What is a conflict management audit?
What is a conflict management audit?
Why should you have one? If you’re leadership team is spending more time putting out conflict fires amongst the staff, or you are seeing transfers or worse, resignations: then you need to consider a Conflict Management audit.
A Conflict Management audit can significantly benefit an organization in several ways and below are a few of the highlighted benefits.
Communication is key
Time after time we hear about the value of good, healthy communication. To the point where we wonder whether there’s anything else…well it all does starts with communication. But how we communicate is important – we communicate verbally, non-verbally, by listening actively, through writing and visually.
The benefits include:
Enhanced Transparency: A conflict management audit helps identify where barriers exist in the organisation’s communication and will make recommendations on how to improve in order to foster open and transparent communication.
Establish Feedback Mechanisms: It can establish or improve feedback systems, ensuring that employees feel heard and valued.
Creates a culture of trust: When an organisation has a feedback process and employees feel heard and valued, an atmosphere of trust is established and hence, a culture of positive and dynamic behavior change settles.
Morale is increased, Productivity is boosted
Conflict Resolution: The audit identifies areas of conflict and recommends Conflict Management upskilling workshops. Once sources of conflicts are identified, an organisation can be proactive to upskill their staff and begin to work towards a more harmonious work environment, reducing stress and improving overall morale.
Employee Engagement: With the appropriate skills and strategies to manage emotions and conflicts at the workplace, employees are more likely to be engaged and productive in a positive and trusting work environment.
Cost Reduction
Reduced turnover: when employees have the necessary skills and strategies to manage conflicts, they are less likely to look for opportunities elsewhere. Conflicts management and resolution skills can lower employee turnover rates and provides the organisation great savings on recruitment and training costs.
Disruptions are minimised: With staff turnover, comes disruptions, delays in completing a project and costs. By managing offering the staff the necessary skills and strategies to manage conflicts effectively and positively, workflows are continuous and productivity levels are consistent.
Positive team dynamics
Positive collaborative spirit: When teams and employees understand the sources of conflicts and one another, team collaboration is enhanced.
Conflicts is a way to see other perspectives: Conflicts don’t have to be negative. When the workforce is provided with the necessary skills and strategies to managing conflicts constructively the outcome brings about creativity, positive and dynamic brainstorming and certainly a more productive workplace.
Improved Decision-Making
Objectivity: When a conflict management audit is performed, the organisation receives an objective analysis of the organisation’s ‘standing’ from the perspective of the ‘outside’, on its processes on conflict resolution and this leads to more informed and effective decision-making.
Strategic Planning: Insights from the audit can inform strategic planning, helping to align conflict management practices with organizational goals.
Legal and Compliance
Effective Risk Management: Managing risk by ensuring that your employees are looked after, trust the organisation and keeping the talent is vital. In addition, having the appropriate processes in place to manage conflicts reduces the risk of legal disputes and compliance issues.
Assist in Policy Development: By conducting an audit, the organisation is informed on how to develop clear policies and procedures for conflict resolution, ensuring compliance with legal and regulatory standards.
Leadership Development
Identify training needs: An audit will identify and highlight where leadership development would be required to benefit the organisation and of course will provide leaders with the appropriate conflict resolution skills.
Enhanced Leadership Skills: By applying effective skills and strategies to manage staff, leaders are more likely to become more effective team managers and improve the organisational culture.
Branding and Reputation
If you read my website, I tell of my experience in the airline industry and the flight crew. An organisation’s brand and reputation take a long time to build and achieve but is very quick to be destroyed.
Positive Culture: Having a workplace where employees feel valued and where there is trust, is a priority. Trust and value lead to positive culture and behaviour, which leads to positive output to clients.
Attracting Talent: It is very easy to talk about an organisation with a positive culture where employees feel valued and heard. Such a culture will attract top talent.
Continuous Improvement
Training and Implementation: The audit identifies areas of improvements. The Conflict Management Masterclasses will provide the necessary skills and strategies to better manage conflicts. Regular ongoing reviews ensure that the skills and strategies learned are implemented and practiced for continuous improvement.
Benchmarking: It enables the organization to benchmark its conflict management practices against industry standards and best practices.
Conclusion
An organisation’s value is not only measured in monetary terms. As we saw above, organisational values, culture and employee behaviours plays high on its reputation and brand. The benefits described above cannot simply be bought, but rather earned by providing the right upskilling opportunities to employees. Happy employees are creative, dynamic and productive. Productive employees improve the bottom line and improve an organisation’s reputation for long term success.
