Communication is vital in every business. The success of a business depends on how well employees interact with their customers and co-workers. Therefore, clear, precise and consistent communication should be encouraged in order to achieve the objectives of the business. It’s also important to nurture good communication and listening skills among employees in order to reduce interpersonal conflict and increase productivity.
In Ms. Mary Lee case who owns Mary’ s Aussie Adventures Tours which serves tourists from a different cultural background. She identified a gap in organization communication and public relations concerns that need immediate attention.
This study focuses on conflict management and effective team communication as ways of advising Mary on the implementation of the employee training program. Conflict management helps in reducing time wastage during a disagreement. This enables employees to focus more on their work thus increasing productivity and teamwork (Cohen & Bailey 2017, pp.239). Effective team communication ensures peaceful coexistence and understanding among team members. Good communication provides clear guidelines and expectation of each team member.
CONFLICT MANAGEMENT
Aims of conflict management
The main aim of conflict management training is to equip team leaders, managers and the general employees with practical strategies and techniques of conflict resolution which they can effectively employ while handling conflict in the workplace. It builds on previous knowledge, skills, and training of effective performance management (Maguire & Pitceathly 2002, pp.680).
Other objectives of conflict management include
Conflict management helps in reducing tension among employees which lead to increase in productivity and teamwork. It helps in reducing time wastage which occurs especially during disagreement and employees are able to focus more on their work.
Conflict management helps in appreciating different cultural diversity and ideas. The top managers sometimes incorporate these different ideas in order to formulate business strategies and employee’s guidelines (Vonderwell 2003, pp.80).
Companies with good conflict management tend to attract best employees and investors due to its culture. Best companies are measured by how they resolve issues raised and deliver quality services successfully.
Managers should learn to handle conflict among the employees on time in order to reduce tension and increase productivity. It’s important to acknowledge problems facing employees to prevent conflict occurrence (Barth & Lannen 2010, pp.1030). This can be achieved by providing an opportunity for conflicting parties to present their case.
Information analysis
According to research, poor communication can be a major cause of conflict among employees in the workplace. Poor communication may be as a result of the failure of passing information at the right time or in the right manner. Lack of proper communication makes workers make incorrect assumptions or believe in false information. It does not only cause conflict in the workplace but also reduce employee morale and productivity (Fujimori et al. 2014, pp.2172).
The difference in personality may attribute to the conflict in the workplace. Different employees come from different cultures and backgrounds which play part in shaping ones’ personality. If employees fail to embrace one another differences, conflict may arise. In the workplace, there are people of different age group. The old differs from the young in various ways. When they fail to understand and accept the difference in other people, a conflict will rise.
Unhealthy competition may as well lead to conflict among the employees. Some companies encourage competition among the employee. Where an employee’s salary is dependent on their performance, strong or unhealthy competition may arise. This may lead to a hostile environment in the workplace where everyone wants things to work out well on their part. The unhealthy competition may not only promote conflict but also individualism and discourages teamwork (Yuan et al. 2010, pp.30).
Additionally, conflict may arise between the management and the employees as a result of unresolved work issues. For instance, the management may set unrealistic goals for the employees. Other employees may fail to respect the organization goals and policies. This may cause conflict and may also lead the employee to have a hard time working in the workplace. Some employees opt to resign their jobs when conflict arises between them and the management (Myers & Sadaghiani 2010, pp.226).
There are five tactics of dealing with conflict in the workplace before they grow to unmanageable situations. The first tactic used include accommodating. The accommodating style is used when one of the opposing party lets the other party have what it wants. This happens when the party wants to retain peace and view the issue as just a minor issue.
The second style used in solving conflict is avoiding. This strategy seeks to solve conflict indefinitely by ignoring or delaying the conflict. Conflict avoiders hope that when the problem is given time and not confronted it will resolve its self. In most cases, this strategy is used by employees who hold a position of low power in the workplace or those who have low self-esteem. It is among the profitable styles of conflict solving in the workplace.
The third style of conflict management is collaborating. It involves integrating different ideas from different people with an aim of coming up with a solution that can be accepted by all parties involved. This style is used to solve complex problems that require creative thinking. It may be time-consuming and hence may not be effective when there is limited time or when the parties are not committed (Curtis et al. 2013, pp.2281).
The fourth strategy of is compromising. It calls for both conflicting parties to give up elements of their position for an acceptable or agreeable solution to be established. It is commonly used when both parties have approximately equal powers. Business people use compromise as a way of solving a conflict when both parties stand to lose valuable things.
The fifth tactic of problem-solving is competing. This is a win-lose game. The conflicting parties compete until one party losses and the other wins. It is employed by people of high assertive Personality (Shih &Susant 2010, pp.148). It works out well for emergency situations or decision that generate ill-will.
Conclusions on conflict management
Conflict management helps a company to focus more on productivity by reducing disagreements among employees. Managers are also able to incorporate these different ideas to come up with suitable ideas which help business to succeed. Successful companies normally have the ability to manage cultural diversity and productivity as a result of teamwork. Therefore, it’s important to establish clear guideline on conflict management.
Conflicts can be caused by various factors such as different personality, unhealthy workplace competition, and unresolved work issues. Conflict can be solved by the use of different strategies which include avoiding, accommodating, collaborating, compromising and healthy competition.
When conflict arises in the organization, it is important for the management to come up with ways of peacefully resolving this problem to ensure that both the conflicting parties are at peace. It’s also important to take precautions to ensure the same conflict don’t occur in the future. For instance, the management may create a culture that embraces giving and receiving feedback. When leaders encourage healthy feedback, employees will feel bold and transparent in their workplace (Trudel & Reio 2011, pp.390). This will not only reduce cases of conflict but also will lead to better understanding and relationship in the company.
Being proactive in conflict is very important but it’s also good to avoid jumping into conclusions. Every employee should be careful about how they treat others. It’s important to avoid words or actions that can provoke or offend another employee in the workplace. Individuals should seek to understand the situations properly before making any judgment. When solving the conflict, the leader solving the conflict should take time to listen to all the conflicting parties before making any judgment (Pines et al. 2012, pp.1483).
The company should come up with clear rules and guidelines to be followed by all members of the company regardless of their levels. This will ensure that there is no discrimination and that all people are treated in a uniform way (Saeed et al. 2014, pp.215). Frequent feedback meetings help the company to address issues that can lead to the conflict before they get to uncontrollable situations. Proper communication guidelines should be well established. When there are proper communication channels and guidelines, confusion and ambiguity are eliminated. This will reduce cases of conflict in the workplace (Mitkus,& Mitkus 2014, pp.777).
Processes of solving conflicts within the organization should be clearly spelled out. This may include negotiation. In this process, the conflicting parties engage in a direct negotiation. the needs of both parties are considered before coming up with an agreement. This process seeks to achieve the mutual agreement of the parties. Mediation can also be used to solve a conflict. This is a voluntary process when an independent party (mediator) helps to reconcile the conflicting parties. He does not enforce an agreement but helps the parties to understand each other. Another process that can be used to solve conflict is through arbitration. An independent person (arbitrator) listens to both parties and comes up with a decision (Shockley-Zalabak 2009, pp.29).
EFFECTIVE TEAM COMMUNICATION
Aims of effective team communication.
For a company to have an effective teamwork, effectivities team communication is very essential. The main aim of effective team communication is bringing workers together to increase the company revenue and facilitate the productivity of workers (Chan, Sit, & Lau 2014, pp.940).
specific objectives of team communication.
Team communication thrives to encourage input. Effective team communication enables team members to be confident when airing their views. By listening to the team member’s views when making decisions encourages the overall input of the team. This encourages them to use all the internal available sources to get a project done or to solve an issue in the workplace
Team communication seeks to encourage dynamic change. The business world keeps on changing day in day out. Proper team communication enables members to keep evolving with changes in the business world. When the information is shared efficiently, members are able to keep up with the changes taking place. Effective communication structure enables members to get information in a fast way and members are able to adopt (Reader, Flin, and Cuthbertson 2007, pp.740).
Team communication creates understanding. In a business, different people come from different backgrounds which may be difficult to unite without an effective communication system. Where team members are able to efficiently communicate, members get the opportunity to understand their teammates and embrace their culture. This brings unity and mutual understanding that foster the team progress (Gajendran & Joshi 2012, pp.1252).
Team communication facilitates efficient action. When a team has efficient communication, it reduces time loss on misinterpretation. Poor communication may lead to the receiver to do incorrect actions. This implies that the team has to take extra time to correct the problem or have the wrong output in the long run. Effective communication leads to right actions hence the project is completed on the scheduled time without any delay.
Clear and consistent communication helps to minimize conflict among team members. This is achieved by providing guidelines and ensure every team member is aware of his/her expectation. Managers should ensure changes in the company operating producers are communicated on time to avoid confusion. Feedback and queries should be addressed on time to avoid delays which sometimes create tension.
Information and analysis
Poor communication in an organization can result in frustration, friction, confusion or even tense environment. People need to be motivated and inspired in their workplace to be productive. Lack of motivation among staffs may result in poor relationship between the staff and clients. Some of the common causes of poor team communication include a lack of clear objectives. When a new employee is welcomed in the workplace it is important to hold a discussion to go through his/her roles and responsibilities and what the company expects from him. If the company goals and mission is not well explained to the new employees, they may not work effectively to the success of the company (Segrin 2000, pp.400).
Cultural diversity among the employees contributes to poor team communication in a great way. The company accommodates employee of different races, culture, gender, religious beliefs among others differences. People from different backgrounds have different ways of relaying message and interpretations. This is a common means of poor communication that may result in misunderstandings (Sarker et al. 2011, pp.444).
At times, personal issues and employee challenges may contribute to poor team communication. Although the employees should be fully concentrating on their work in a workplace, some personal issues such as the death of a loved one or divorce may distract the employee. These distractions can make one to communicate or behave in an ill manner to other employees or even clients. When this occurs, its necessary for the employee to be given time off to deal with his personal issues.
Furthermore, when employees are demoralized they tend to use unfriendly language to their coworkers. This occurs when an employee’s loss of interest in their work. They feel unvalued, unappreciated, disrespected and demoralized despite their talents and capabilities. Such an employee may be unproductive or have a poor attitude towards his work and does not see the need of being in the company anymore. This may lead to the employee using unpleasant language to others.
Poor team communication can also be contributed by poor leadership. Employees always look upon the leaders for directions. If incompetent leaders are given the managerial role, communication in the workplace is likely to deteriorate. Poor leaders will not be able to motivate or inspire their employees. They may not be able to answer questions in the right way making employees be more confused and frustrated (Srikanth & Puranam 2011, pp.849).
Effective teamwork and communication help an organization to maintain a healthy working condition. Effective communication starts with the management and leaders who set clear standards and guidelines. This can be achieved by defining expected results. If the management should set clear policies and objectives, the employees will be able to understand and carry out the task given (Duxbury & Whittington 2005, pp.670).
Effective communication should be accompanied by good listening skills. Leaders should provide the team with a feedback mechanism to air their views. They should be ready to listen and appreciate ideas from coworkers. The staff should have an open door policy where they can address their issues. Proper actions should be taken regarding the feedback if need be.
Another style a company can employ to strengthen team communication is team encouragement. Team members feel encouraged and strengthened when they are empowered to share their ideas in an accepting environment (Berkhof et al. 2011, pp.153). The empowered team is dedicated to their works and the company at large. This affects the overall performance of the staff at the workplace.
In addition, communication should be consistent. The company should not only define its communication clearly but should also adhere to it. When employees get used to a certain routine of communication, they are able to understand the company’s expectations. Selectively choosing the policies of communication to use gives the employees a go-ahead to do what they wish (Gillespie et al. 2001, pp.54).
Furthermore, leaders should lead by example. This style of team communication encourages team leaders to set an example to the other employees. The managers and executives need to hold themselves to the standard of common staff employee. This may include listening to what others have to say and addressing obstacles and taking appropriate action. In most organizations, most people try to copy the behaviors of the leaders whether good or bad
Conclusions
The insight of the above, we find that effective communication is essential for the overall member’s productivity. A company should embrace effective team communication to enable staff to have a better understanding, manage dynamic change, encourage input and facilitate effective actions to be taken. Poor communication in a workplace can be as a result of personal issues, cultural diversity, poor leadership, and demoralized employees. This may lead to frustrations, misunderstanding, and demoralization among employees.
There are various strategies which a business can use to resolve poor team communication. These include leading by example by top managers, setting clear guidelines and expectations, and employee encouragement. Team members should be trained on proper communication and listening skills. Managers should ensure that information passed to employees is consistent and from one direction to avoid misunderstanding.
If communication is not well managed, it may be an obstacle to the team members in an organization. They are various ways in which communication can be made effective to increase the productivity of team members in a firm. This may include ensuring information is clear. Unclear goals of a team and individual responsibilities may demotivate or decrease the member’s morale. The management should set clear expectations of the team to avoid barriers in the work progress.
Team members should be equipped with listening skill. Members should be committed to listen and respect other member’s views. Seek clarifications where they don’t understand and use appropriate body language to communicate. This will ensure there is a healthy working environment which will increase staff productivity (Shukla-Mehta 2010, pp.35).
Being courteous in the workplace improves effective team communication. Some people view the use of polite terms such as “please”, “excuse me as” among others, like an old-fashioned style and does not embrace it. If employees fail to be polite while communicating, conflict may arise. lack of courtesy may lead to poor communication and hard feelings which may result in poor work communication in the workplace.
Kindness is a virtual that needs to be embraced in the workplace. When talking about others, it’s important to talk about positive things that do not hurt others. False information or work gossip erodes trust among team members. Individuals affected by false gossips in their workplace face hard times when working. It also kills employee morale (Wall & Callister 2015, pp.520).
Team members should be flexible. It is obvious that not in all situations that all the team members will agree with a decision or opinion of other members. Individuals need to be flexible enough in order to support the decisions of other people whose opinion differs from their own. Supporting other people’s opinion does not mean you agree with it, but helping what have been decided to be implemented in a successful way.
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