5 Strategies for Resolving Conflict

August 28, 2013 Diana D Williams Leadership, Meat Eaters

Quick Tips for Managing Everyday Conflict

Conflict can be manageable, when you understanding the cause, and know definite strategies to resolve it.

Decide on your ultimate goal by isolating side issues

What do you really want to do? Isolate the conflict from side issues like what others want or think. Example. If you were a human resource manager seeking to fill a position, your primary goal would be to select the best candidate for the open position in the department. That means you may have to overlook who expects to get the position, or what others want.

Ascertain the Real Source of the conflict

There are three main causes for most conflicts: personality differences, communication differences, and structural differences. To resolve a conflict, you have to clearly understand the real cause of the conflict. Personality differences involve personal idiosyncrasies, value and education differences, or individual chemistry that just doesn’t mix. Conflicts arising from personality differences are typically handled through education and tolerance training. Conflicts caused by communication differences are misunderstandings due to some type of cultural or age differences, or where people speak different languages. This requires training in effective communication. Conflicts caused by structural differences are the result of interactions between employees in different departments with different goals. Negotiation is key. If possible, make it a win-win for everybody.

Choose the Best Conflict-Handling Style

There are five primary strategies for handling conflicts. Neither of the five always works best in every situation.

· Collaboration

· Compromise

· Avoidance

· Accommodation

· Forcing

Collaborating is a win-win style that looks for solutions where everyone wins. Everyone’s interests are addressed. It works best when time is not an issue and when the conflict is too important to be compromised.

Compromise is a style where everyone wins some and everyone loses some. It works best when both sides of the conflict are equal in power, or you need a quick fix to a complex problem.

Avoidance should be used for trivial conflicts. It often means taking the high road. It’s an ideal style when emotions are high and the potential for disruption is more costly than an immediate resolution.

Accommodation is a good choice when its important to maintain harmony in relationship. It means putting the other person’s needs and desires above your own, and it works well when the dispute is not that important to you. It also allows you to build points for the next dispute, which might be more important to you.

Forcing is a style used by people with formal authority to resolve a dispute. It works well when there is a shortage of time, or when unpopular actions need to be taken.

Oliver, J.M. et al. (2009). Interperson professional communication: National American University. Pearson Custom Publishing. United States of America.

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Defining Leadership: Not As Easy As You Might Think

May 29, 2013 Diana D Williams Leadership

When you approach the arduous task of defining leadership, a new appreciation develops for its complexity. It is a complex phenomenon that can be viewed from many perspectives. For instance, you can talk about the different styles of leadership, such as transformational, charismatic, and transactional leadership, which focus on how the leader leads. There are also different approaches to leadership called leadership theories. An example would be Fiedler’s contingency theory which believed that effective leadership could be best achieved by matching the leader’s style with the organizational situation (Daft, Marcic, 2011). You can look at leadership traits, which are distinguishing personal characteristics of leaders, such as honesty and intelligence.

Experts agree that leadership is both an art and a science. It’s a science because it has been a field of much scholarly study. It’s an art because it involves the practice of leadership. Hughes, Ginnett, and Curphy (2012) point out that leadership is both rational and emotional because it requires using logic and reason, but it also requires using inspiration and passion. Contrary to what many may think, leadership is not just about leaders. It involves the perspective of the leader, the followers, and the organizational situations. It is not the same as management. Management is typically described as doing things right, while leadership is described as doing the right things. Leadership and management are functionally different, but yet with a great deal of functional overlap (Ginnett et al., 2012).

Having said all that, leadership is defined as, “the process of influencing an organized group toward achieving its goals” (Ginnett et al., 2012, p.35).

References

Daft, R.L., Marcic, D. (2011). Understanding management 7th edition. South-Western Cengage Learning. Mason, OH.

Hughes, R.L., Ginnett, R.C., Curphy, G.J. (2012). Leadership enhancing the lessons of experience seventh edition. McGraw-Hill

Irwin. New York, NY.

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Steve Jobs and Leadership Style

May 28, 2013 Diana D Williams Leadership, Picture It

The legendary Steve Jobs talks about the non-traditional management structure at Apple, and how that structure contributes to Apple’s reputation as an innovative organization.

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The Five Most Common Reasons Leaders Fail

January 24, 2013 Diana D Williams Leadership

Leadership Coach

Thirty years of research about why executives fail indicates that approximately half of all executive careers end in failure. When comparing the behavioral patterns of successful managers with unsuccessful managers, Hughes, Ginnett and Curphy name five behavioral patterns they found absent from successful managers, while at least one of the five were present in every failed manager.

One of the five behavioral patterns was a failure to meet business objectives, especially during times of situational difficulties. There are multiple reasons for this failure, ranging from character flaws such as blaming others, failure to keep commitments, and a lack of integrity, to making bad decisions with regard to which activities to give priority and team management (Hughes, et al., 2012, p.621). This failure could be avoided with the creation of a development plan, especially the GAPS analysis which identifies development needs.

A second cause of manager derailment is the inability to build and lead teams (Hughes, et al., 2012, p.624). Some of the common mistakes made in team building are hiring staff with the same strengths as the leader, as opposed to hiring people who have strengths the leader lacks. Micromanaging your team can also lead to team discouragement and dysfunction. Sometimes leaders simply don’t know how to build and develop teams (Hughes, et al., 2012, p.624-625).

The inability to develop good working relationships with co-workers can also cause derailment. These are often overly competitive, domineering mangers who are insensitive to the needs and feelings of their co-workers, while demanding everything be done their way. To avoid this pitfall, this type of manager should embrace the Theory Y perspective, learning to view co-workers as trustworthy, competent, and cooperative.

Sometimes leaders are thrust into new situations and are unable to adapt. It could be a new boss with new ways of conducting business, or perhaps a different culture in a new office (Hughes, et al., 2012, p.626). Acceptable behavior in one environment may be unacceptable in another. Leaders must have the ability to discern the requirements of new environments and be willing to make the necessary adjustments.

Another reason for management failure is when a manager is thrust into a new role for which he or she is not adequately skilled, especially in light of organizational pressures today to do more with fewer resources and rapidly-changing circumstances and environments. A manager may be perfectly skilled for one managerial position, and totally unprepared for another. As indicated by Hughes, et al., “Performance is often a function of technical competence” (Hughes, et al., 2012, p.626). The only way to avoid this type of derailment is to build technical competencies, either through formal education or training in specific job-related skills.

References

Hughes, R.L., Ginnett, R.C., Curphy, G.J. (2012). Leadership: enhancing the lessons of

experience seventh edition. McGraw-Hill Irwin. New York, NY.

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How Your Values Will Impact Your Leadership

December 24, 2012 Diana D Williams Leadership

Our values are reliable and powerful predictors of our behaviors. Even when we are not fully aware of what they are, over time they will increase in stability. Their power lies in the fact that they form the basis for many of our responses to situations and circumstances we face throughout our lives. From them we determine what’s right and what’s wrong, what’s good and what’s bad. They also play a role in our priorities which means that they impact and guide our choices. Even when we don’t like the values we have, they remain what Goleman (1998) calls an “inner rudder” with emotional power that moves us to act (Le Fevre, 1999, para. 4).

Hughes, Ginnett and Curphy (Hughes, et al.) define ethics as a branch of philosophy that deals with principles of right conduct. Morality is defined as rules of conduct that are applied in actual behavior (Hughes, et al., 2012). What’s important to remember is that both principles and rules are primarily taught and learned as a part of an educational process. But values are different. They switch from that which is taught to what is caught through the process of socialization, implying a totally different process for acquiring values (Hughes, et al., 2012).

Historical and cultural events play an important role in creating our values. For instance, if you talk to people who lived through the Great Depression of 1929, you will discover that they greatly value stability and what we might call the more traditional values. It’s not hard to understand why. Their lives were totally uprooted and interrupted for many years. They saw everything they trusted and believed in fall apart. Baby Boomers, those brought up during times of major social changes, such as the struggles of the civil rights movement, freedom and self-expression, they tend to hold values consistent with passionate change and making your mark on the world. This is how those events impacted them. Generation Xers, those brought up between 1960 and 1980, are products of the technology era where we saw significant changes in employment norms, social interdependence, and institutional hierarchies, they value opportunity more so than loyalty, independence, and little or no sacrifice. Nexters followed the Xers, and are the products of the uncertainty and the dissolution of what was. They were brought up during times when organizations that were considered foundational to our society began to fold. As a result, the Nexters value the right to set new values, since in their minds, the established values didn’t hold up (Hughes, et al., 2012).

Medical advances and technology have enabled people to not only live longer, but to also continue as active participants in the affairs of life. The end result is a world that consists of people with totally different values that are attempting to merge into one functional society. This means that leaders today not only have to understand and tolerate different values, but they must also possess unique skill sets and wisdom to function effectively despite the differences. To meet the new challenges will begin with awareness that it exists.

Contrary to what many people believe, value variances is not necessarily a negative. The reason is that while values will change, principles and rules of conduct remain the same. This means that when values differ, the unchanging principles and rules, will rule. Since everyone has different values, we must rely on principles of right and wrong, good and evil. This forces leaders to adhere to the same principles and rules of conduct, or face exposure and replacement. It’s the same process that created the anti-discrimination agenda. It’s the same process that is responsible for the recent uprisings in so many totalitarian nations. The principles of human rights have outlived and outweighed the change and variances of social values.

As organizations continue to fail as a result of unethical leadership, those leaders will no longer be able to justify unethical behaviors by shifting blame to others, creating new buzz words to camouflage their actions, or other means of moral justification. The demand for accountability will become the impetus for an increase of genuine authentic leadership that demonstrates consistency between values and actions. The call for transparency will likewise give rise to more servant leaders, who are genuinely focused on developing others. These will be the leaders who will harness the power needed to galvanize others to accomplish organizational goals.

References

Hughes, R.L., Ginnett, R. C., Curphy, G.J. (2012). Leadership enhancing the lessons of

experience. (7^th Ed.). McGraw-Hill Irwin, New York, NY.

Le Fevre, J. (1999). Values and leadership. Retrieved on July 13, 2012 from

http://www.magmaeffect.com/images/Values_and_Leadership.pdf

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Five Types of Power and How Leaders Use Them

December 23, 2012 Diana D Williams Leadership

FIVE COMMON TYPES OF POWER

Power is a tool that leaders use to influence the attitudes, behaviors, and even the values of subordinates to achieve organizational goals and objectives. They may use it to change unwanted attitudes and behaviors, or to encourage attitudes they desire. Most people have at one time worked with co-workers who had attitudes that were contrary to productivity and team unity. Leaders attempt to discourage those undesirable behaviors through wise and appropriate use of power, hoping to extract some intrinsic value that can be found in all people, for the benefit of both the individual’s success and that of the organization. Hughes, Ginnett and Curphy define power as, “the capacity to cause change” (Hughes, et al., 2012, p.119). To be successful, leaders must understand the different types of power, as well as how and when it is appropriate to use each type.

Five Common Types of Power

Power comes from different sources. Some power is given, and some is earned. For example, Expert power is earned by achieving a high degree of knowledge or skill in a particular area. Because it’s earned, it can be obtained and exercised by leaders as well as followers. Expert power is also affected by situation since a person can be an expert in one situation and not an expert in another. A primary source of expert power is often education, but it can also be attained by way of tenure and experience. People typically listen attentively to the person they believe or know to have expert power.

Referent power is power that comes from the strength of interpersonal relationship. Like expert power, it too is earned through consistency and faithfulness, and received in exchange for meeting certain interpersonal needs of one party in the relationship. Typically, referent power is very influential because it is relational. Just as we listen to those with expert power, we draw close to those who possess referent power. Its relational nature makes it vulnerable to loss, as opposed to expert power. Authority figures can demand a subordinate to do something, but they cannot demand the high degree of commitment that is typically associated with referent power. It is most powerful when used in conjunction with legitimate power.

Legitimate power is formal authoritative power that one has as a result of their position or title within an organization. Subordinates comply with legitimate power out of obligation, even when they don’t believe it is deserved. Unlike referent power, where people commit and cooperate because of their admiration likes and dislikes are not a part of the legitimate power equation. When you accept a position in an organization, you accept the legitimate power the organization has confers to certain positions. Legitimate power is the most valuable type of power to use in times of crises, when quick decisions need to be made and fast action is required. But it does not belong only to leaders. Employees also have a degree of legitimate power conferred to them through labor unions and laws, and regulations.

Reward power is an effective tool and a very popular method of influencing people through the control of desired resources. Leaders reward subordinates with praise and recognition, bonuses and promotions for doing well. Followers also reward leaders with admiration, loyalty, and commitment to show their appreciation. Reward power is most effective when the rewards are valued by the recipient, which means the giver has to have knowledge of what the recipient values. It must also be used with caution, precision and consistency. Leaders should decide on what performance they will reward, and how it will be rewarded across the board.

Coercive power is actually the opposite of reward power, and uses the application of negative experiences to influence others, such as fear of punishment, or threat of loss of something valued. It can be as simple as a parent withholding the allowance of a teen, or as severe as a judge pronouncing a jail sentence. It can be very effective in managing behavior, but like reward power, it must be used with caution to avoid abuse (Hughes, Ginnett, and Curphy, 2012).

Hughes, R.L. (2012). Leadership enhancing the lessons of experience seventh

edition. McGraw-Hill Irwin. New York, NY.

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Five Characteristics for 21st-Century Leaders

December 21, 2012 Diana D Williams Leadership

Characteristics of learning leaders

There are five characteristics learning leaders of 21st-Century organizations must possess to be successful: perception and insight, motivation, emotional strength, cultural innovation, and participatory influence.

Perception and insight

Cultural assumptions are unconscious beliefs and values that are shared by the members of an organization that determine behavior, perception, thought, and feelings of the members of that organization. Because they are unconscious, the learning leader must learn to be perceptive in understanding the concept of cultural issues. This includes how to analyze, impact, and/or change the dysfunctional elements of a culture. Driskill and Brenton (2011) explain that cultural elements are not the culture itself; they only create the culture and reveal it. This means that the leader must possess the skills to observe cultural elements, which could be symbols, stories, values, artifacts, rituals, or rules, and discern insightful meanings as to what those elements say about the underlying assumptions of its members, how those assumptions are manifested in the attitudes of its members, and the impact of those assumptions on the success or failure of the organization. Driskill and Brenton call these elements, “surface manifestations of culture that offer insights into deeper layers of assumptions and values” (Driskill, Brenton, 2011, p.41).

Motivation

Learning leaders must be self-motivated purpose-driven people, motivated by their commitment to the well-being and success of the organization and its members. This commitment to the organization becomes the impetus for initiating the painful process of confronting cultural issues associated with one’s own organization, and beginning the arduous task of cultural and human behavioral changes that are accomplished through unfreezing, intervention, refreezing, and implementation (Daft, Marcic, 2011). Schein states that these leaders must learn to skillfully communicate their dedication and commitment to the organization and to others, above and beyond their own personal success (Schein, 2010).

Emotional strength

People resist change for a variety of reasons. They may believe the change will conflict with their own self-interests in some way. They may lack an understanding about the change and trust. There may be levels of uncertainty regarding the change. Some may worry that the change may differ from their own goals and plans (Daft, Marcic, 2011). Attempts to change organizational culture will produce anxiety as predictability is removed, and subject the leader to be a target of member anger, discontentment, and criticism. The leader must learn to be thick-skinned, capable of bearing the targeted abuse, and always ready to re-communicate the well-being of the organization as the primary reason for the proposed change (Schein, 2010).

Ability to Change the Cultural Assumptions

Any cultural assumption that is being targeted for replacement, must be replaced or redefined by the learning leader, with a new innovative value or concept, which must be skillfully reiterated to its members. The leader must therefore not only possess the ability to know what is culturally inadequate, but he or she must also have the ability of deciding what the proper assumption should be, and successfully ensuring that the new assumption is properly embedded into the organizational culture (Schein, 2010).

Participatory Influence

The learning leader must be fully engaged in the process with others in the organizational community, by learning to genuinely listen to their concerns and solicit their insights, ensuring them that their concerns are important to him. Schein states that the end result of cultural change is that the assumption is redefined in the minds of its members, which will require full and active participation on their part. This will require skillful relationship management on the part of the learning leader, and humility in recognizing that he or she does not possess all the answers (Schein, 2010).

References

Daft, R.L., Marcic, D. (2011). Understanding management 7^th edition. South-Western Cengage

Learning. Mason, OH 45040.

Driskill, G.W., Brenton, A.L. (2011). Organizational culture in action a cultural analysis

workbook 2^nd edition. Sage Publications, Inc. Thousand Oaks, CA 91320.

Schein, E.H. (2010). Organizational culture and leadership fourth edition. John Wiley & Sons,

Inc. San Francisco, CA 94103-1741.

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