Riding the Leadership Rollercoaster

They were the best of times; they were the worst of times. . . How often when you look at your business have you thought to yourself, "Wow, I cannot believe how great of a staff we have right now? They are all working together as a team. They make my job so easy." Then, two months later, while having your third "intervention" in a week with a troubled team member, you think to yourself, "Wow, I have 18 people working for me and 16 of them are either miserable or causing problems for every one else. They are killing me." Welcome to the rollercoaster of leadership. Our company has grown from 7 team members when we opened the doors five years ago to almost 90 people today. That kind of growth is very exciting, but it comes with many challenges. Most of the challenges are either from conflict between team members or from a particular team member that isn't being a strong team player. Conflict between team members can affect not only those directly involved but also all of the others in the work environment who rely on the team to get certain tasks completed. These unresolved problems can quickly escalate and become uncomfortable. There are a few options to smooth the conflict between team members that will usually dissolve most issues. 1. Address the Issue The first questio I always ask an unhappy team member is if they have spoken to the staff member they have an issue with. If you haven't tried to resolve the problem on your own, do not bring the problem to another person. 2. Find Mediation If you cannot resolve the issues on your own, find a third party who can discuss the conflict with you. In my role as a mediator, I make it clear from the beginning that we will have resolution before leaving the room. I then have each side share their opinion of the issue without interruption. I will not let them raise their voice or be accusatory. 3. Listen to the Problem After I have heard both versions of the problem, I restate what I have just heard them say, again, without interruption. Typically at this point since the conflict has been stated three times, at least one of the parties is already coming up with a resolution. If not, then we start coming up with ideas together to resolve their differences. I do not let them stop with resolutions until they have at least three options. From this point we can usually come up with a fair answer they are both in agreement with. 4. Restate the Solution After coming up with a solution, I make both parties restate back to me the resolution to ensure there is no miscommunication. 5. Follow-Up One week after the mediation, I follow-up with both parties to see if they are getting along. If either is continuing to be problematic, I re-evaluate the situation. Sometimes conflict resolution doesn’t work. Just remember that one bad egg can stink up the place extremely fast. If you are in a leadership role, it is your job to get rid of the bad eggs. If you’re one of the bad eggs, you should work on changing your attitude. [Ed. Note: Do you have leadership tips on conflict resloution? Share them with others below. ]