Power and Conflict at Work

Conflict is when their is a disagreement either within a business, i.e. two managers not agreeing on the same path for the business, or externally, with competitiveness disagreement between two different businesses, i.e. a supermarket causing conflict between them and more local shops.


When i worked for a punting company in Cambridge, their was always a lot of conflict between other companies, such as vandalism to boats, and competitiveness over customers. strategies to end this conflict was to allow less people to work in areas to avoid the competitiveness, and often company's would form alliances to avoid the destruction towards the boats. although the industry is a very conflicting and competitive place, so these strategies don't completely stop the conflict but did help prevent it a little.



Power is the ability of one person influencing the behaviour and attitudes of others, meaning it isn't just leaders and managers who can use power.
Sources of power can be; Legitimate power, from a formal position. employees are influenced because they accept the authority of the position of the power holder.An example of this is managements power over the employees that work for them. This power is most common in any business. Reward power, is when an employee is influenced by power in order to be rewarded by the employer. An example of this may be when an employee is given an opportunity for a promotion and so works harder to achieve it. Coercive power, is when an employee is controlled to avoid punishment by the employer. Example could be is the worker is threatened by being fired and so tries to avoid it by working harder and reaching the expectation of the power holder. Expert power, is based on the persons skills and expertise in an area. An example could be an accountant informing management of recent transactions within the business, and sharing their knowledge to help management change certain targets.



Their are five main strategies for resolving conflict. The first one is Avoidance. this is sometimes the best strategy, often time will fix the problem, or trying to fix it yourself will make it worsen. although avoiding the problem can develop less trust in management. the second strategy is Accommodating, this is a strategy that rarely leads to the conflict being solved. although it can help solve the immediate problem, but the main issue still may remain. Next is Forcing, this is when the manager forces the other side of the conflict to accommodate. This can be a good long term solution, although it can be competitive and sometimes aggressive. the manager tries to force what they think is right onto the opposite group, but this can end in the problem worsening and cause more anger. Compromise is often the best way to help with conflict. although it leaves both sides feeling as though they lost if the manager decides the compromise.   Lastly, Problem Solving can be achieved in order for both parties to feel equal. they must agree on cooperation not competition, trust, status deferences can be minimized, and mutually acceptable solutions can be found. A mutual decision is often the best way to solve conflict as both groups will agree on it in order to work. however this can only work if both parties agree on the same interests.