Change has become an integral part of modern life, and organizations urgently need to address this challenge to stay their course. In this context, conflict is one of the most frequent and significant phenomena (Hayes, 2014). To achieve success, it is necessary to take into account multiple factors, such as the role of conflict and its aspects, negotiation, leadership, and the attitude towards power, that pertain to change management and transform the organization’s performance. Having analyzed these issues, one can identify probable conflicts within the organization and develop corresponding plans.
Change Management Peculiarities
The process of change is marked by positive and negative aspects. The former group includes identifying the current weaknesses within the organization, stimulating innovation (it occurs faster), and creating new ideas (Cameron & Green, 2015). The latter group refers to wasting time, provoking stress and anxiety, and worsening relationships.
Although conflicts are usually perceived as unwanted consequences of changes, they may become a positive force on the condition that this process aims at finding the best solution (De Wit, Greer, & Jehn, 2012). In other words, change management views conflicts as the opportunity to improve the current situation and adapt to the volatile environment. In this respect, negotiation becomes the primary strategy used to cope with conflicts and understand the interests and intentions of all stakeholders (Ratner, Meinzen-Dick, May, & Haglund, 2013). It is the internal success that is directly influenced by negotiation.
The significance of an effective leader in terms of negotiation and conflicts is hard to overestimate. A leader is not only a respected person; they bear responsibility for what happens within an organization and how it manages to meet the requirements of the new setting (Zhang, Wang, & Shi, 2012). A leader is a facilitator who maintains the health of a team and organization and guides people in the process of negotiation watching that personal relationships are not involved, and the discussion refers to the relevant issues.
Relationships based on power are often characterized by threats and coercion (Vink, Dewulf, & Termeer, 2015). A leader should understand that it is not a long-term strategy: since the involved parties will lack trust and interact reluctantly, their activities will bring a few positive results.
KRMC Potential Conflicts
About the KRMC environment, three potential areas of conflict are identified:
- task-content oriented sphere: lack of resources, especially nursing shortage, may lead to the dissatisfaction with the workload;
- relationship-related sphere: different perceptions of diverse staff members may result in conflicts;
- administrative sphere: inadequate communications among different units and misinterpretation of information may also cause conflicts.
Confrontation is promoted as the best way to address possible conflicts. The conflicting parties should provide their arguments, and the final decision should be made by the received information to achieve the collective goal. In this regard, each area described above should be addressed:
- The amount of work should be previously discussed, and potential complaints concerning the amount of work may be responded by the recruitment of students and part-time nurses;
- Diversity issues may be addressed by cultural training;
- Employees’ suggestions should be discussed and implemented.
Conclusion
Overall, conflicts may become the trouble spot as well as the way to improve the situation within the organization in the context of changes. The role of the leader and properly conducted negotiations is essential. The proposed plan implies confrontation as the fundamental strategy to handle conflicts concerning task orientation, relationships, and communication.
References
Cameron, E., & Green, M. (2015). Making sense of change management: A complete guide to the models, tools and techniques of organizational change. Philadelphia, PA: Kogan Page Publishers.
De Wit, F. R., Greer, L. L., & Jehn, K. A. (2012). The paradox of intragroup conflict: A meta-analysis. Journal of Applied Psychology, 97(2), 360-390.
Hayes, J. (2014). The theory and practice of change management. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
Ratner, B., Meinzen-Dick, R., May, C., & Haglund, E. (2013). Resource conflict, collective action, and resilience: An analytical framework. International Journal of the Commons, 7(1). Web.
Vink, M. J., Dewulf, A., & Termeer, C. J. A. M. (2013). The role of knowledge and power in climate change adaptation governance: A systematic literature review. Ecology and Society, 18(4), 46-64.
Zhang, Z., Wang, M. O., & Shi, J. (2012). Leader-follower congruence in proactive personality and work outcomes: The mediating role of leader-member exchange. Academy of Management Journal, 55(1), 111-130.