What is Conflict?

Conflict occurs when people disagree and seem unable to find a solution or a reasonable compromise. The roots of these disagreements can arise from many sources including differences in personality, values, and perceptions. As a team leader, you will occasionally need to handle the differences that arise between members of your team. Conflicts may be minor or they may fester into something that can damage team spirit and the ability of the group to work together effectively.

Often it is the lack of team vision of what should happen in a given situation that creates the conflict. To minimize conflict, the team vision needs to be agreed to before the team can achieve its goals. If there is a difference, then the team members will never be on the same page.

In team development the Storming stage is ripe for conflict. That is where this stage gets its name. Therefore as a leader, you should expect conflict and to be prepared for it while the team moves through this stage of team development. If the team doesn’t start to resolve their conflicts in this stage, the team will not get to the performing stage and achieve the team vision.

Minor conflicts, if not resolved, can grow to bigger ones. At the same time, they will damage team spirit. Therefore it is important to watch out for minor conflicts and create mechanisms to resolve them.

**For the last decade I’ve been involved with leadership development of tomorrow’s leaders. Using my expertise, I am training the youth leaders in conflict resolution. This blog is adapted from my training materials.

About the Author: Ken Strongman (www.kpstrongman.com) has years of experience and a growing national reputation as a mediator and arbitrator. He has successfully resolved more than a thousand disputes in the fields of construction defects, real estate, intellectual property, and employment. He is also a Mediator and Arbitrator for FINRA.