At any place of business, large or small, it is vital that all employees, especially the managers, remember to factor in the human element. All employees are human beings, and if they are mistreated, they may be likely to file complaints to the HR department, get into arguments or conflict, or even quit. High turnover rates may happen not only because of low pay, but because of ongoing workplace hostility or a lack of opportunities for personal growth. So, a good manager is one who will hire an executive coach to improve their manager technique, and managers should also keep careful track of each employee’s mental status. That, and workplace conflict must be handled swiftly and professionally, or else a situation might escalate further. What is there to know about facilitating leaders, or workplace mediation to settle a conflict? Conflicts in the workplace don’t benefit anyone, and the at-fault party should be handled correctly and quickly.
Becoming a Better Manager
When it comes to facilitating team leaders, training programs and coaches can help any supervisor, manager, or project leader become the best leader and guide that they can be. A workplace needs leaders, not just bosses, and a leader is someone who can envision clear goals of what must be done and define the steps that must be taken to reach that goal. Clarity and purpose are central to this, and a proper manager or other leader will have those qualities. That, and the charisma and people skills to keep everyone motivated.
It is not uncommon for new managers, or struggling managers, to hire executive coaches to help them out. Such a coach is not really a teacher, but rather, someone who can act as a sounding board for the client and help them shape their ideas and strategies in this manner. Such a coach can also ask the client questions and assess them, and help that manager come up with productive and clear ideas on how to be a better leader. This can help sharpen the manager’s people skills and charisma, and help them more easily generate and work toward clearly defined goals. Not to mention help that manager better coordinate their employees and create a cohesive team that can get work done. Bad managers often drive away employees and waste the company’s potential, but with the aid of a coach, a manager can unlock that potential.
Workplace Conflict and Mediation
It is an unfortunate truth that workplace conflict takes place every day, and not just between a strict manager and an employee who feels constricted by the rules. Often, an employee is the victim of harassment, discrimination, or other forms of abuse based on their real or perceived attributes, such as sex, racial identity or ethnic background, sexual orientation, religious faith, or even mental condition, such as high-functioning autism. This is not rare; in 2016 alone, just over 91,000 workplace discrimination charges took place, and worse yet, some 60% of employees never even receive basic workplace conflict management training or classes at all.
What should be done when workplace conflict takes place, or if discrimination happens? Such abuse may be verbal and face-to-face, or may take the form of written harassment, offensive or hurtful displays or imagery, or even physical force. Should an employee experience this, they can take certain steps in workplace conflict resolution to end the conflict ASAP. For one thing, that victim is urged to not retaliate and therefore be at fault as well. Instead, the employee should remember every relevant detail, such as the names of anyone involved, and what was said or done and where and when. With these details, the victim may bring the issue to the HR department and/or their manager, and remain calm and composed while relaying all of this. Emotional outbursts are more likely to sabotage the victim’s case than advance it. Most often, the HR department, or a hired workplace conflict mediator, can settle the dispute between the parties by any means necessary. And in the case of serious workplace abuse, or if the mediation fails, the victim may find and hire a workplace conflict lawyer and pursue litigation against the at-fault party. This may happen if someone is demoted or denied promotions or raises unfairly, for example.
