Making Conflict Work
Reaching your business goals when you don't see eye-to-eye
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- 3,99 €
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- 3,99 €
Publisher Description
'Coleman and Ferguson have done something remarkable: they've written an evidence-based book on the complex topic of conflict and made it easy to read, easy to understand, and, best of all, easy to use. A genuine winner' Robert B. Cialdini, author of Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion
A PRACTICAL GUIDE TO NAVIGATING WORKPLACE CONFLICTS
Work conflict is risky. It can go bad and poison employee health, work relationships and organizational climates, or it can go well and help to energize problem solving, innovation and bottom-line effectiveness. Managing conflicts up and down the chain of command at work can be particularly treacherous, as power differences complicate conflicts and constrain response options. Organizations are rife with stories of executives and managers who abuse their power, employees who overstep their authority, and the resulting conflicts that get stuck in downward spirals.
When people find themselves in conflict, they immediately become aware of the balance of power in the situation or relationship: 'Hey, you work for me, so back off!', or 'Wow, he is much bigger and drunker than I thought he was before I told him to shut up', so understanding how conflict and power affect each other is vital to effective conflict management.
In Making Conflict Work, Peter Coleman and Robert Ferguson, leading experts in the field of conflict resolution, address the key role of power in workplace tension. Coleman and Ferguson explain how power dynamics function and provide step-by-step guidance to determining your standing in a conflict and identifying and applying the strategies that will lead to the best resolution.
Drawing on the authors' years of research and consulting experience, Making Conflict Work offers seven new strategies and dozens of tactics for negotiating disputes at all levels of an organization. This powerful approach can turn workplace tensions into catalysts for creativity, innovation, and meaningful change.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Coleman, professor of psychology and education at Columbia University's Teachers College, and Ferguson, a psychologist and executive coach, examine the challenges and opportunities inherent in conflicts with authority figures and subordinates, and provide a practical guide to redirecting energies from conflict toward the achievement of goals. Grounded in more than 15 years of research, Coleman and Ferguson's findings offer insight into the strategies and skills necessary for managing work disputes and show how to make conflict work for you instead of against you. They identify power-conflict traps and study the role of dominance, the "most common conflict-management strategy employed by power holders can backfire" on the one in charge and demoralize the dominated. They also discuss problem-solving techniques such as pragmatic benevolence, strategic appeasement, selective autonomy, and principled rebellion. The authors include helpful self-development checklists and self- and organizational assessments throughout. Full of valuable advice, this book will help readers develop better strategies for workplace disagreements.
