Every other Tuesday, human resources experts answer your questions. This week, advice from France Dufresne, Canadian leader in Employee Experience and Mergers & Acquisitions at Willis Towers Watson (WTW).
I am pleased to know that you and your employer care about the well-being of the people within your organization. Many companies invest colossal sums in initiatives and programs related to wellness (employee benefits, workplace ergonomics, nutrition, fitness, personal finances, etc.). These efforts typically lead to better attraction of quality candidates, higher engagement, and greater employee retention.
However, as you have noticed in your team, well-being strongly depends on the work climate.
To restore balance in your team and establish a productive work climate, you must be an attentive and proactive manager, both in detecting conflicts and in their resolution and, ultimately, in their prevention.
As a manager, it is essential to be able to recognize the first signs of conflict in order to intervene before it harms the productivity of your team.
A work environment without tension does not exist. Indeed, organizational changes, each person’s personal situation, strained relationships with clients, poor work organization or an incompetent colleague are inevitable situations within a team that naturally create friction.
You will have to act in the event of a conflict that could create an unhealthy climate in the team, lead to inappropriate behavior (not disclosing information, unhealthy competition, harassment, etc.), harm productivity or quality of work (disengagement, frustrations, etc.), or even cause departures or work stoppages.
Seasoned managers are able to detect tensions and conflicts in their teams, because they are close to their members and to the “ground”. Listen to your employees and ask them frequently about their satisfaction and challenges. Also remain attentive to their behavior, particularly sudden changes in attitude.
It’s up to you to judge whether to intervene directly, play the role of mediator, ask employees to resolve the situation among themselves or even ignore minor discomforts that diminish over time. Also, it is important to know that certain tensions are positive and even necessary for the debate of ideas and the questioning of ways of doing things.
Conflict resolution will call upon your “managerial courage.”
Avoiding resolving a conflict or burying your head in the sand will only make the situation worse with the unfortunate consequence of leaving all stakeholders without support.
Start by listening to both sides with empathy and without judgment, ask questions to fully understand points of view, and decide by demanding changes and commitments from both sides. If necessary, call on the human resources department, who could support you or direct you to the right people (external mediator, legal department, organizational psychologist, etc.).
Ideally, as a manager, you should be able to detect and prevent conflicts before your employees even have to bring them to your attention. Strive to create a climate where frustrations can be expressed without fear of professional retaliation (this is about ensuring psychological safety in your workplace). The team must understand that conflict resolution is positive, even essential to the performance of the group.
Employees will contribute to conflict prevention themselves if they know they can count on your support to resolve their differences. If you are an open, fair and impartial manager, your team members will come to you before situations even get worse.
In light of the elements mentioned above, it is obvious that your participation in the prevention and resolution of conflicts is essential. Remain attentive to your colleagues’ confidences and help create a healthy work environment by attempting to promptly resolve the causes of conflicts at the source, without trying to form alliances or spread gossip.
Although it may be uncomfortable, know that it is sometimes essential to communicate problems affecting the team to your manager, for the future good of the team. If the conflict directly involves your manager, you will then need to contact their superior or human resources.
By acting kindly and respectfully in any conflict situation, you will demonstrate courage and professional maturity, two assets that all teams need. Your attitude will thus contribute to better harmony within your team and improve the well-being of everyone.