Last week, James, the UI designer, reached out to HR; he had been trying to get through to Olamide the web developer. All the designs he sent her for the new website did not look anything like what he saw at the last web preview. Olamide, on her end, has avoided any further communication after claiming James’s designs were impracticable and impossible to work on. James is in Enugu, while Olamide works from Cape Verde. The possibility of a face-to-face meeting before the issue escalates is impossible, but Uju, the HR manager, has to find a way forward for both parties.
This is not at all strange; according to a study conducted by Myers-Briggs, conflict is a common experience for most employees. The study surveyed 5,000 workers across nine different countries and found that 85% reported experiencing conflict to some extent. Furthermore, the study revealed that, on average, U.S. employees dedicate nearly three hours per week to managing conflicts, resulting in an annual economic loss of over $359 billion.
Workplace conflicts are unavoidable because humans are humans, and conflict is a part of society. There is bound to be conflict in groups of different people with different lived experiences. Remote work does not eliminate the possibility of conflict; in fact, there are times when it worsens things. Unlike physical spaces where you can call both parties into a room to sort things out, remote work environments have nuances, and it takes skilled human resource managers to handle such conflicts.
So, what exactly is conflict in the workplace? Are there any key reasons why conflict can occur in remote workplaces? What can human resource managers do to handle conflict when they arise in remote work environments?
What is workplace conflict?
Workplace conflict combines two simple terms: ‘workplace’ and ‘conflict.’ A workplace refers to an environment where people carry out professional tasks; these people are employees in that environment. Conflict simply means sharp disagreements, which differences of opinion, nature, ideas, etc could bring about. When we combine both terms, workplace conflict refers to sharp disagreements between employees in a work environment.
There are various ways conflicts can be classified depending on several factors. Amy Gallo, a workplace expert and the author of Harvard Business Review Guide to Managing Conflict at Work, divides conflict into four:
- status conflict,
- task conflict,
- process conflict, and
- relationship conflict.
Most other classifications are variations of these, including other types of conflicts like ‘leadership conflict.’ These various types of conflicts require different approaches to properly resolve them.
Why workplace conflict can occur in remote workplaces and possible solutions.
These types of conflicts are typically evident in physical work settings but are not restricted to them. As more companies go remote, new workplace conflicts have begun to appear, and HR managers have to keep up with these changes.
Although remote work environments remove the possibility of physical contact and confrontation, why does conflict still persist in remote office systems? We have observed that some of the causes of conflict in remote workplaces are interrelated, but we’ve found some possible causes.
Digital Communication Gaps.
Communication is vital for smooth work operation, whether in a relationship, government, or a remote workplace. The highest causes of workplace conflict, physical or virtual, are tied to communication. Communication gaps can happen because of differences in communication styles, time zones, technical issues, and more. Because communication goes beyond words, there are a lot of nuances that are lost when remote teams attempt to communicate virtually. Even in cases where communication is properly established, little to no changes and facial expressions can be missed. Furthermore, occasional challenges like power or network failure can further complicate communication channels.
Creating more interactive communication channels can help resolve this conflict. Including more video communication and regular check-ins can improve communication drastically.
Time Zone caused conflict.
Time zones are tricky, as they are part of why remote workspaces are becoming more accepted. They can also be tied to the conflicts that arise in remote workspaces. Harmonizing various time zones is not easy, and this can contribute to poor communication, fatigue, and other factors that can easily spark conflict between remote team members.
HR managers should arrange work schedules such that people in similar time zones can work together. In cases where this is impossible, they should help people working together better understand the conflicting situation of work and help them cooperate better.
Poor transition process.
One reason conflicts occur in remote teams, especially when the team was previously on-site, is poor transition plans and processes. A change in workspaces often comes with challenges, and when these are not properly managed, they can spark conflict between employees. Often, human resource managers continue to handle employee-related matters using previous methods when the company operated an on-site model. Understanding this nuance can be a swift solution to this source of remote workplace conflict.
Work style differences
Your work style can affect how you relate to other workers in both on-site and virtual workspaces. Some employees are lone rangers, and they always work alone, identify a task, and do not require the input of others to complete those tasks. Some people prefer to work in teams and like sharing their tasks within their teams. Some employees are quick decision-makers, and others need to gather more facts before taking a step. Some employees work with a fixed schedule, while others are more free in how they approach work. Paring all these different personalities in a team could spell chaos and consistent workplace conflict.
Understanding your employees can help you pair them better to reduce the likelihood of conflict. Furthermore, improving communication between team members can make them more accommodating to each other and their work styles.
Personal issues
Sometimes, personal issues arise that cause employees to be depressed. This can easily seep into their workspace and how they carry out their duties. This could cause conflict between team members, as one teammate’s crankiness could easily get on another’s nerves and lead to conflict.
Addressing this cause requires empathy from HR managers and other team members and a level of information analysis that helps you identify changes in work patterns that could be associated with depression or other personal issues.
Leadership style
Leadership style and quality could also be another cause of remote workplace conflict. A contentious manager will always have conflict in his teams, and a team leader who does not understand his team members will inevitably have team conflicts on his hands.
Leaders should learn to understand people. Even if they cannot immediately resolve a conflict, they would be better able to manage it and prevent it from tearing a team apart.
Less restraints.
While this might be more of a personal matter for team members, on-site teams get to interact and physically understand nuances. This helps them become more considerate towards each even if only slightly. This is not the case with remote communication; people tend to be less controlled when not directly in contact with the person they are communicating with. It becomes easier to be brash and insensitive, which can easily result in conflict.
Can you prevent conflicts before they occur?
Conflicts are bound to occur; it is human nature, but their frequency can be greatly reduced. Furthermore, with the right approach, the severity of conflicts can be lightened, too. How?
- Great leadership.
Good leaders are usually beacons of stability, neutrality, and confidence. They can easily lead teams through difficult work patches and show good examples of how to manage conflicts. Good leaders make it easier for team members to build trust and communicate better, significantly reducing the likelihood of conflicts.
- Building Trust
Having team members who trust each other can help diffuse situations that could take wrong turns. When there is trust in a team, members are more likely to seek a better understanding of situations rather than resulting in conflict. When things get touchy, it is easier for each member to extend grace to each other even during conflict. The best way to build trust is through open communication.
- Open Communication
Good communication significantly reduces the risk of conflicts, and HR departments should seek opportunities to encourage team members to communicate better. Team leaders should be deliberate about team communication, and regular meetings to brainstorm and share ideas on tasks should be encouraged. Shared groups should also be created where team members can give regular updates on current tasks and task progress.
- Have a safe work culture model.
Work culture is very important, and it can affect how employees interact. It might be difficult to see work culture in action in remote teams, but constant reminders and consistently infusing elements of a company’s work culture in relevant areas of daily tasks and communications can help employees better flow together. Beyond this a vital element of any culture should be safety for employees. This will encourage employees to communicate better and reduce tensions when communicating.
Are there simple ways to manage workplace conflict?
Conflict can be detrimental to team morale and negatively impact the productive capabilities of everyone involved. Often, the human resource team receives complaints whenever there is conflict in a team, and they have to find quick and effective ways to manage the situation before it becomes any worse. Here are six ways your HR team can respond to conflicts quickly and effectively.
- Acknowledge the existence of a conflict.
One reason conflicts fester and negatively affect team morale is that others often ignore them. When employees A and B have an issue, the team leaders or HR lead should acknowledge the existence of this conflict. Even when the conflicting parties have not come out to say there is conflict, team leaders should pick up on small cues and begin to prepare a way forward to resolve the conflict.
- Set ground rules.
Even before a conflict exists, ground rules should guide its resolution. These rules will give you and the people in conflict a roadmap to solving their problems. Right before a meeting to resolve issues, you can forward an email detailing how the conflict resolution session will run and the goals of such sessions. This will help you stay on track and resolve the conflict faster.
- Be patient and show understanding.
As someone in charge of conflict resolution, you should not always look for the quickest solution but rather a long-lasting one, which will require patience. You have to be patient with the parties in conflict and give time to understanding the root cause of the conflict before proffering solutions. This might not happen at the first meeting, but knowing your goal is conflict resolution, you will have to keep at it.
- Address the root problem.
Sometimes, just resolving the conflict is not enough; if there is a root cause, the issues might be directed to another team member. A touchy employee might snap at other employees even after his initial infractions have been addressed. Finding the root cause of his issues could help eliminate the risks of future conflicts from that employee’s end.
- Encourage feedback.
Resolving conflict is not a one-man show. You might have the final say as a team lead or head of HR, but seeking an amicable settlement and restoring team hegemony would involve feedback from both parties in conflict. This will help frame worthwhile solutions and ways forward better. This feedback should also be encouraged even after a resolution has been made. It helps the team avoid future conflicts of the same nature.
- Team building exercises.
This is more of a preventive measure, but it can also be a post-conflict activity. Team exercises should be encouraged. They could be online or physical, but an exercise engineered to make all team members participate in a relaxed environment will go a long way in helping to resolve conflicts between team members.
What should you take away?
Workplace conflicts are inevitable, especially in remote work environments. Understanding remote work’s unique challenges and employing strategic approaches can effectively manage and prevent conflicts.
Remember that various employees could have various triggers and causes for conflicts. Be patient and accommodating, and seek sustainable solutions. Resolving conflicts might take time, and having temporary solutions while actively working to resolve the conflict might be a good way to keep work moving while addressing issues. Resolving conflicts is not an easy job, but it is doable.
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