When conflict isn’t managed properly, both the organisation and the individual pay a high price. According to a report by the Australian Institute of Management, in many workplaces over 30 per cent of a manager’s time is spent managing workplace conflict. In addition, a growing proportion of workers’ compensation claims are based on stress related injuries or illnesses and much of that stress is associated with unresolved conflict.

Workplace stress is costing the Australian economy $14.8 billion per year, with public sector workers accounting for a disproportionate share of stress related workplace injury claims.

Common conflict management challenges

Challenge: Under-resourced not-for-profits (NFPs) often don’t develop comprehensive policies and procedures that cover a range of matters, including diversity, conflict resolution, discipline, discrimination and performance management.

Solution: Whilst clear, concrete policies and procedures are not the be-all and end-all of good conflict management, they are vital in underpinning and guiding good practices. Good policies and procedures emphasise the importance of early intervention and informal resolution.

Challenge: Often pathways to management in the NFP sector are via practice so when practitioners transition into management they don’t always receive appropriate training and guidance in the essential skills of management. Many shy away from the challenges of dealing with workplace conflict, which makes the problem worse.

Solution: Be proactive about developing communication and conflict management skills in all staff. In addition, avoid getting sucked into the he-said she-said dilemma and learn to be assertive about organisational expectations.

Challenge: Sometimes the culture of NFPs is out of kilter with their professed values. Some well-established NFPs retain strong elements of a hierarchical, top down culture, which is a poor fit with modern expectations of the workplace. At best this results in poor flow of information in the organisation, at worst it leads to a tolerance of oppressive behaviours.

Solution: Develop a set of specific shared behaviours so that everyone knows what’s OK and what’s not OK in the workplace. An example of positive behaviour might be to publicly credit others for good ideas or accomplishments while an example of negative behaviour might be to withhold information that could be useful to colleagues.

Challenge: Many NFPs succeed in creating rewarding work environments but are under-skilled in dealing effectively with a genuinely difficult and disruptive staff member. Often too much time is spent seeking to support and respond to the demands of the disruptive worker without effectively challenging their behaviours. As a result, the impacts and difficulties experienced by other workers is paid less attention and good workers may end up leaving.

Solution: Adopt a zero tolerance approach to bad behaviour. It should be an absolute rule of any workplace that no-one is exempt from the rules however senior or charismatic they may be. There’s a lot of research to show that high performing individuals who treat colleagues poorly drag down overall creativity and productivity more than they raise it through their own achievements. When challenged, the individual will either modify their behaviour or leave. Either way, the organisation will be better off, and their staff’s well-being will be improved.

Key signs of a resilient workplace:

• Is proactive in building a culture of communication
• Responds quickly and appropriately when things do go wrong
• Complies with relevant guidelines, rules, regulations, principles of natural justice and procedural fairness.