Managers can find their job challenging enough, without having to manage tension within the team. Rachel Suff examines recent CIPD research about managers’ confidence to handle conflict and how organizations can support them.
Line managers are responsible for the day-today management of people. They play an important role in preventing unhealthy conflict and managing it in their teams.
They are usually the first to respond when an employee raises a concern. They should try and diffuse any potentially problematic situation, before it escalates into formal grievance.
According to a new CIPD study, most managers do not have the confidence or capability required to effectively resolve conflict.
They are often a source of conflict for their teams. In fact, half of all employers (49%) agree that they can be. In the public sector, this figure rises to 61%.
The results of the survey relating to managers’ roles are mixed. Three-quarters (75%) of employers believe that a manager can help resolve conflict within a team. However, 38% of employers feel that line managers lack the confidence to confront inappropriate behavior.
Another top barrier is a lack in leadership and role modelling by senior management (38%).
The findings may seem contradictory, but they reflect the tensions that exist in the role of line managers.
They are responsible for leading a team but, without the right skills, they may be part of the issue instead of the solution.
Challenging role
It is important to manage people. This job comes with many key responsibilities, including implementing policies for people, managing absences and performance, and managing conflict.
Performing any of these tasks on top of a role in operations can be difficult. The task of a manager who has not been properly trained and isn’t competent could be daunting.
According to our research, three out of ten employers (30%) do not provide training to managers in order to help them with their line-management responsibilities.
In the current climate, line managers are under a lot of pressure. They will have to manage a complex mix of personal, work and health situations within their teams.
People management is often viewed as a side-effect and not an integral part to a manager’s role.
Investing for success
Yet, investing in the capability of line management could pay significant dividends to an organisation’s ability to create a culture that fosters harmonious employment relations.
A previous CIPD study showed that 79% employers agree that a manager will help resolve conflict in a team if they have been trained, compared to 61% of employers who did not receive training.
In addition, 82% of respondents agreed that line managers helped their teams build healthy relationships, compared to 56% in organisations where managers had not been trained.
CIPD research shows that line managers are an important part of a company’s strategy to combat unhealthy conflict.
A framework for employment relations that does not understand and cultivate its positive role will fail.
The management development programs must give them the confidence and skills to deal with conflict as early as possible. It is important to challenge behaviours which cross the line and become inappropriate, as well as being sensitive in situations where banter turns into bickering.
Managers must build relationships based on trust with their teams to be approachable and able to detect any tensions that may exist between individuals.
Our new research has some encouraging results. Nearly four-fifths (79%) of employees report that their manager treats them fairly and respects them as an individual.
Around the same percentage (77%) said their manager was supportive if there were any problems.
Create the right culture
Managers can be tempted to focus on compliance and to rely on formal procedures for conflict resolution, as they feel more secure.
But if you want to build healthy relationships with your team and feel confident about resolving conflicts early, it takes more than just focusing on policies and procedures. Training managers should also give them the confidence to be flexible, and to behave in a manner that encourages early resolution.
It is important that organisations foster a culture of psychological safety where people can voice their concerns and differing opinions.
Focus should be placed on non-formal conflict resolution methods such as problem solving, mediation, facilitation of discussion, and early neutral assessment.
Managers should receive specific training on how to handle difficult or sensitive conversations. This should be supported by a process of performance management that reinforces the positive behaviours displayed by managers.
Effective conflict management should be based on a wider context that includes values-based leadership and a management development program based on competencies.
Managers cannot tackle bullying and harassment alone. There are no quick fixes. If all the pieces of the puzzle are in place, managers can become more confident and willing to take on unfair treatment.
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