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Organizational Conflict Management

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Can organizational conflict be managed?

Because conflict can occur anywhere two or more parties disagree, all organizations experience conflict to some degree. Conflict isn’t inherently bad, but it can escalate quickly when it is not managed.

Organizational conflict management is described as the prevention, management and resolution of conflicts in organizations (Gosline et al., 2001). How leaders and employees handle conflict is dependent on the kinds of systems organizations put into place. Setting employee expectations, implementing conflict-related policies and procedures, providing conflict resolution training, and other factors influence how and whether conflicts can be resolved in a satisfactory way.

While addressing conflict in the workplace isn’t always easy, it can be an opportunity for learning, growth and innovation and is essential for long-term organizational health.

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