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Using Mediation To Deal With Conflict By Ed Yager
We all know the stress and debilitating effects of conflict and of strained relationships with co-workers. Bart Davis tells me "Unmanaged conflict and it's ugly side effects is perhaps the largest reducible cost in organizations today, and probably the least recognized." Davis estimates that "65% of performance problems result from strained relationships and unresolved problems between employees -- not from deficits in individual employee skill or personal drive. Interdependent workplace relationships present fertile soil from which conflict can erupt, and in many organizations consume it in the same way weeds can sap the resources and energy of an otherwise promising agricultural field." We are confident that Bart is right on. After two decades of efforts to cut costs and improve productivity by focusing on quality, process reengineering, and technology the importance of the human relationship has come into focus again. We have found the #1 reason for a number of organizational diseases, from turnover to poor quality, from poor service to accidents, from sabotage, theft and damage to lost work time and employee health problems can be related directly to workplace conflicts. Bart is the principal of B&K Solutions and is a nationally recognized mediator. Most leaders are aware of the concept of mediation but few are aware of it's importance as a tool of effective leaders. We have all signed a contract of one form or another in recent years in which mediation was accepted as the method of resolving disputes or claims in the future. The actual process of mediation, especially of self mediation, remains as unclear as any other legal strategy. The truth is that mediation is not a legalistic strategy. Just the opposite. It is a strategy based on the assumption that most people prefer a human approach to conflict resolution. Much of the American's propensity for litigation comes from our inability to resolve the root causes of conflict. The most effective leaders we have tested, assessed, coached, and interviewed have an intuitive sense about the mediation process recognizing mutual interest and the nature of individual differences. They keep trust levels high. They know trust is earned, and they replace contracts with covenants. This is the basis of the remarkable books on leadership by Max Depree. Most, however, continue to rely on one of the other two common organizational strategies: Domination (power, authority, chain of command, management prerogatives). Top down represents the most common, yet most debilitating organizational design because personal motivation and caring is sucked out of the organization. Power (struggles, domination and resistance all grow as opposing forces in a relationship escalate their own position). The other is the "legislation' (rights, contracts, obligation, and obedience) bias of an organization and its leaders. Davis outlines a six step process which can be mastered by any manager or leader resulting in what he calls self mediation. We have seen these skills pay off in hundreds of organizations, perhaps most dramatically in the storied history and remarkable changes at Northern United Motor Manufacturing Inc, a joint venture formed by Toyota and General Motors over two decades ago. The NUMMI operation has consistently produced some of the highest quality vehicles manufactured in the US since the plant opened. It quickly became the benchmark for all American industry. Toyota Camry and Chevrolet Prism were the primary brands, produced side-by-side in the same facility. The traditional GM power culture fostered conflict between the UAW and the corporation for decades. GM gave up and closed the Fremont, California facility with over 5,700 third stage grievances pending. With nearly the same workers and managers, this time trained by Toyota in the process of teamwork, quality, and mediation, the plant reopened a few years later. Today a third stage (or even a first stage) grievance is a rarity. Union leaders, supervisors, and workers are encouraged to mediate differences before they become formal grievances. To fail to do so creates very unfavorable notations on the annual performance evaluation. The skills or steps of self mediation are these:
Self mediation, according to its proponents can be 90% effective. Few situations are so rigid that they cannot be resolved if the parties are willing to approach the situation in a mature manner. More importantly a leader who practices self mediation consistently is able to resolve situations before they move beyond the irritation or frustration stage. If ignored resentment sets in, Resolution does get much tougher
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