THE CRIMSON PRESS CURRICULUM CENTER THE CRIMSON GROUP, INC. Note on Conflict Management
THE CRIMSON PRESS CURRICULUM CENTER THE CRIMSON GROUP, INC.
Note on Conflict Management
President Franklin D. Roosevelt . . . attempted to generate information by recruiting strong personalities and structuring their work so that clashes would be certain. His favorite technique was to keep grants of authority incomplete, jurisdictions uncertain, and charters overlapping. Arthur Schlesinger, Jr.1
It is a well-known fact of organizational life that sales people think differently from manufac- turing people. Similarly, doctors think differently from nurses, R&D engineers think differently from product line managers, professors think differently from deans, and basic researchers think differently from applied researchers. In part, these differences are personality driven, but in those instances where organizational (as distinct from interpersonal) conflict emerges, the participants usually are from different occupational groups. These groups have differing time horizons for measuring their performance, differing degrees of tolerance for ambiguity in their jobs, and, more generally, highly contrasting demands put upon them by their work environments. As a result, they approach organizational decision-making from vastly different perspectives.
For example, a sales manager’s work environment may be driven by factors such as quarterly revenue quotas, shifting customer preferences, established customers who want preferential treat- ment, and potential new customers who may be testing the organization’s capabilities by, say, ask- ing for a small order on a tight time schedule. Sales people also may deal with customers who are moving toward or have established just-in-time manufacturing or product availability strategies, and who therefore demand rapid delivery schedules. In short, sales managers and their staffs face an uncertain and frequently turbulent environment.
By contrast, the typical plant manager’s environment is one of tight production schedules, ma- chine
Note on Conflict Management
President Franklin D. Roosevelt . . . attempted to generate information by recruiting strong personalities and structuring their work so that clashes would be certain. His favorite technique was to keep grants of authority incomplete, jurisdictions uncertain, and charters overlapping. Arthur Schlesinger, Jr.1
It is a well-known fact of organizational life that sales people think differently from manufac- turing people. Similarly, doctors think differently from nurses, R&D engineers think differently from product line managers, professors think differently from deans, and basic researchers think differently from applied researchers. In part, these differences are personality driven, but in those instances where organizational (as distinct from interpersonal) conflict emerges, the participants usually are from different occupational groups. These groups have differing time horizons for measuring their performance, differing degrees of tolerance for ambiguity in their jobs, and, more generally, highly contrasting demands put upon them by their work environments. As a result, they approach organizational decision-making from vastly different perspectives.
For example, a sales manager’s work environment may be driven by factors such as quarterly revenue quotas, shifting customer preferences, established customers who want preferential treat- ment, and potential new customers who may be testing the organization’s capabilities by, say, ask- ing for a small order on a tight time schedule. Sales people also may deal with customers who are moving toward or have established just-in-time manufacturing or product availability strategies, and who therefore demand rapid delivery schedules. In short, sales managers and their staffs face an uncertain and frequently turbulent environment.
By contrast, the typical plant manager’s environment is one of tight production schedules, ma- chine