When people work in a small office together nearly every day, it’s inevitable that conflicts will arise. Sometimes, they make it impossible for employees to work together productively—in which case, you may need to come in to diffuse the situation. If you’re asked to mediate a dispute between employees, here are a few ideas for how to cool off the situation.
- Speak with the conflicting parties in a private conference room. You want them to feel safe to discuss their feelings with one another and with you.
- Guide the discussion, but don’t take sides. Keep your contributions to the discussion focused on the issue at hand, and don’t offer your own opinion on matters.
- Focus on resolving the conflict. Ask each party what actions they would like the other party to take in order to make things right. Don’t allow them to insult or place blame on one another, or the session will turn into a fighting match instead of a constructive meeting.
- Write down a list of steps that must be taken. Ask each party to commit to improving the relationship, and schedule another meeting several weeks later for a progress review.
Employees not getting along can be uncomfortable for everyone. Hopefully using these steps you can diffuse the situation quickly and get your office back to normal.
January 20th, 2012 at 1:40 am
Nice Tips for Employees!!