communication system in the organization creates the
problem of exact transformation of information among the group
members, which leads to conflict among them.
• Thus, there must a two-way communication system in order to make
proper communication.

10. Organizational changes:
• Changes in organizational structure, division of work, authority and
responsibility, etc. are essential to cope with environmental changes.
• Such changes can change the job liability, status, position, and
authority of the people in the group.
• It can change the formal relationship and job responsibility of group
members.
• This also may be one of the reasons for conflict among group
members of the organization.

11. Misunderstanding:
• Misunderstanding is one of the major causes of conflict in the
organization.
• When employees do not understand their tasks, roles, and
responsibilities conflict arises.
• Due to this, they may not complete their tasks as the manager
expected from them.
• It may be due to poor communication from manager to employees.

12. Personal differences:
• Personal differences are the fundamental causes of interpersonal
conflict in the organization.
• The differences occur in the individual due to various reasons such as
family background, values, attitudes, traditions, culture, education,
and socialization process.
• Personality differences create conflict among people. It affects on
emotions of individuals.

13. Information deficiency:
• Communication breakdown is one of the reasons for conflict.
• The lack of close communication and transformation of rigid
information create misunderstanding among the people.
• It creates the problem of distrust and conflict.
• Therefore, it is essential to communicate the right information at the
right time to the related persons.

14. Organisational structure:

15. Conflict resolving strategies

17. • Kenneth W. Thomas and Ralph H. Kilmann studied workers and their
routine conflicts in the workplace.
• Over time, they were able to observe a pattern of ways in which
people resolved conflict; most methods could be distilled down to
five core methods.
• These five options formed the basis of the Thomas Kilmann Conflict
Model Instrument and the Thomas Kilmann Conflict Resolution
Model.
• The model has two approaches, also known as “dimensions”:
assertiveness and cooperation.

18. Conflict Resolution Strategy #1: Avoiding
• Avoiding is when people just ignore or withdraw from the conflict.
• They choose this method when the discomfort of confrontation
exceeds the potential reward of resolution of the conflict.
• While this might seem easy to accommodate for the facilitator,
people aren’t really contributing anything of value to the conversation
and may be withholding worthwhile ideas.
• When conflict is avoided, nothing is resolved but it may also gives
mental comfort which is lacked when entered into conflict.
• This approach can be used for minor conflicts or when we are not
directly linked to conflicting situation.

19. Conflict Resolution Strategy #2: Competing
• This strategy is marked by High assertiveness and low cooperativeness.
• Competing is used by people who go into a conflict planning to win
• This method is characterized by the assumption that one side wins and
everyone else loses.
• It doesn’t allow room for diverse perspectives into a well informed total
picture.
• Competing might work in sports or war, but it’s rarely a good strategy for
group problem solving.
• If both the parties are of equal stance, then the problem will never be
resolved.

20. Conflict Resolution Strategy #3: Collaboration
• Collaboration strategy is marked by high assertiveness and high
cooperation from both the parties.
• Here the parties listen to one another and try to understand the other
version.
• They will be adamant on their “opinion” in the conflict but at the same
time, they also give weightage to others opinion as well.
• This will lead to best of the results because the opinions of both can be
discussed and the best alternatives or decisions can take which is
acceptable to both
• Here, both the parties are satisfied at the end of the process and some
cohesion, trust and interdependence can be seen

21. Conflict Resolution Strategy #4:
Accommodating
• Accommodating is a strategy where one party gives in to the wishes or
demands of another.
• They’re being cooperative but not assertive. This may appear to be a
gracious way to give in when one figures out s/he has been wrong about an
argument.
• It’s less helpful when one party accommodates another merely to preserve
harmony or to avoid disruption.
• Like avoidance, it can result in unresolved issues.
• Too much accommodation can result in groups where the most assertive
parties commandeer the process and take control of most conversations.

22. Conflict Resolution Strategy #5: Compromise
• This strategy involves mid level of assertiveness and cooperation from
both the parties
• This happens mostly when a third party enters the conflict or voting is
done and majority is respected.
• This is like a partial win-win situation in a conflict.
• Both the parties have to give up on their demands, put down some of
their opinions in order to arrive at a resolution.