How to Resolve Deep-Rooted Conflicts

Do behind-the-scenes rivalries stymie progress at your company? Be sure to get executive support before bringing them to the fore

by Liz Ryan

Dear Liz,

Thanks,
Charlene

Dear Charlene,

I applaud you for wanting to address those albatrosses on the table in your staff meetings, but I encourage you to do a little prep work first. I'd start by sitting down individually with your company's leaders and getting an understanding from them of the political and communication obstacles that they perceive to be holding the company back.

You'll need to have a sense of the political landscape and the relationships between your managers, and also alert the team to the fact that you're going to be addressing these communication hurdles more forthrightly than they've been handled in the past. For sure, touch base with the chief executive to make sure that he or she is on board with your effort to sort out the unaddressed rips in the company's cultural fabric.

Then, the next time you're in a meeting and Shari says, "I really hate this plan," and Jack says, "No surprise," you have your opening. Say something like: "Can you help me understand your comment, Jack? You're saying you're not surprised that Shari hated your proposal?"

A big part of digging into interpersonal and team conflict is asking really basic questions. If Jack says "Yes, Charlene, as you know, Shari always torpedoes my ideas," and then Shari says, "Well, if you weren't so keen on managing my department for me" and so on, then you can get the issues on the table and begin to work through them.

Buckle your seat belt! If you have an HR colleague who can coach you on conflict-resolution techniques before you jump into the deep end of the pool, that would be time well spent.

Best of luck to you,
Liz

Liz Ryan is an expert on the new-millennium workplace and a former Fortune 500 HR executive. She can be reached at liz@asklizryan.com.