The aim of this report is to provide a communications strategy which articulates the Workplace Conflict Resolution Policy (WCRP) for Noble Industries Pty Ltd (NI)

University Degree Business and Administrative studies

CONFLICT RESOLUTION STRATEGY

Overview

The aim of this report is to provide a communications strategy which articulates the Workplace Conflict Resolution Policy (WCRP) for Noble Industries Pty Ltd (NI).

Key Strategies

Based on recommendation made further in this report it is concluded that the following key strategies for improving workplace climate will be formally presented to the Executive Leadership Team (ELT) at the next ELT Strategy and Planning Meeting:

During the planned January 2012 NI Strategy Development Retreat conduct an all staff workshop to develop a collegiate consensus on the expected workplace climate at NI and the associated expectations for a workplace which has effective conflict resolution practices;
Use workshop to address diversity and conflict issues that affect workplace climate and discus climate improvement strategies that will have a positive impact on workplace culture;
Utilising staff input develop a WCRP that aligns with the workplace climate expectations articulated by our staff; and
Conduct a series of mall companywide communication session to engage the workforce and communicate the new WCRP.

Company Background

NI is a small consultancy specialising in risk management, security and the provision of services in extreme environments such as conflict, post conflict and disaster recovery environments. NI currently has 55 full time employees and 359 part time employees and associates and 1547 sub-contractors. The following demographics are pertinent to the report:

Recently formed company as of 2009;
85% of NI employees have an military, security, intelligence or law enforcement background;
gender balance of 75% male to 25% female;
a broad range of religious, cultural and political backgrounds and affiliation including a large subcontracting base sourced from overseas;
excellent internal doctrine and policies on operational and administrative mission related practise but limited internal human resource related policies.

Culture and Climate

It is accepted that there will always be conflict in the workplace. Surveys conducts have shown that over 60 days productivity can be lost per person per year due to conflicts and misunderstanding between employees. Minimising that conflict should be a priority for managers and team leaders but it must not become their primary focus. Studies have shown that managers can spend over 42% of their time resolving internal workplace conflicts.

Workplace culture is formed from a number of workplace climate related components. While changing workplace culture can be a difficult, improving workplace climate elements can have a positive cumulative impact on overall workplace culture. Culture consists of the fundamental set of beliefs, values and assumptions that define the way the organisation conducts operations. Climate is the shared perceptions, behaviours and attitudes which reflect the working conditions of the organisation.

In the context of conflict resolution the climate of a workplace (the attitude and behaviours which relate to diversity, discrimination etc) can significantly impact on the culture of an organisation. Establishing a strategy that minimises internal conflict can improve workplace climate and have associated benefits for the psychological health of employees. It is critical that NI aligns our expected behaviours with the culture that we espouse in our corporate philosophies (inclusiveness, diversity, and acceptance). Ethical decision making, both internally and externally, is a vital part of NI’s culture. Minimising conflict by prompting an ethical workplace (in the context of diversity, discrimination etc) can engender that ethical decision making ethos throughout the company. Clarity of direction, trust and commitment, and a sense of responsibility are all factors that promote a climate conducive to ethical behaviour in the organisation. It is critical that NI align its WCRP with those ethical factors.

Understanding that NI has a diverse workforce is critical to the development of an ethically based WCRP. Diversity includes not limited to:

language,
race,
ethnicity,
dress,
values,
religion and religious practices,
social and community responsibilities,
family and family responsibilities, and
political views.

Understanding diversity can improve behaviour of employees and employers and increase competitiveness. NI’s ability to be a successful and competitive business will depend on our ability to manage conflict that may arise due to diversity in the workplace.

Conflict Resolution System

Core Recommendation: NI should develop ...

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Understanding that NI has a diverse workforce is critical to the development of an ethically based WCRP. Diversity includes not limited to:

language,
race,
ethnicity,
dress,
values,
religion and religious practices,
social and community responsibilities,
family and family responsibilities, and
political views.

Conflict Resolution System

Core Recommendation: NI should develop a WCRP with an associated ICRMS as articulated in this report as a matter of priority.

WCRP Elements

CULTURAL DIVERSITY

As described above there are numerous components to a diverse workplace including elements of cultural diversity. To create an organisation that embraces cultural diversity and thus diminishes the likelihood of conflict based around a misunderstanding or, or a negative reaction to, cultural diversity we must engender a shared understanding of what they diversity entails.

Diversity simply means that the workplace must accept and welcome a multiplicity of groups. The recognition that individuals may strongly identify with a particular cultural identifier and that this identifier will in no small part affect how they interact with others and how other interact and work with them is critical to establish a cohesive workplace that have effective work groups. The NI ELT must communicate to staff the importance of a cultural y diverse workforce and how increasing the diversity strengthens the workforce, increases efficiency by removing barriers associated with minority status and enabling maximum productively.

WORKPLACE DISCRIMINATION

On boarding induction material for new NI staff must articulate that NI has a zero tolerance approach to workplace discrimination. The high risk work undertaken by the company requires a high level of inter-staff trust, as a result discrimination, which diminishes this trust, will not be allowed.

In the context of NI’s regular employment of staff with military, security, intelligence or law enforcement backgrounds (areas with traditionally lower thresholds for tolerance of sexual diversity and the role of women) it must be clearly articulated that NI in way discriminates against staff with sexually diverse orientations or against women in the workplace. Studies have shown that disclosure of sexual orientation can lead to discriminatory practises. Employees who disclose their sexual orientation will suffer no discrimination staff who overtly or covertly discriminate against staff based on their sexual orientation will face dismissal.

NI adheres to the national workplace discrimination laws that exist in Australia and abides by these statutes.

These laws include:

Age Discrimination Act 2004
Australian Human Rights Commission Act 1986
Disability Discrimination Act 1992
Racial Discrimination Act 1975
Sex Discrimination Act 1984

WORKPLACE DYNAMICS (POWER ISSUES AND FACTIONS/CLIQUES)

Emplyees or groups of employees who have developed informal power bases can inflict significant distress on other employees. This people or groups have the ability to alter the employees, “terms and condition of employment”. NI operates in hostile environments and is committed to ensuring that the workplace does not become an additionally hostile environment for our employees (in the context of Carle’s definition of a hostile workplace environment) .

Internal Conflict Resolution Management System

A core component of the WCRP will be the internal conflict resolution management system (ICRMS). The NI ICRMS will include the following elements:

A corporate policy tied to corporate values and corporate objectives.
Documentation of the conflict management program.
Promotion of use of the program, including training of all staff in the details of the program and in communication and conflict resolution skills, as necessary.
Regular monitoring, evaluation, and course correction of the program.

A CORPORATE POLICY TIED TO CORPORATE VALUES AND CORPORATE OBJECTIVES

The company must develop a shared understanding of how the WCRP aligns with the core mission and delivery of our core services. NI operates in hostile environments and staff must understand how minimising internal staff conflict increases our ability to maintain a secure operational posture.

DOCUMENTATION OF THE CONFLICT MANAGEMENT PROGRAM

The specifics of the WCRP and associated ICRMS must be clearly articulated in company doctrine including the Employee Handbook, Operational Conduct Capstone Doctrine and On-Boarding materials for new employees undergoing orientation both in Australia and overseas.

TRAINING

NI Employees, associates and sub-contractors should receive training that provides an understanding of the specific components of the WCRP, how the ICRMS is structured and managed, the objectives of the policy and the expectations of employees and the anticipated benefits of the new policy.

Training will contribute to the development of a corporate culture that is conflict-friendly and conflict-competent by creating common expectations about communication, conflict resolution, and problem solving.

Conclusion

NI can improve staff morale by reducing the propensity of staff to engage in unethical behaviour which does not along with the core values of the company. Ensuring that staff have a significant ‘buy in’ to the development of company document such as the WCRP and associated ICRMS will empower staff and ensure that the documents correlate to the workplace culture desired by all of our employees. The NI ELT has an opportunity to engage with staff at the Strategy Development Retreat in January 2012. This presents the opportunity to ensure that staff have sufficient ‘buy in’ to the policies to be developed. By utilising the elements outlined in the ICRMS NI has the opportunity to accrue substantial benefits including a reduction in equal opportunity complaints and employee law suits, the effective resolution of disputes, a lower staff turnover, better relationships amongst staff and a higher level of confidence that conflict will be handled effectively.

Bibliography

Books

Berger M. (1996), Cross-Cultural team Building, London, McGraw-Hill, pp 45-48

De Janaz S.C. Dowd K.O. & Schneider B.Z. (2002) Interpersonal Skills in Organizations, New York, McGraw-Hill, pp. 349-365

Stringer R. (2002), Leadership and Organisational Climate, NJ, Prentice Hall, p. 17

Journals

Carle S. D, (2006) “Acknowledging Informal Power Dynamics in the Workplace: A Proposal for Further Development of the Vicarious L:iability Doctrine in Hostile Environments Sexual Harassment Cases” Duke Journal of Gender law & Policy, 13:86, p. 91

Cotton P. (2008), “Psychological Injury in the Workplace”, InPsych, 30:2, p 36

Day N. E., Schoenrade P. (2000), “The Relationship Among Reported Disclosure of Sexual Orientation, Antidiscrimination Policies, Top Management Support and Work Attitudes of Gay and Lesbian Employees”, Personnel Review, 29:3, p. 2

Ely R. J. Thomas D. A. (2001), “Cultural Diversity at Work: The Effects of Diversity Perspectives on Work Group Processes and Outcomes”, Administrative Science Quarterly, 46:2, p. 230

Gasil. J, (1993), Democracy in Small Groups: Participation, Decision Making and Communication, Canada, New Society Publishers pp. 72-74

Green T. K. (2003), “Discrimination in Workplace Dynamics”, Harvard Civil Rights – Civil Liberties Law Review, 38, p. 93

Grojean, Resick, Dickson & Smith, (2004), “Leaders, Values, and Organisational Climate: Examining Leadership Strategies for Establishing an Organisational Climate Regarding Ethics”, Journal of Business Ethics, 55:3, pp. 223-241

Hofstede G. (1980), Culture’s Consequences: International Differences in Work-Related Values, California, Sage, pp. 155-158

Watson C. & Hoffman R. (1996), “Managers as Negotiators”, Leadership Quarterly, 7:1, p 47

Pettigrew A., (1990), “Longitudinal Field Research on Change Theory & Practise”, Organization Science, 1:267, p. 92

Websites

Australian Human Rights Commission, “Guide to Australia’s Anti-Discrimination Law”,

Equal Employment Opportunity, (2011) Diversity Delivers, NSW Public Service Commission

Hicks T., (2000), Steps for Setting Up an Effective Conflict Management System, , accessed 14/12/11

S.C. De Janaz, K.O. Dowd & B.Z. Schneider (2002) Interpersonal Skills in Organizations, New York, McGraw-Hill, pp. 349-365

T. Hicks, (2000), Steps for Setting Up an Effective Conflict Management System, , accessed 14/12/11

C. Watson & R. Hoffman, (1996), “Managers as Negotiators”, Leadership Quarterly, 7:1, p 47

A. Pettigrew, (1990), “Longitudinal Field Research on Change Theory & Practise”, Organization Science, 1:267, p. 92

R. Stringer (2002), Leadership and Organisational Climate, NJ, Prentice Hall, p. 17

P. Cotton, (2008), “Psychological Injury in the Workplace”, InPsych, 30:2, p 36

Equal Employment Opportunity, (2011) Diversity Delivers, NSW Public Service Commission accessed 19/12/11

M. Berger, (1996), Cross-Cultural team Building, London, McGraw-Hill, pp 45-48

G. Hofstede, (1980), Culture’s Consequences: International Differences in Work-Related Values, California, Sage, pp. 155-158

R J Ely, D A Thomas, (2001), “Cultural Diversity at Work: The Effects of Diversity Perspectives on Work Group Processes and Outcomes”, Administrative Science Quarterly, 46:2, p. 230

Ely, Thomas, p. 230

Ely, Thomas, p. 232

T K Green (2003), “Discrimination in Workplace Dynamics”, Harvard Civil Rights – Civil Liberties Law Review,38, p. 93

N E Day, P Schoenrade, (2000), “The Relationship Among Reported Disclosure of Sexual Orientation, Antidiscrimination Policies, Top Management Support and Work Attitudes of Gay and Lesbian Employees”, Personnel Review, 29:3, p. 2

Australian Human Rights Commission, “ Guide to Australia’s Anti-Discrimination Law”, accessed 25/12/11

S D Carle, (2006) “ Acknowledging Informal Power Dynamics in the Workplace: A Proposal for Further Development of the Vicarious L:iability Doctrine in Hostile Environments Sexual Harassment Cases” Duke Journal of Gender law & Policy, 13:86, p. 91

Carle, p. 89

Hicks, (2000)

Grojean, Resick, Dickson & Smith, (2004),

Gasil. J, (1993), Democracy in Small Groups: Participation, Decision Making and Communication, Canada, New Society Publishers pp. 72-74

Hicks, (2000)