THE BLOG

Managing dispute between staff

blog Mar 10, 2021

It is pretty stressful when we have two staff that are both valuable in your business and they are ‘at each other’. They are both are stuck in their views and they are not moving forward.

This makes not only their 1:1 interactions challenging but also when they are interacting in team meetings and with you and others. Both want you to agree with them and their point of view. This causes stress in teams as other team members do not know what to do.

As the manager or owner of the business, it is difficult to know what to do. You may have a personal view but staying objective is key. I have had to deal with this many times in running my own teams.

This week, I had a client who asked if I could support them where two of their staff were not getting along. This is the process I created in that facilitation. I hope it helps if you have to deal with a similar situation in the team.

Here is a quick video on how I handled it.

3 action steps:

1. Ask each of them to write 3 things that are upsetting them: Writing down makes them think about what is really hurting rather than ‘shoot from the hip’. It also limits them to think about the top 3 issues rather than a list of 17!

2. Ask them to list down what are 1-2 needs: This is a list of needs not wants. What they need from the other person to make this relationship work professionally. 

3.Plan and execute your facilitation: Ensure you have your dot points and agenda to facilitate down. Include ground rules such as confidentiality. Let them know most of the conversation is about future and how we work together. Get agreement and publish actions. Let other staff know there is agreement and not get involved if possible.

If you need a hand with this or have any questions, feel free to ask me on [email protected]

Regards

Shivani x

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