Managing conflict

Definition of Conflict

All organisations will have to deal with disagreement or conflict at some time. This conflict might be within the organisation and involve the Management Committee, other members and/or staff. Conflict can also be between the organisation and other people or organisations such as their clients or a funding body.

While your organisation might try to encourage good working relationships, it will also need to develop ways to manage conflict when it occurs. If you take action early, before the conflict worsens, you are more likely to find a solution that works for those involved and the organisation as a whole.

Preventing conflict

The best way of managing conflict is by taking steps to encourage good working relationships in your organisation. The first important step is selecting staff and volunteers that understand the purpose and values of the organisation, have the skills and experience to do their work and are able to work well with others. 

For members of your Management Committee this might involve providing a clear description of their roles and responsibilities and any relevant meeting procedures which will be detailed in your organisation’s rules and the Associations Incorporation Act.

Developing accurate position descriptions for paid staff and volunteers will help them to understand their roles and responsibilities. It is also a good idea for staff to understand the way work is expected to be done by having regular meetings, developing procedures and providing training.  While it is helpful for managers to provide direction for the organisation, staff also need to contribute to the decisions that affect their work.

Your organisation can develop good relationships with its clients by encouraging them to provide feedback and participate in the way services are provided.  Listening to and involving your clients may help to avoid conflict and improve the quality of your services. If your organisation receives funding or sponsorship, you can prevent some conflict by ensuring that you understand and are able to meet the requirements of your agreement. The development of a code of conduct policy will also assist in the prevention of conflict.

Conflict management procedures

You might be able to prevent some conflict but you will also need to develop ways to manage any disputes that do occur. You will need to decide the best way to manage the conflict and be able to act quickly before the problem gets worse. For extremely serious problems where the law has been broken, you will need to involve the police.  Other problems will probably be able to be managed within the organisation.

For conflict within your Committee of Management, you will need to check if your organisation’s rules describe how it should be managed. For example, your rules will provide formal guidelines about voting, making decisions and electing Management Committee members.

For conflict with staff and clients, your organisation will need to develop its own written guidelines or policies that describe the situation and steps or procedures for everyone to follow. Most conflict management procedures involve a number of stages that are used to help identify the problem, understand all sides of the conflict, allow the people involved to try and solve the problem and decide what action needs to be taken.

For example, if a staff member or volunteer is not performing properly, you will need to develop and follow a fair procedure and try to solve the problem. This procedure could involve discussing the problem with the staff member on their own, involving others such as a union representative to offer their advice, providing written warnings and asking for an independent organisation to make a decision.

If the conflict is still not solved and you decide that there are still good reasons to dismiss the staff member, you will need to follow the requirements of any relevant employment Award, legislation and the contract of employment.

When a conflict involves a client, it is a good idea to provide them with a copy of the policy and procedures that will be followed. This will let them know that their complaint is being taken seriously and describe what will happen and how long it will take.

Getting more help

There may be situations when your organisation uses the procedures that it has developed but is still unable to find a solution to a conflict. Depending on the problem and your organisation’s resources, the government dispute resolution service might be able to help both sides to reach an agreement or you might want to ask for legal advice.

Further information:

Note: You can access the following Department of Communities information by registering at the Management Support Online website.

Last updated 2008-02-21