Organizations suffer from several limitations, including conflicts among employees, which limit effective operations. As employees interact at the workplace, they are bound to disagree on several matters. Although disagreements are the main cause of workplace conflicts, the struggle for power and influence is a significant impediment to organizational progress. Relationship conflicts can result from unfounded rumors spread by an envious employee to cause division (Webb et al., 2017. This case gives the example of a conflict between two employees, Millie Norman and Cathy Johnson. The organization’s progress depends on the head of the department’s response to the complaints presented by Millie.
As Millie presents her argument to the boss, it is important to understand that her motives may not be right. As the boss, my response would be that of neutrality rather than support. I would immediately let her know that I am listening to her points and would consider them. I would thank her for coming up with an issue that significantly impacts my leadership and the organization’s future. However, I would express my desire to dig deeper into the issue to find the real motives behind the supposedly derogatory words spoken by Cathy. This is important to maintain departmental order since approving Millie’s accusations would give her the authority to spread them to other members within the department. Further, it would intensify the power conflict between her and Cathy, which would be a bad example to junior employees (Hershcovis et al., 2017). Besides, the accusations are not yet proven to be true. It could as well be unfounded claims arising from a relationship conflict and hunger for power.
In the case presented, there is no reasonable ground to warrant disciplinary action against any employee. First, there is a conflict of interest surrounding the accusation. Millie is a senior employee in the same department as Cathy Johnson, a professional employee who has worked in the department for many years. Millie could be interested in ruining Cathy’s reputation and take her position in the department. Second, Millie has no evidence to back up her claims as she requests the departmental head not to inform Cathy of the accusation. That alone implies that she would not want to be faced by Cathy as she may not have anything to defend her comments. Third, the case highlights that there is no connection to specific incidents. This adds to the point that these may be baseless accusations. Lastly, the departmental head realizes from Millie’s comments that either Millie or Cathy could have edited his departmental schedule. All these points show a high level of uncertainty that does not allow for any disciplinary action.
The human resource (HR) department can help resolve the present conflict. In every organization, the HR department acts as a link between employees and management. In this case, the HR department would step in to investigate the matter, file the specific events and assess the validity of Millie’s claims. To enforce employees’ adherence to workplace codes of conduct, HR will read and explain acceptable behavior codes for all employees (Webb et al., 2017). Should Millie or Cathy be found guilty of unethical conduct, HR would design the appropriate disciplinary action.
An organization is guided by rules of operation and codes of conduct. Conflicts can arise at any time in the organization calling for effective conflict-resolution techniques. Whenever conflicts arise, leaders have to exercise caution in handling unfounded claims such as the ones peddled by Millie in this scenario. The HR department should ensure that the conflict is analyzed and solutions developed depending on the set codes of conduct. Failure to observe the right procedures would intensify the conflict.
References
Hershcovis, M. S., Ogunfowora, B., Reich, T. C., & Christie, A. M. (2017). Targeted workplace incivility: The roles of belongingness, embarrassment, and power. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 38(7), 1057-1075.
Webb, C. E., Coleman, P. T., Rossignac-Milon, M., Tomasulo, S. J., & Higgins, E. T. (2017). Moving on or digging deeper: Regulatory mode and interpersonal conflict resolution. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 112(4), 621–641. Web.