A Tempestuous Time
A department in a large global company was experiencing a period of conflict. Stemming from various factors, including staff layoffs, disagreements had been bubbling for two years both among team members and between employees and management. The tumult was putting pressure on management to address the situation yet employees felt there was a lack of effective conflict resolution.
The Conflict Resolution Approach
Good Company took several steps to address the conflict and promote better teamwork within the department. First, we interviewed the department head to understand managers' perspectives on the situation and what they hoped to achieve. We then met individually with each team leader to grasp the particular challenges within their teams: the dynamics, possible solutions, and expectations for improvement.
After these initial meetings, a Good Company mediator held individual team sessions, encouraging employees to raise any issues they wanted to discuss so we could work together to find solutions. The focus was on creating a safe environment where employees felt comfortable to share their experiences, connecting their narratives and emotions to generate an overall understanding of how the department had reached its current state. By engaging psychoeducational methods on conflicts and team dynamics we were able to identify shared expectations and collective resolutions. Key to the process was emphasising employees’ responsibility to participate in the discussion and voice their frustrations, highlighting that employees themselves had a significant responsibility in developing their team and improving the department.
Why Work with Us?
After the sessions, managers and employees both highlighted that they were in a better place. They expressed gratitude for being provided with the space and tools to engage in difficult discussions while also developing a shared foundation for how they would work together in their daily tasks from now on.
