Beyond Conflict:
Achieving Workplace Collaboration

Course purpose

The ability to resolve workplace conflict is increasingly recognized as one of the most important managerial skills. This course provides the knowledge and practical insights that will allow organizations to more effectively manage conflict and create collaborative work environments characterized by teamwork and cooperation. This seminar is designed to challenge and assist supervisors, managers, and executives in diagnosing and managing conflict, stimulating constructive problem solving, and handling differences.

Target audience

• All levels of management from front line through CEOs and owners
• Staff responsible for communicating or implementing policies and procedures
• Members of work teams, task forces, boards, or committees

Participant outcomes

Participants will leave with greater awareness of the role they can play and the choices they can make to establish a more collaborative workplace. They will be able to:

• Constructively resolve current, ongoing conflicts.
• Identify sources of conflict and anticipate and defuse problem situations before they become conflicts.
• Attack problems without attacking people and disagree without straining working relationships.
• Create a workplace climate that encourages and supports collaboration and effective teamwork.

Organizational benefits

Your organization will benefit from having:

• Energies within the organization focused on productivity and quality rather than dissipated on competition, conflict, and rivalry.
• An open, conflict-free environment that is conducive to creativity, innovation, and initiative.
• Barriers between departments reduced and interdepartmental communication and coordination dramatically increased.

Presentation options

This workshop can be presented in a 1, 2, or 3-day format. The one-day version is a dynamic, intensive presentation. Along with additional information, the multi-day format allows more time for exercises and discussion groups designed to reinforce new skills and apply newly learned material to existing circumstances. Participants will receive a specially designed manual containing a review of the seminar content, guidelines, and check sheets, as well as valuable additional reading material on conflict resolution and collaboration.

Topics covered

• Reducing the sources of conflict
  Assessing conflict potential. Anticipating problems before they become conflicts. Avoiding patterns that lead to conflict. Creating a climate for collaboration.

• Using differences creatively
  The creative power of differences. Getting the spark of differing ideas rather than the clash of differing egos. How to disagree without arousing hostility or defensiveness. Creating unity within diversity.

• Controlling the dynamics of conflict
  Identifying the sources of conflict. Looking below the surface - what are the real issues? The effects of conflict on perceptions. Breaking out of the conflict spiral. The dynamics of winning, losing, and agreeing.

• Resolving conflict
  Ignoring, controlling, or managing conflict - and the consequences of each. Ways to defuse emotion during conflict. Resolving current conflicts without sowing the seeds of future problems. Adopting "everyone wins" conflict resolution approaches.

• Learning collaboration
  Attacking the problem without attacking the people. How to disagree without straining working relationships. Assessing potential for mutual benefit. Negotiating productively. Encouraging creativity in problem solving.

• Helping others in conflict
  When to intervene. Judge, mediator, or facilitator - which hat will you wear? Balancing the power between parties in conflict. Creating environments conducive to genuine conflict resolution.

Praise from executives, managers, and supervisors

"This program had a great deal of significance to my supervisory work. There is a lot of conflict within my department and between my department and others. The most valuable topic was looking at the stages of conflict and seeing where choice comes in. The presenter was very good and seemed to care about us being able to really use this material." - Central Services Manager, City of Port Angeles, WA

"Very good and directly applicable to my job. This seminar has helped me realize that I have ultimately more powerful and effective means to resolve conflicts than just relying on authority. The presenter was informative, interesting, thought-provoking, eye-opening, and motivating." - Department Head, Pellissippi State Technical College, Knoxville, TN"

I've attended several management workshops, but this was the most practical and down to earth. This seminar helped me see how to resolve conflict by choices I have. In dealing with the amount of people I do on a daily basis, I confront a lot of problems. I am convinced these concepts will make a tremendous difference in my work." - Head Nurse, Evansville, State Hospital, Evansville, IL"

Well done - excellent style and approach. This seminar helped me understand my reactions to conflict and my choices. The most valuable concept was that we have a choice to decide how we are going to behave. The past doesn't necessarily need to shape our future. We can take new roads. I feel I have new ideas to apply at work tomorrow. The presenter created a very supportive atmosphere AND continually challenged us to make a commitment to change." - General Manger, R.R. Donnelly & Sons, Lancaster, PA

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