I am very pleased to announce that my friend and business partner, Rob Ferguson, has co-authored a new book on conflict and power. Making Conflict Work: Harnessing the Power of Disagreement, by Peter T. Coleman and Robert Ferguson, was just published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. In honor of this news, RCG is holding a book signing party and youre invited! At the event, Rob will tell us about his book and copies will be available. Books will also be available as door prizes. Please join us for hors douevres and drinks to celebrate this wonderful accomplishment. When: Wednesday, Oct. 15th, 5:30- 8:30 pm. Drop in! Where: Raleigh Consulting Group, 4821 Rembert Dr, Raleigh NC 27612 RSVP: to alwon@raleighconsulting or click to reply with Evite. Heres an excerpt from the book on Robs tips for resolving workplace conflicts: 1. Clarify your goals. There is no point to engaging in conflict if you have nothing to gain. You have to want something. A promotion. A reference. A shared victory. New customers. Money. Meaning. Something. Without a goal, conflict is just idle argument, or ego, or noise. Clarifying your goal in a specific situation is first base. 2. Go beyond the crucial conversation. A widespread belief about conflict is that we just have to sit down and talk it out. Listen, don’t attack, try to understand the other party, and figure out a compromise. While this approach can work, it depends on the parties having equal power and being skilled at approaching conflict cooperatively. Ever had an argumentative subordinate, or a competitive dictator boss? If you have (and if you are older than twenty-five, we know you have), you found out really quick that this method gets you frustration, failure, and even fired. You need something more than this in today’s world. 3. Diagnose the situation. Our research has identified seven distinct conflict situations, depending on how cooperative or competitive the parties are, who has more or less power, and how much they need each other to achieve their goals. The seven situations are Compassionate Responsibility, Command and Control, Cooperative Dependence, Unhappy Tolerance, Independence, Partnership, and Enemy Territory. Each situation requires a different approach, and diagnosing the situation correctly leads to the most effective strategy.
Posted on: Fri, 26 Sep 2014 18:18:33 +0000