The Manager's Guide to Mediating Conflict

Alison J Love

• Publisher: Packt Publishing
• Year: 2014
• ISBN:
  9781783000678
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Computer Science
• Subtopic: Information Technology
• Index: Computer Science

If you are a manager who wants to develop their conflict management skills and gain a greater understanding on how meditation offers a clear framework for effective conflict resolution, this book is for you.

The Manager's Guide to Mediating Conflict

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The Manager's Guide to Mediating Conflict

Copyright © 2014 Impackt Publishing

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First published: September 2014

Production reference: 1240914

Published by Impackt Publishing Ltd.

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Credits

Author

Alison Love

Reviewers

Arslan Ali

Roy Cheng

Commissioning Editor

Richard Gall

Copy Editors

Simran Bhogal

Ameesha Green

Faisal Siddiqui

Project Coordinator

Venitha Cutinho

Proofreader

Maria Gould

Production Coordinator

Melwyn D'sa

Cover Work

Simon Cardew

About the Author

Alison Love has over 30 years of practical experience as an HR practitioner, employment lawyer, and a business leader. Prior to qualifying as a solicitor, she spent 8 years as an HR practitioner in the public, retail, and consumer finance sectors. This, combined with her skills and experience as a workplace mediator, has given Alison a unique understanding of the dynamics of workplace issues and an ability to successfully facilitate parties in identifying solutions. Having witnessed the limitations of the legal process and the benefits and power of mediation, Alison has firsthand experience of demonstrating that workplace mediation provides a better way to resolve conflict in the workplace in the vast majority of cases. Alison is passionate about sharing her knowledge and making mediation the first choice in resolving workplace disputes.

Alison currently runs her own business (Alison Love Limited) which provides workplace mediation and dispute resolution services, including mediation, associated training, and executive coaching.

Alison lives in Wales with her husband, two sons, and Jaffa the dog, where she can often be found walking Jaffa or pursuing her interest in photography. Alison also enjoys travelling, live music, and the occasional mad cycling challenge.

My thanks go to the team at Impackt who have guided me through the process of writing this guide. Thanks also go to my family; to my husband, Steve, who has (as usual) shown a great deal of patience and support and my sons, Daniel and Alex, for providing cooked meals for themselves and for me (from time to time).

About the Reviewers

Arslan Ali has more than 14 years of experience related to the IT industry and training institutions with exclusive experience of 5 years in teaching various disciplines and projects in an IT institution. He has worked in various roles in software engineering, software testing, training, and quality assurance. The major focus of his expertise lies in coordination, implementation, and testing of ERPs and customized applications. He is also a trainer for context-driven testing for various companies and individuals.

Arslan is currently working at Sidat Hyder Morshed Associates as a senior consultant in Information Solutions, but besides that he is also an active founding member of TestersTestified (www.testerstestified.com) (@testtified), Outtabox! (www.outtabox.co) (@OuttaBoxPk), and OISOL – Open Integrated Solutions (www.oisol.com) as a training consultant for software testing and context-driven testing workshops.

You can follow him on Twitter, @arslan0644, and on LinkedIn at pk.linkedin.com/in/thegoodchanges/.

I would like to thank Impackt publishing for this opportunity and my father for his reading habits which he successfully passed on to me!

Roy Cheng is an Adjunct Lecturer (The University of Hong Kong, School of Professional And Continuing Education (HKU SPACE)), Founder and Director of Hong Kong Institute of Mediation Limited, Director of ISE Consultants Limited, and a certified trainer of the Mediation Training Institute of the U.S.A. (MTI). He is currently a mediation practitioner, mediator accreditation assessor, and a mediation program trainer. Prior to commencing his dispute resolution practice, he had extensive commercial experiences in a wide range of industries. In 2004, he was invited by the Hong Kong Home Affairs Department and successfully mediated the Albert House Case and in 2006, he was invited by Hong Kong Housing Authority and successfully mediated the Dickson Construction subcontractor disputes. He has also written a book a book in Chinese about interest-based negotiation approach which is commonly used in mediation: "調解：談判突破困局" (the English title is "Getting to Harmony"). First published in March 2009, the book is now in its fifth edition.

Preface

With over 30 years of experience as an HR practitioner and employment lawyer, I have witnessed and advised on more workplace disputes than I care to remember. I began to see the same patterns recurring and the outcomes being less than positive for the organizations or the individuals concerned. Disputes would generally involve considerable expense and management time and often end in a painful exit of an employee who was once highly regarded.

I began to think that there must be a better way; to me, traditional grievances or disciplinary processes were causing considerable harm to individuals and businesses, and the current mechanisms used to resolve disputes were not fit for purpose. These processes were becoming more and more legalistic and adversarial, concerned with imposing a decision by a third-party rather than bringing those concerned together and resolving matters directly between them. When I started to look into mediation, I began to understand how mediation offers something very different from the more traditional processes; I had what I would describe as a "light bulb" moment. I soon realized that mediation is an empowering alternative that in the vast majority of cases will provide far better outcomes with considerable cost savings. I now look back at some particularly painful cases that I was involved in litigating; if mediation had been an option then, I am convinced that it would all have been far less painful and less costly. I also realized that the skills that you learn to become an effective mediator are key people management skills that enhance employee relations, enabling teams to use conflict positively and improve performance.

It is clear that workplace conflict and the costs associated with it are on the rise. If these costs could be reduced, there would undoubtedly be a positive impact on the bottom line. It is estimated that a staggering 25 percent of managers' time is spent in dealing with workplace conflict. If conflict remains unresolved or a formal process is followed, the divide between the individuals widens, communication becomes guarded or ceases altogether, and the conflict deepens and becomes more entrenched. The inevitable results are damage to an individual's wellbeing, increased sickness absence, and reduced levels of engagement, motivation, and productivity, as well as a possible loss of talent. The Advisory, Conciliation, and Arbitration Service (ACAS) suggests that the cost of mediation is half that of pursuing a formal process, while others suggest it is a fifth; either way it is a considerable saving. If litigation or settlements follow, these are additional, and often substantial costs are incurred on top of the indirect costs. In contrast, mediation will usually conclude in one day with most providers reporting success rates of 90 percent. While there is some debate about what success means, there is no doubt that the business case for mediation is very strong.

I am now a passionate convert to workplace and employment mediation. It should and could be used in far more cases than it currently is. This book is designed to share my revelations and to encourage you to have the confidence to use meditation skills and processes to the benefit of employees and organizations alike.

Mediation skills can also be used to help positively manage conflict on a day-to-day basis so that conflict becomes constructive rather than destructive. This in itself produces huge benefits. I do not exaggerate when I say that every conflict situation that I have come across could and should have been resolved much earlier with the right management intervention. Far too often, situations are left to fester until there is a tipping point. By this time, much damage has already been done and the conflict is harder to resolve.

My hope is that this book will also help to equip you with the skills to prevent situations escalating to this point and to help you resolve those situations that have. If I achieve any of that, even in part, I will be happy! Not only will I have made individuals' lives and relationships better, I will also have saved organizations a considerable cost. Happy days!

What this book covers

Chapter 1, Conflict in the Workplace, looks closely at some of the key principles behind the contemporary understanding of conflict and how it arises in the context of the workplace.

Chapter 2, Mediator Skill Set, gives you the skills and strategies you need for an effective and successful mediation process.

Chapter 3, The Mediation Process, will take you through the typical framework of mediation, including the necessary legal information, as well as some advice on how to get the most effective results.

Chapter 4, Beyond the Mediation, gives you guidance and information about what needs to be done after the process to ensure that positive results are maintained and that the parties involved are both satisfied.

Who this book is for

If you are in any kind of leadership position at work and want to find a more effective method of dealing with conflict at work, this book is for you. Whether people management is one of your core responsibilities or something that you value as an important part of business leadership, I will help you get a strong understanding of what mediation is and, more importantly, how to do it quickly and effectively to build a stronger team and minimize negative conflicts. Once you have a strong grasp on the principles of negotiation, the core skil...

Table of contents

• The Manager's Guide to Mediating Conflict