Leading Projects: Conflict Management

Leading Projects in an Organizational Context

• The presentation covers conflict, power, and influence in project management.
• It details conflict management strategies and how to resolve conflicts.
• BATNA is crucial in negotiations, and understanding alternatives is important.

Today's Topic: Conflict

• Conflict is defined as a process where individuals disagree.
• Common terms to describe conflict include disagreement, difference, and dispute.
• Sources of conflict in projects may include communication breakdowns, differing attitudes of reference groups, competition for resources (people, time, money), interdependencies amongst teams or lines of business, differing values, personalities and interests, differing educational backgrounds, cultures or work perceptions, and differences in goals or expectations.

Aspects of Conflict

• Functional conflict is productive. It can encourage dialogue, increase understanding, clarify values, and prompt creativity through mindful debate.
• Dysfunctional conflict reduces productivity, takes focus away from organizational goals, reduces job satisfaction, increases turnover, and causes anxiety and absenteeism.

Types of Conflict

• Intrapersonal conflict: Internal conflict (feelings of inadequacy).
• Interpersonal conflict: Conflict between people.
• Intergroup conflict: Conflict amongst departments or divisions.

Conflict Management

• Conflict is a natural part of work and life.
• Project managers should guide their teams in establishing norms and agreements to manage conflicts.
• Techniques to agree on disagreements & move on from disagreements are important.

Handling Conflict

• Conflict behavior can be described by assertiveness (satisfying personal concerns) and cooperativeness (satisfying the interests of others).
• Five modes of dealing with conflict are defined: competing, collaborating, compromising, avoiding, and accommodating.

Handling Conflict: Specific Strategies

• Competing: Assertive, uncooperative. Pursues one's own interests at the expense of others.
• Collaborating: Assertive and cooperative; seeks solutions to satisfy the concerns of both parties.
• Compromising: Intermediate in assertiveness and cooperativeness; finds mutually acceptable solutions that partially satisfy both parties.
• Avoiding: Unassertive and uncooperative; doesn't immediately pursue concerns of oneself or others. Postpones or avoids conflict.
• Accommodating: Unassertive and cooperative; neglects one's own concerns to satisfy others' concerns.

Handling Conflict (Negotiation): Different Approaches

• Collaborate/Problem Solve: Incorporates multiple viewpoints (Win-Win).
• Compromise/Reconcile: Seeks solutions that give some satisfaction to all parties (Lose-Lose).
• Force/Direct: Pushing one's perspective at the expense of others; commonly enforced via power (Win-Lose).
• Withdraw/Avoid: Retreating from conflict; postponing (Lose-Lose).
• Smooth/Accommodate: Highlighting areas of agreement; downplaying differences (Lose-Lose).

Distributive vs. Integrative Approaches

• Distributive: Win-Lose approach with fixed resources.
• Integrative: Win-Win approach; not a zero-sum game; focused on long-term relationships.

Conflict Simple Strategy

• Maintain open, respectful communication.
• Focus on issues, not personalities.
• Focus on the present and future.
• Search for alternatives jointly.

BATNA (Best Alternative to a Negotiated Agreement)

• Crucial in negotiations. Know your alternatives.
• Understand the other party's circumstances and limits.

Negotiation

• Choose representatives (neutral parties) and mediator if necessary.
• Understand relationships, communication styles, organizational cultures, and bargaining perspectives.

Results of Failed Negotiations

• Alliances outside negotiations, often with competitors.
• Invoking silent authorities within the organization (CEO, Leadership Team).
• Threatening legal action or job action.
• Walking away from deals.

Summary of Conflict

• Conflict is normal.
• Excellent project managers communicate clearly, respect values, and seek solutions for mutual gain.
• Understanding causes and facilitating communication and understanding are fundamental.

Organizational Power and Influence

• Organizational structure impacts power and influence.
• Power is the capacity to affect others' actions; tactics are involved.
• Influence is the process of persuading followers.

Source of Power

• Expert: Knowledge/experience.
• Referent: Trust/respect developed over time.
• Legitimate: Authority.
• Information: Possession of valuable information.
• Charismatic: Personal appeal.
• Reward: Ability to grant rewards.
• Coercive: Ability to inflict penalties.
• Location: Higher status/position; important in organizations.
• Timing: Availability, opportunity, and timeliness in decision-making

Empowering to Gain Power

• The more powerful a leader is, the more power they empower their team with.
• Trust and confidence engender team accomplishment.
• Establish clear communication pathways

Influence Tactics

• Rational persuasion: Logic and reasoning.
• Inspirational appeals: Appeals to shared values/ideals
• Consultation: Inputs from others.
• Ingratiation: Appealing to a person's ego.
• Exchange: Bartering/trading.
• Coalition tactics: Joining with others.

Influencing Styles

• Assertive persuasion: Reasoning and debating.
• Reward and punishment: Demanding expectations and offering incentives/pressures.
• Participation and trust: Empathy, understanding, involving others.
• Common vision: Establishing shared vision.

Influence Responses

• Commitment: Active support for the request.
• Compliance: Obedience to the request, but not necessarily full backing.
• Resistance: Passive or active rejection.

Influencing Strategies

• Establishes credibility (trust) with your team.
• Frames goals to find common ground.
• Uses vivid language/compelling evidence.
• Connects emotionally/relates to your audience.

Sustained Influence

• Build credibility as an expert.
• Invest in strong relationships.
• Develop networks of expertise.
• Employ influencing tactics with sensitivity and subtlety.

Strategy Building for Influencing

• Establish your objectives, "why".
• Identify who needs cooperation and what motivates/demotivates them.
• Develop and nurture crucial relationships.
• Recognize and understand your own power base.
• Understand outcomes and your comfort level with influencing.
• Communicate effectively as a Project Manager.

Summary of Influencing Tactics

• Understanding influencing tactics and how they relate to project management strategies and navigating team interactions is important.
• Power dynamics are central to all project developments.
• Ongoing learning from experience and self-reflection is essential.

Assignment: Conflict in Project Management

• Students are assigned two conflict scenarios to analyze and propose solutions, including questions like who, what, when, where, and how.