Poor Behavior #3: Pitting People Against Each Other (2/06/12)
Vivian Scott
Continuing the Dirty Dozen list of 12 behaviors that cause conflict at work and then are attributed to the catchall phrase, “personality clashes”, I’m adding: #3 Pitting People Against Each Other

We Stumble...But Love Never Fails (1/23/12)
William Scott Harralson, J.D.
At the age of 28, I began volunteering as a shop steward with the Office and Professional Workers Union (AFL-CIO). Countless hours were spent listening to the concerns of aggravated employees and their equally frustrated supervisors. The common thread running through our discussions involved disciplinary action initiated by the employer. The other recurring issue was unfavorable employee performance evaluations. It was my job to navigate between both sides in hopes of negotiating a settlement before things escalated to the point that a worker elected to file a grievance or charge.   5 Comments

Negotiation tips for work, home and the marketplace (1/23/12)
Tammy Lenski
Last fall, my 13 graduate negotiation students, few of whom described themselves as good negotiators when class started, mostly shuddered at the prospect of one assignment in particular: Each week, they had to negotiate something. A matter at home. A better price on a purchase at the mall.

Personality Clashes: A Dozen Dirty Behaviors (1/16/12)
Vivian Scott
A smart guy and I are creating a webinar series for employees on the topic of conflict resolution. In the one section we decided to break down what it means to have a “personality clash” with a coworker.

EEOC Increases Monetary Recoveries in Mediation to $170 Million (1/10/12)
Keith Seat

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission reports that in fiscal 2011 it again set a record for the amount of monetary relief obtained for victims of discrimination, at $365 million, of which over $170 million was obtained in mediations. About 100,000 discrimination charges were filed with the EEOC, but the agency reduced its backlog so that fewer than 80,000 matters were pending late in the year.

JDSupra (December 16, 2011)

Happy New Year! Resolve to Resolve (1/02/12)
Vivian Scott
Happy New Year! Yes, it’s that time of year when we collectively pledge to get thinner, richer, and more organized. How about this year we forego some of the usual resolutions and instead focus on resolving some of those lingering issues we have with others? If you’re ready to address the ice between you and another person, here are a few ideas from previous blogs to get you started.

Laura Kaster on Impasse: It's the Value, Stupid! (12/27/11)
The second post on Molly Klapper’s book, Definitive Creative Impasse-Breaking Techniques in Mediation, focuses on a deceptively simple and profoundly wise short essay by Laura Kaster, Addressing Impasse by Helping the Parties Value the Case. She opens her piece with a “much overlooked but obvious” point: “Settling or mediating a case is, among other things, a process for agreeing to the value of the claim. … Impasse often occurs precisely because the parties do not agree on the value of the case.”

The View from the Group: A Collectivist’s Perspective on Conflict Management in Organizations (12/12/11)
Christine Tsai
Most research on organizational conflict presents a Western slant on conflict management at work. Expanding research to include non-Western cultures provides a more comprehensive sense of how conflict is managed in organizational settings worldwide.

Why Sucking Up at Work Isn’t a Bad Thing (12/05/11)
Vivian Scott
Brownnoser, suck up, and backslapper are just a few of the monikers folks at work get when they have the boss mesmerized and delivering whatever they want. Coworkers may like to point out a yes-man’s flaws and make a lot of noise about his behavior, but that doesn’t stop a teacher’s pet from receiving special attention and perks.

Dismantling Systems of Bullying (11/28/11)
Peter T. Coleman
Bullying is a public health problem that affects 20% to 30% of students on a daily basis and is associated with depression, suicidal thoughts, substance abuse and a decreased sense of empathy for others. It is also a common problem in other adult workplaces.

When a Bully Refuses to Dance! (11/28/11)
Phyllis Pollack
Recently, I posted blogs on the necessity of “dancing” and on “difficult people”. This past week, both topics collided in a mediation! What an experience!

Free Book on Workplace Mediation as Public Service by the University of California (10/31/11)
Gregorio Billikopf
Mediators, human resource managers and other interested individuals may obtain a free copy of the 321 page book Party-Directed Mediation by Gregorio Billikopf. The focus of the publication is on the mediation of deep-seated interpersonal conflict, so the book may also be of interest to attorneys and therapists.   1 Comment

Negotiating with the Most Difficult People (10/31/11)
Nancy Hudgins
I’m a fan of Bill Eddy’s. Bill is a clinical social worker who became a lawyer and then a mediator. He has made a study of working with high conflict personalities. He founded the High Conflict Institute, which is also on Facebook, here.

Would You Like Fries With That? (10/10/11)
Mitch Chyette
An examination of how the various negotiating traps illustrated by the debt-ceiling negotiations and how we can avoid them.   1 Comment

Who ya Gonna Punish? (10/10/11)
Vivian Scott
Here’s another one of those “I-wish-people-would-stop-doing-that” blogs, based on the Vivian Scott workplace conflict blog.

A Labor Day Lesson (9/12/11)
Cynthia Alkon
When teaching negotiation, I often talk about negotiating in a way that is consistent with your underlying values. However, what to do when your values stress obedience and not questioning authority and management is not responsive to an interest based approach?

Understanding Volunteers (the remix) (8/29/11)
Vivian Scott
With the kiddos headed back to school and the adults jumping back into volunteer work, fundraising responsibilities, and committee dynamics I thought it might be a good idea to repost a bit I wrote last year about volunteers…

Collaborative Problem Solving: An Effective Approach For Managing Conflict In The Workplace (8/27/11)
Seth Bernstein, Stuart Ablon
Collaborative Problem Solving (CPS) is a method of conflict resolution that was originally developed for working with very difficult children--as well as adults. The core of CPS is “Plan B,” a clear, multi-step process for working through conflict. This article describes the conceptual underpinnings of CPS and provides directions, illustrated by examples, for executing Plan B.   2 Comments

Escalated Dispute Resolution (8/13/11)
Clive Johnson, Jackie Keddy
Whenever an attempt to reach a conclusion to a dispute that could not be solved locally involves informal or formal intervention by a third party, all parties involved should be able to recognize that they’ve entered into a new phase of their disagreement.

Dealing with Anger at Work: Co-workers and Bosses Hold the Key to Transforming Anger (8/01/11)
Tammy Lenski
The key to dealing with anger at work is a supportive, compassionate response instead of sanctions, references to codes of conduct, or ignoring it, according to recently published research by two Temple University and University of Baltimore professors.

New Research Explains Why Some Complaints Escalate to Conflicts (8/01/11)
John Crawley
The Department for Business Innovation and Skills recently published a research[1] report of great value to organisations and conflict management practitioners. Because this is a useful, practical piece of research with many learning points, I have taken the unusual step of letting the words of the researchers speak for themselves in these key extracts.

Work it Out at Work: The Art and Science of Managing Workplace Conflict (7/25/11)
Monya Kian
Workplace conflict is unproductive and costly. While it is inevitable, it can be handled productively.   2 Comments

I Don't Rate the Mediation Process (7/11/11)
Katherine Graham
We each have weaknesses, habits, egos and fears which cause us to mess up in our workplace relationships from time to time. There isn’t an employee at any level alive, who hasn’t annoyed, undermined or hurt a colleague along the way. Mostly we see what we do, we take responsibility and seek and gain forgiveness – the mess is cleared up and we can move on.   1 Comment

Hiding in Plain Sight (7/10/11)
Myra Isenhart, Michael Spangle
How mediators can build on employee efforts at managing conflict.

How to Destroy Your Chances for a Raise (6/27/11)
Vivian Scott
Some employees think that if they suck up a little during the few weeks prior to a review, the boss will forget or overlook the fact that they’ve made mistakes, presented sloppy work, badmouthed others, had attendance issues, and generally did as little as they could to get by. Not so.