Conflict happens! And, oftentimes, when it occurs in organizations it is not handled well. Sometimes, the conflict should never have occurred in the first place. At other times, conflicts that should be easily resolved grow into a cancer that traumatizes the organization. And, it is especially rare when conflict turns into a productive airing of disparate views and the establishment of new collaborative relationships.

Matteson Consulting Group has recognized that interpersonal conflicts within organizations impact personal effectiveness, teamwork and interdepartmental cooperation. Most employees, however, are not equipped with either the tools or a process to manage conflict appropriately. With this in mind, MCG has designed the Paired Conflict Resolution Process so that employees can learn how to resolve conflict successfully and build long-lasting, productive interpersonal relationships.

The Paired Conflict Resolution Process will guide the individuals in conflict to

• Acknowledge and address the conflict that exists
• Look at their conflict objectively
• "Own" the part of the conflict for which they are responsible
• Commit to resolve the conflict
• Build a more effective and more collaborative relationship
• Learn and apply the lessons of conflict management to other current and potential conflicts
• Leverage the positive elements of conflict

The process begins with individualized work with each person to gain a better understanding of personal style, strengths, developmental areas and preferred conflict resolution approaches. The next step focuses on working as partners to become familiar with the principles of collaboration. The process concludes with a "paired conversation" where each person:

• Focuses on understanding and appreciating the other person's perspective, and
• Takes responsibility for their own behaviors and possible missteps.

The final outcome is that those in conflict bring closure to any outstanding issues, establish ground rules for working together in the future, develop a methodology for preventing future unproductive conflict and design ways to optimize creative conflict.

The Paired Conflict Resolution Process allows not only the individuals in conflict to move forward positively but also provides the impetus for the larger organization to re-focus on the customer, project milestones and key organizational objectives!

Accelerating Individual and Team Performance