Managing with Conflict
The process of dealing with conflict in management is a complex one.This is especially true when the conflict arises out of the need to make animportant decision. Indeed, some assert that the core responsibility ofany good manager is his or her ability to make good decisions in the midstof pressure and difficulty. One of the best methods with which any goodmanager can accomplish this, rather daunting task, is to utilize a decisionmaking scheme in which a logical "stair step" approach is used. There is little doubt that, although good managers are imbibed with acertain amount of authority in the workplace, that authority involvessignificant responsibility for competent decision making. In fact, thedecisions managers make can "make or break" the effectiveness of themanager, him or herself, as well as the business as a whole. For thisreason, it is extremely useful to remove the emotional component from thedecision making process as much as possible, by invoking four key steps. The initial step involved in good decision making entails a thoroughexamination of the question at hand. Just what is the issue' What isinvolved' One must examine and determine the core of the issue or prob
Further, it is here that the manager must consider the likelihood thatsimilar actions can evoke similar responses in the future, or, if thedecision can be changed to arrive at the desired effect. To do this, a good manager must have the ability to get to "the heart ofthe issue. How has productivity been impacted by thedecision' Finally, I must learn from the problem and ultimate decision. For example, if I restrict access, will it affect other web-based work negatively' Will productivity be impacted to an even worsedegree' Can I use motivation (perhaps via work quotas, etc) to positivelyimpact the problem without restrictive measures' Third, I must make thedecision, and test the results. By learning from these factors, even a"wrong decision" can be ultimately beneficial. In what other instances can I, or will I be likely to apply similar actionto increase productivity' In short, by using the decision making strategy outline above, I canremove much of the insecurity often associated with decision making. An illustration follows: Employees are spending too much time "surfing the web" on non-workrelated topics. The second step involves examining, considering, and forecasting theeffects of the decision or action under consideration. Further, I can also increase the utility of the decision beyond the currentproblem at hand-allowing me to apply the decision, and its principles, infuture instances. Here, one also uses what is known as a "sensitivity analysis,"if the situation arises. In this step,characterized as outcome determination, the manager considers the issue ofwhether the decision is likely to produce a positive effect on the problem. Not only is this a vast improvement on "ad-hoc" decisionmaking, but it makes the ease of "putting to bed" future dilemmas all themore obtainable. This step involves the careful observance of anychanges in situational dynamics as affected by any unforeseen circumstancesthat arise.
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Acceptance Essays
