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Organizational Structure
Conflict tends to take different forms, depending upon the organizational structure. For example, if a company uses a matrix structure as its organizational form, it will have decisional conflict built in, because the structure specifies that each manager report to two bosses. For example, global company ABB Inc. is organized around a matrix structure based on the dimensions of country and industry. This structure can lead to confusion as the company is divided geographically into 1,200 different units and by industry into 50 different units.
Limited Resources
Resources such as money, time, and equipment are often scarce. Competition among people or departments for limited resources is a frequent cause for conflict. For example, cutting-edge laptops and gadgets such as a BlackBerry or iPhone are expensive resources that may be allocated to employees on a need-to-have basis in some companies. When a group of employees have access to such resources while others do not, conflict may arise among employees or between employees and management.
Task Interdependence
Another cause of conflict is task interdependence; that is, when accomplishment of your goal requires reliance on others to perform their tasks. For example, if you’re tasked with creating advertising for your product, you’re dependent on the creative team to design the words and layout, the photographer or videographer to create the visuals, the media buyer to purchase the advertising space, and so on. The completion of your goal (airing or publishing your ad) is dependent on others.
Incompatible Goals
Sometimes conflict arises when two parties think that their goals are mutually exclusive. Within an organization, incompatible goals often happen because of the different ways department managers are compensated. For example, a sales manager’s bonus may be tied to how many sales are made for the company. As a result, the individual might be tempted to offer customers “freebies” such as expedited delivery in order to make the sale. In contrast, a transportation manager’s compensation may be based on how much money the company saves on transit. In this case, the goal might be to remove expedited delivery because it adds expense.
Personality Differences
Personality differences among co-workers are common. By understanding some fundamental differences among the way people think and act, we can better understand how others see the world. Knowing that these differences are natural and normal lets us anticipate and remove interpersonal conflict—it’s often not about “you” but simply a different way of seeing and behaving. For example, Type A individuals have been found to have more conflicts with their co-workers than Type B individuals.
Communication Problems
Sometimes conflict arises simply out of a small, unintentional communication problem, such as lost e-mails or dealing with people who don’t return phone calls. Giving feedback is also a case in which the best intentions can quickly become a conflict situation. When communicating, be sure to focus on behaviour and its effects, not on the person. For example, say that Rakesh always arrives late to all your meetings. You think he has a bad attitude, but you don’t really know what Rajesh’s attitude is. You do know, however, the effect that Rajesh’s behaviour has on you. You could say, “Rakesh, when you come late to the meeting, I feel like my time is wasted.” Rakesh can’t argue with that statement, because it is a fact of the impact of his behaviour on you. It’s indisputable, because it is your reality. What Jeff can say is that he did not intend such an effect, and then you can have a discussion regarding the behaviour.
