by Todd Pheifer

Created on: October 13, 2009

Conflict is often an inevitable part of office life, and most of the time supervisors may only be able to contain conflict, rather than totally eliminate it. Still, it can be useful to understand the source of conflicts, so that further disagreements can be avoided in the future. Not all conflicts may be able to be avoided, particularly since human beings seem to be gifted at fighting with each other in a variety of settings. However, research and wisdom can often be valuable tools for a supervisor. Here are a few thoughts on office politics and how conflicts get started.

Misunderstandings

Some conflicts get started because people have difficulty communicating with each other. This can occur when dialogue or email communication is simply misunderstood and people draw particular conclusions. Or, there may be times when an employee hears something from someone else that may or may not have been altered or taken out of context. When people feel that there is a conflict, there may be a negative interaction in the future, even if some of the facts are not exactly straight.

Differences of opinion

Other times there may be conflict simply because people see certain things differently. This can include strategy, decision making, allocation of resources, and timetables. People have differences of opinion all the time on how to run the business. However, some people are able to keep it "professional" and recognize that some organizational conflict is inevitable. Others take it more personally, and are unable to separate their professional opinions from their personal feelings.

Personality conflicts

Sometimes people have conflict simply because they don't get along. People don't necessarily go out of their way to dislike their co-workers and start fights. However, some personalities just don't seem to mesh, and despite certain efforts employees just don't always enjoy each other's company. In those cases, people may get into conflicts more quickly because of a lack of appreciation for each other's personalities.

Excess baggage

Finally, people sometimes get into conflicts because they bring a certain amount of emotional "baggage" to work. In other words, some people are just unhappy on a regular basis, and this causes them to have conflict with their co-workers. It isn't necessarily the fault of co-workers if an employee is having difficulties in their life, but it doesn't change the fact that conflict sometimes stems from things that are outside of the workplace. Overall, the job of the supervisor is to have an ongoing awareness of office atmosphere so that conflicts can sometimes be averted, or at least addressed quickly and efficiently.

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