Conflict 101 for Leaders

By Shawn Bakker

Conflict and leadership – our new research study shows that they go hand in hand. The results show that leaders cause conflict, struggle with managing conflict, and could improve how they deal with conflict by making some basic changes.

Here are the numbers:

• 73% list poor leadership as a common cause of conflict.

• 93% see conflict handling as a very important leadership skill.

• 17% report that leaders are effective dealing with conflict.

This shows a significant gap between leaders’ conflict handling skills and what is necessary for them to be successful. To help narrow this gap we asked HR professional what leaders could do to deal with conflict effectively. Here are their top 3 recommendation:

 

1. Model the right behaviors.
   
   
2. Deal with issues before they get out of hand.
   
   
3. Be clear about their expectations.
   
   

Wow. No recommendations for mediation training or developing conflict handling skills. Instead, basic ideas – treat others as you would like to be treated; don’t procrastinate; communicate.

For more recommendations on how to deal with conflict and generate positive outcomes you can read our complete study on workplace conflict by clicking here.