Confilict Management

MAYBO - SITO

Communication and Conflict Management Delegate Handbook: SIA Licence to Practice

Communication and Conflict

Management Skills

2

Communication and Conflict Management Skills

Important Notice

This document - including the techniques and guidance contained within

it -is the physical and intellectual property of Maybo Limited and can

only be reproduced, in part or whole, with the express written permission

of Maybo Limited. The SAFER Model and OPEN PALMS are

Trademarks of Maybo Limited.

Trainers can only reproduce and distribute the content if they satisfy all of

the following conditions:

The trainer delivering the material has successfully completed

the relevant SITO Part 3 Communication & Conflict

Management Trainer Programme with Maybo Limited.

The content may only be reproduced and distributed to

delegates undertaking the training requirement of the Security

Industry Authority Licence to Practice through an SIA approved

awarding body.

The material and content cannot be used, in part or in whole, for any

other purpose.

Trainers participating in this programme recognise that the guidance contained is intended to represent

current good practice rather than hard and fast rules as in reality every set of circumstances is different.

Trainers undertake to make this clear to delegates that they train and to remind them that they are

accountable for their actions. Maybo Limited and SITO cannot accept responsibility for the operational

application of these techniques and guidance, which are presented as a good practice guide.

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INTRODUCTION

Conflict management is the application of strategies to

resolve incompatible objectives in a positive manner.

Traditionally, conflict was seen as negative. "In recent

years, however," as observed by Borisoff and Victor, "we

have come to recognize and to acknowledge the benefits

dealing with conflict affords. Because of our differences,

we communicate, we are challenged, we are driven to

find creative solutions to problems."

THE DEVELOPMENT OF CONFLICT

MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES

Until the early 1960s, virtually all conflict was perceived as negative. Resolution of conflict had one basic strategy: a win or lose scenario. Since the loser in this scenario inevitably felt resentment, the typical managerial technique for dealing with conflict was to avoid it. Avoidance, in turn, tended to make the avoided parties feel neglected. Moreover, avoidance rarely resolved the underlying incompatible objectives at the heart of the conflict so that the source of the conflict remained, surfacing with the next problematic situation. Thus, these strategies did not prove particularly valuable in interpersonal work settings.

In the early 1960s, R.R. Blake and J.S. Mouton developed a managerial grid for identifying conflict; these included "handling strategies." The grid illustrated how strategies for handling conflict fell into differing levels ofassertiveness and cooperation.

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http://www.referenceforbusiness.com/knowledge/Assertiveness.html

http://www.referenceforbusiness.com/knowledge/Management.html

http://www.referenceforbusiness.com/knowledge/Creativity.html


Blake and Mouton identified five modes of handling conflict. These were

labeled

1: Smoothing

2: Forcing

3: Withdrawal

4: Compromising

5: Problem solving

Smoothing

Smoothing involved the loser of the win-lose configuration and

represented high cooperation with the needs of others along with low

assertiveness of one's own needs.

Forcing

The winner of the win-lose model undertook forcing, which included low

cooperation and high assertiveness.

withdrawal

Traditional conflict avoidance (withdrawal) was seen as low in both

assertiveness and cooperation.

Compromising

Compromise was seen as the center of the grid; that is, moderate in both

assertiveness and cooperation. Compromise was simultaneously winning

and losing, a situation in which neither party was completely satisfied or

dissatisfied.

Problem solving

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In their last mode, problem-solving, Blake and Mouton suggested a new

approach altogether. Problem-solving created a win-win option

combining both high assertiveness of ones own needs coupled with high

cooperation in solving the needs of others.

Developing Communication & Conflict Management Skills

Avoiding Conflict & Assessing Risk

In this section you will be looking at ways in which you can reduce the

risks of being involved in conflict through:

Effectively assessing a situation

Being more aware of how people may react in threatening

situations

Providing good customer service.

Defusing Conflict

In this section you will look at ways in which you can defuse a conflict

situation by:

Understanding how to overcome blocks to communication

Using effective communication to signal non-aggression and

calm down a potentially violent situation.

Recognising and dealing safely with high risk situations

Resolving Conflict

In this section you will look at ways in which you can help to resolve the

problems that cause conflict by being able to:

Recognise the customer’s point of view

Resolve the issue

Seek a win win solution

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Learning from Conflict

In the final section you will look at things you need to consider after an

incident including ways you can:

Support colleagues

Report and record incidents

Learn from the incident

Share good practice

INTRODUCTION

Workplace Violence

The Health and Safety Executive defines workplace violence as:

Any incident in which a person is:

Abused,

Threatened or

Assaulted

in circumstances relating to their work

Responsibilities of employers and employees

The main legislation is Section 2 of the Health and Safety at Work Act

1974 which covers work related violence and other risks:

“It shall be the duty of every employer to ensure, as far as

reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare at work

of all his employees”

In simple terms, your employer must carry out an assessment of

the risks that you may face whilst doing you are doing your job.

This involves gathering information and an understanding of the

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types of situations, incidents and scenarios that you are likely to

face and making an assessment of the risks involved in those

situations.

Once the risks have been identified, your employer must

provide ‘risk reduction measures’ which will eliminate or reduce

the risks identified. These will include things like guidance

about how deal with difficult situations, safe working practices

and training.

Employees also have a duty of care towards themselves and

others who may be affected by their acts or omissions at work

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AVOIDING CONFLICT

Assessing Risk

Dynamic risk assessment

Dynamic risk assessment is a way of continuously assessing a situation as

you are dealing with it to ensure that risks of violence are quickly

recognised, assessed and responded to.

The SAFER Approach

The S.A.F.E.R model helps us to carry out dynamic risk assessment

S = Step Back

Don’t rush in

Physically step back, if possible - you see more and have a

better chance of assessing correctly

Mentally and emotionally step back - think clearly and

rationally.

A = Assess Threat

Identify potential dangers by consciously assessing with ‘POP’

(described below)

F = Find Help

Consider what help is needed, or who can be communicated

with. Don’t deal with an incident on your own if there is any

potential for you to be hurt – even unintentionally.

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E = Evaluate Options

Decide what options are available and select the one most likely to work.

There are generally three main options available:

To deal with the person yourself - and selecting an appropriate

safe approach

To exit – if the situation meets the ‘high risk’ criteria discussed

later in this handbook

To pass the control of the incident to another person if you

aren’t able to deal with it successfully

R = Respond

You must now respond using the best course of action selected from your

evaluation of the options.

Threat assessment ‘POP’

The emergency services use a simple but effective system for assessing

the threat - POP. Using this system makes threat assessment a conscious

process and that in turn makes it more reliable. It involves breaking

threats down into three categories or types.

P = Person

Continually assess people to judge whether you may be at risk. If you

have met the person before, what do you know about them?

Do they have a history of anger or aggression? Are they a

known criminal?

How do they appear? Are they suffering the effects of drink or

drugs?

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Are they bigger, fitter, younger or stronger than you?

O = Object

Assess the situation with regard to the risk presented by any objects

Moving vehicles

Knives and other edged weapons

‘Apparently’ innocent articles - scissors, syringes, screwdrivers,

bottles or cans glasses etc

P = Place

Staircases and dance floors

Remote areas - away from observation of others or safe refuge

Routes to or from work

Exits that are blocked

Levels of threat

There are two types of threat:

High risk or Unknown risk

We are often safer when an obvious threat is presented as we prepare

ourselves to deal with the situation. For example, when going on a walk:

Coastal path = perceived low risk = unprepared

Mountains = perceived high risk= prepared

Conclusions

Assessment should be conscious and continuous

Be alert, scanning the environment (but not paranoid)

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By being aware we are better able to respond

Beware complacency – after an incident we are more alert to the risks and take precautions.

Over time awareness can reduce making us more vulnerable through complacency.

Self-awareness

Responses to threat

People have two mindsets or ways of dealing with a situation -

the Emotional (the one that feels), and the Rational (the one that

thinks).

When you are particularly upset or when you feel threatened,

the emotional side quickly takes over. This means that you lose

much of your ability to rationalise and think clearly.

Fight and Flight

If you are seriously threatened your body prepares you to either

stay or fight the threat or to take flight and run away from the

danger.

Within seconds of sensing danger, you can run faster, hit harder,

see better, hear more acutely, think faster, and jump higher than

you could only seconds earlier. This is often referred to as the

‘Fight or Flight’ response. This flight or fight reaction is a

natural basic instinct.

Triggers and inhibitors

Triggers are often small things that when combined with other problems,

spark off aggression. So if a person is already feeling frustrated by long

waits, poor service, or personal circumstances, there are many triggers

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that will spark off a sharp reaction! You may never know what someone

has been through just before their encounter with you.

Common triggers

People tend to be ‘triggered’ into an angry reaction if they feel:

Embarrassed

Loss of face

Insulted

Afraid

That people are laughing at them

Inhibitors prevent aggression

Inhibitors are things that prevent people from completely losing their

temper. You know that not everybody gets violent when they become

angry. This is because you have inhibitions based on:

Self control – most people have built in control which prevents

them from turning to violent behaviour

Personal values – the way we have been brought up, the values

and beliefs that we have learned

Fear that the other person will fight back – most of us don’t

want to be hurt and realise a fight will risk this

Social or legal consequences – these include being charged with

an assault, losing one’s job or licence

Stimulus and response

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Animals tend to respond automatically, fight or flight, when something

happens. If you pull a dog’s tail it is very likely that it will bite you. This

is the dog’s automatic reaction.

Animal ‘reaction’ to stimulus

Humans are however, different. People have a choice about how they

respond to a threatening situation. At first the emotional side kicks in.

your bodies prepare a fight or flight response. As the rational side catches

up, you can then start to analyse the situation and respond more

appropriately.

Human Response to stimulus

The wrong choice can escalate the problem

Your choice is important because every choice has a

consequence. Even when you have passed the ‘flight or fight’

stage you still have a choice between escalating or de-escalating

the situation.

When you are feeling angry, emotional or tense, you might

easily do something or say something that will make things

worse. A smart comment or a pointing or poking finger could

trigger an escalation.

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Stimulu

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Stimulu

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Respons

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Respons

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Stimulu

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ENCOD

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Stimulu

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ENCOD

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CHOIC

E

CHOIC

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You need to consciously choose to deal with the incident so that

no one loses face or gets more wound up or frustrated.

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16

De -

escalates

De -

escalates

Stimulu

s

ENCO

DES

Sti

ulus

Stimulus

ENCO

DES

Sti

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Stimulu

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ENCO

DES

Sti

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Sti

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CHOICE

CHOICE

CHOICE

CHOICE

Listening

Helpful

Concern

Calm

Stimulus

Helpful

Concern

Calm

Stimulus

Unhelpful

Smart

Remark

Aggressive

Officious

Calm

Stimulus

Smart

Remark

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Officious

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Escalat

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Escalat

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RESPONSE

B

Response

B


Pro-active service delivery

First contact – managing customer expectations

Sometimes organisations and staff can create or worsen the

environment within which a conflict develops and increase the

risk of violence by the way they deliver services or approach

their work.

There is a build up to the majority of violent incidents, and

often the most significant action that can be taken to reduce

violence is to provide a high quality service.

Providing information in good time may be all that is needed to

placate and calm agitated customers.

The first impression begins with your appearance, facial

expression and the way you are standing.

Behaviour breeds behaviour

It is extremely unlikely that you will have a positive attitude towards

everyone you meet in the course of your work. If you are dealing with

someone you feel negative towards, you are likely to show those negative

feelings in the way that you behave towards the other person.

Your negative behaviour makes a situation worse

When the other person recognises this negative behaviour from you, this

will in turn affect their attitude towards you. A negative attitude will

come out in their behaviour towards you. Their negative behaviour is

then likely to make the negative feelings you had in the first place even

more negative. 17


This is shown in the Attitude and Behaviour Cycle:

It is very difficult to change your attitude towards someone. It

is however possible to change the way you behave towards

them. You can learn to behave so that your negative feelings do

not show, so that your behaviour doesn’t reflect your negative

feelings. This breaks the cycle and stops it getting worse.

DEFUSING CONFLICT

Blocks to communication

A number of things can get in the way of good communication – these are

termed: ‘blocks’. A block is anything that can cause the communication

between two people to break down or become difficult.

The Environment

The environment in which you are communicating can contain things that

will have an effect upon the success of the communication. They are

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My Attitude

My Behaviour

Your Attitude

Your Behaviour

Affec

ts

Affec

ts

Affec

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Affec

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usually obvious - although you don’t always recognise the effect they are

having –and include:

Loud noise

Lots of people crowding together

Physical discomfort - feeling very hot or cold, being hungry or

tired.

Emotion and feelings

When you are angry, frustrated or unhappy, the emotions generated will

have a direct impact upon your ability to communicate successfully. You

find it difficult to hear and correctly interpret words and tend to rely

much more on the tone and body language to understand.

Alcohol and Drugs

Alcohol is has a depressant effect, which results in slower reactions to

normal stimulus. It tends to reduce people’s inhibitions and can make

them unreasonable and unpredictable.

When you are communicating with a person who is under the

influence of alcohol:

Talk slowly and calmly

Adopt a non-aggressive stance

Maintain space between them and you.

There are many different drugs available and each can have a different

effect on the person who has taken them. The effects can range from

those similar to alcohol, across to high stimulant effects and even

hallucinations. The greatest communication difficulty is the

unpredictability that can arise in people who have taken drugs and the

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fact that their world may be very distorted. The same points should be

borne in mind as with alcohol but with the greater emphasis on the need

to demonstrate a non-aggressive stance and to maintain space between

you and the other person. Remember, drugs and alcohol are often mixed

and their effects can be difficult to predict.

Different cultures communicate differently

Different cultures hold different values and attitudes to define the way

they live and interact with others. There are no ‘rights’ and ‘wrongs’

where culture is concerned – one culture isn’t better than another - just

different!

Some of this difference may be in things like body language; hand signs

in one culture can mean something very different in another, or the

difference in space between people when communicating. There are often

differences in values, which are difficult to accept.

If you want to communicate well with someone who is clearly from a

different cultural or ethnic background to yourself then it is important to

respect the values of that culture and try to communicate in a way that

embraces those values as much as possible.

Mental health problems

A person may behave in a certain way because of mental health

problems. Mental illness can take many forms.

The person may be aggressive for any of the following reasons:

Fear - (e.g. of noise or of people) leading to desperation and the

feeling that “the only way out is to fight”

Paranoia - (feelings of being persecuted) may be directed

towards certain groups in society, for example police or doctors, 20


and could have been caused by bad experiences with them in the

past

Anger - at being provoked by other people

When dealing with people who have a mental illness:

Give him or her plenty of space

Talk clearly and calmly to ensure he or she understands you

Make sure he or she knows you mean no harm

Be reassuring. Tell him or her what you are doing and why

Keep your hands open and in view

Reduce distractions that will alarm or confuse

If you are with a colleague only one of you should talk to the

person.

Channels of communication

In conversation the message is passed from one person to the other

through three channels:

Words - the actual words spoken

Tone - the way the words are spoken

Non-verbal - the stance, gestures and expressions

The receiver gains the meaning of a message as follows:

Method % of

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meaning

Words 7

Tone 38

Non Verbal 55

Match body language and tone to words.

Remember:

Your body language and tone of voice will make a big impact

It’s not so much what you say – it’s how you say it

If you try to understand the other person’s point it will help

communication between you.

Signalling non-aggression

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This is one of the most important areas to understand when defusing a

situation where people are becoming aggressive. The more emotional

someone is becoming the less they can hear and rationalise what is being

said to them. However, they will instinctively respond to body language

and tone of voice.

Non-verbal communication – Open PALMS

Maybo has developed the Open PALMS model to signal non-aggression.

It helps you to show another person that you do not want to fight him or

her

Open PALMS – I don’t want to fight you.

P - Position – allow exit routes, don’t block in

A - Attitude – display positive and helpful

attitude

L - Look and listen – normal eye contact,

active listening

M - Make space – maintain a comfortable

distance

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S - Stance – shoulders relaxed and turned

away to the side

High-risk conflict

Recognising escalation

A high-risk conflict is one where there is an immediate risk that the

person dealing with the situation is going to be physically assaulted.

You need to recognise when a situation is escalating and respond

appropriately.

Signs of escalation to watch out for include:

Angry non-verbal signals – face reddening, intense eye contact

Abuse which is focused on you personally

Increasingly vulgar, abusive or threatening language

Your personal space is being invaded

Square on posture, head and chin thrust forward

Fist clenching, finger pointing - leading to physical contact

The four ‘A’s model

When you are dealing with high risk conflict situations it will help you to

remember the 4 A’s:

Don’t get Angry

Manage Abuse

Maintain a positive Attitude

Be Assertive – not aggressive

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Defusing and calming

In a high-risk conflict – the other person is in a very agitated and

emotional state and the signals are telling you that you are in immediate

danger of being physically assaulted. If it is appropriate – you should

remove yourself from that danger.

This is often easier said than done - particularly when it is obvious you

are in a position of authority and other customers are around who may be

left to deal with the situation. Sometimes, you are not in a position where

you can leave easily and safely. Where this is the case, you need to be

able to defuse the situation and calm the person down so that he or she

becomes less of a risk.

There are four basic steps which help to calm a person who is in a high

level of agitation and emotion:

Signal non aggression

Catch his or her attention

Actively listen and empathise

Win his or her trust

Signal non-aggression

When someone is in a high state of emotion and anger, there is little point

in trying to appeal to their rational side. The most important thing to

signal is non-aggression – remember Open PALMS.

Catch his or her attention

If someone has really ‘lost it’ then it may be necessary to match his or her

level of energy in order to gain his or her attention. ‘Matching’ energy

level is a delicate balance and needs to be carefully monitored – you need

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to put yourself in a position where you can gain direct eye contact with

the other person and raise your energy and voice to an appropriate level.

Use words like “Whoa, just a sec!” or “Excuse me, can I help?” As soon

as you have clearly got his or her attention – the level needs to drop back

to normal and you should maintain the Open PALMS stance.

Show empathy and actively listen

It is quite difficult to stay really angry for a long time and people who are

angry respond quickly to anything that sounds like and apology. If you

demonstrate empathy with their situation it will help to diffuse their

anger. This isn’t the same as agreeing with his or her complaint or point

of view – but it acknowledges their right to hold it. You can demonstrate

empathy by the use of phrases like:

“I’m sorry this has happened to you.”

“I’m sorry you’ve had to queue for so long”

“I can see that this has made you very angry”

“I can understand why this has made you angry”.

Win his or her Trust

Winning trust is getting the person to the point where he or she is calm

enough to be able to deal with the situation in a rational manner. He or

she has to have confidence that you are ‘on their side’, want to resolve the

problem and have some power to be able to resolve the situation.

Confronting unacceptable behaviour

It is important to realise that to confront a person who is already very

angry and emotional is likely to escalate the situation and increase the

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risk – no matter how skilled you are in doing it. It is sometimes a difficult

choice and it can be hard not to react to some types of abuse –

particularly if it is very personal or perhaps racially motivated.

Remember that you can confront someone about ‘unacceptable

behaviour’ when it is safer to do so, such as when they are calmer or you

are in a safer area.

If you feel you have to confront, then make sure you are assertive – rather

than aggressive. A good assertive statement will usually:

State clearly what the unacceptable behaviour is that you want

to stop,

What the consequences of continuing will be, and

An acknowledgement of the other person’s point of view.

An example of a good assertive statement is:

“I appreciate you are angry, but if you continue to shout and swear, you

leave me no option but to ask you to leave – which I don’t want to have

to do”.

It is important to make sure your body language gives a similar message

– you can make a good assertive statement but make it aggressive by

squaring on or pointing. Remember Open PALMS.

Exit strategies

When you are in a situation, which you recognize as high risk, it may be

necessary for you to exit from the situation. This is to take yourself out of

immediate danger and to allow you to think rationally about how to deal

with the incident. People often find it difficult to get out of such

situations without ‘losing face’ and therefore stay longer than it is safe to

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do so. An ‘exit strategy’ is a pre-prepared way of getting yourself away

from a difficult situation.

Have a ready-made reason to exit. An ‘exit strategy’ is quite simply a

sensible reason for leaving the situation you are in. You need to have a

reason ready so that it comes to mind quickly. It needs to be something

that will not make the situation worse.

It will be something like:

“I’m afraid I can’t make that decision – I’ll have to go and speak with the

manager about it.”

The law regarding self-defence

The law relating to self-defence is reasonably clear and unambiguous.

However, people often confuse retaliation with self-defence. The law

does not allow us to retaliate – only to defend others or ourselves from

attack.

Use of Force - Any use of force on another person is an assault

Authority for the use of force comes from both Common Law and Statute

Law. Often it is against the law to use force on another person.

Sometimes, however, when justified an assault can be lawful. It is

recognising such circumstances that is important. Criteria most relevant

in relation to violence at work are:

Defending oneself or others against unlawful violence

Saving life

Preventing crime, making a lawful arrest and protecting

property

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Common Law Authority

Any person may use such force as is reasonable in the circumstances in

defence of themselves or others and, in certain circumstances, in defence

of property.

The force used must be reasonable and no more than is necessary to repel

the attack. You must be able to show an honestly held belief that

immediate unlawful personal violence was occurring or about to occur

and your actions were necessary to prevent such conduct.

In some cases it maybe necessary, and lawful, to act or strike first to

defend yourself or another person. You must be able to show compelling

justification for such action. The law states that some attempt should be

made at retreat where practicable.

Reasonable force can also be used in order to save life.

Human Rights Act

Use of force must be reasonable and proportionate – which means you

must not over-react.

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RESOLVING CONFLICT

Problem solving

Recognising the customer’s point of view

Empathy is basically about being able to see another person’s point of

view – even if you don’t agree with it. It is best understood as a piece of

cheese! Person A sees a square, person B sees a triangle - both very

different shapes but the same thing – a wedge of cheese.

If you have empathy, it means you recognize that the other person has a

different view of the world but – to them – it is equally as valid as your

own view. The critical element is to understand that all involved believe

that they are right. The key to unlocking this problem is for one person to

seek to listen and understand the other’s point of view. Listening and

positively seeking to understand provides the following benefits:

As you are not resisting or arguing the conflict can diminish

Listening to the other person shows that you are interested and

care

You may discover that the facts, or perceived facts, are different

to your initial thoughts

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A

B


Resolving the issue

It is important to try and remove the cause of the problem that has led to

the conflict. This can only be achieved when the ‘heat’ is out of the

situation and everyone is thinking rationally. Remember that the

customer will have a different point of view to you – otherwise the

conflict would not have started in the first place.

Building rapport

If you are to go further and resolve a situation, you first need to build a

rapport, a sense of trust with the other individual(s). You can achieve this

through the same techniques you have already applied to defusing the

emotion:

Active listening (nods of the head, say “Yes, Yes” or “I see”

etc)

Active looking (maintain normal eye contact and don’t be

distracted)

Paraphrase (use expressions like “Let me check I’ve

understood…”, then summarise what they have said)

Be friendly (even if you don’t feel like it); disarm them by not

living up to their low expectations of you.

Seeking a win-win outcome

To successfully resolve a situation you need to think ‘win–win’:

A ‘win-win’ situation is where both sides of a confrontation come out of

the encounter situation feeling satisfied with the outcome. It is not always

possible to meet everyone’s ideal result, but if partly reached, people are

more likely to be satisfied with their treatment. A simple explanation may

be enough. 31


Your win situation

Minimal aggravation and stress

Doing a professional job

Finding a successful solution

Leaving others satisfied that you have done your best

A customer’s win situation

Saving face

Getting what they are asked for

Being listened to and taken seriously

Being treated fairly and professionally

Receiving a helpful explanation

Delivering a gift

This strategy can be used to bring a discussion that is going nowhere to

an end. It allows the customer to leave and you to return to work, while

hopefully leaving them with the impression that you have worked hard to

try and resolve their problem. Examples include:

Providing the use of a phone

Free coffee and refreshments whilst they wait

An invitation to return on a different occasion when they could be made

extra welcome

Calling a taxi or providing a card for a reliable taxi firm

An invitation to come back to you, personally, if there is any further

difficulty.

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LEARNING FROM CONFLICT

Post Incident Considerations

Support for Victims

Perhaps the most important thing to recognise is that everyone has a

different way of responding to and dealing with the aftermath of a violent

or aggressive incident. There is no right or wrong way to react and people

must be allowed to deal with it in their own way.

Colleagues can help by ‘looking out’ for someone who has been

subjected to an assault. It is important to watch for changes in behaviour

from what you would expect for this person. In the short term, it is quite

normal for a person to have a range of reactions from shock, confusion

and disbelief through to anger, embarrassment or a feeling of violation.

You can provide help and support just by listening and reinforcing that is

quite normal to have these reactions to an incident involving violence.

Reporting and recording

Accounting for your actions

You may be asked to account for your actions, or inaction, by your

manager, and may well be called before a civil or criminal court months

after the event. It is therefore very important to write a clear, detailed

incident report immediately after an incident.

When writing your report, remember the ordinary person who was not

present at the time of the incident but who may be sitting on a jury in

court. Ensure you provide enough detail for a third party to conclude that

your actions were reasonable in the circumstances.

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Help others to see the incident as it was and to understand how it felt

being there. Give a true, accurate and full picture of what happened that

would help others understand why you took the action that you did.

When completing your incident report remember to include:

Facts about yourself and the other party

Background information

Description of behaviour

Level of force used

Simply stating that a person became ‘abusive’ or ‘violent’ is not

satisfactory – state exactly what the person said, and what they did.

Reporting

Reporting all incidents is essential in order for an organisation to protect

staff against risk. The organisation relies upon quality information to

establish effective strategies and training. Reporting incidents of

workplace violence is a duty under Health and Safety legislation.

Learning from what happened

As a professional, you should continuously be recognising the things that

you do well in situations of conflict and looking for things that you might

be able to do better in a similar incident. You should review how you

approached the incident using this simple process:

What happened?

Why did I happen to react that way?

How can I improve things if this happens again?

In some organisations, the line manager will debrief the incident. In a

serious incident there will be an investigation aimed at finding out what

happened and what can be learned from it. It is good practice to get into

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the habit of going through this process for your self – if nothing else; it

helps you not to make the same mistake twice!

BENEFITS OF IMPROVING COMMUNICATION AND CREATING

CONFLICT MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS

Conflict is usually a result of either a lack of or breakdown in communication. The best way to deal with conflict is to improve communication at all levels. By establishing a system that opens the channels of communication and addresses problems before they escalate, the relationship between the participants will improve, and so will productivity and efficiency. In order to accomplish this, you should:

Raise awareness of conflict; early recognition minimizes the harmful

effect.

Provide a safe and unbiased place for participants to discuss candidly the

issues, whether in large or small groups. Adopt a complaint/conflict

system that encourages participation by all employees.

Set up internal procedures and processes for recognizing and managing

conflict whenever and wherever it occurs, and make sure that all people

involved understand how the system works and its importance.

Retain qualified neutral professionals to set up a formal training program

for all people and encourage open communication.

Retain a neutral third party to intervene early in the conflict cycle to

gather information relating to the conflict. Use that person as an impartial

mediator to address the problems and seek resolutions.

Work collaboratively to improve communication and have faith in the

process itself to assure an environment where all parties are personally

invested in managing conflict.

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The Value of Managing Conflict Effectively

Posted on January 4th, 2012 by Craig Runde

Organizations want to know what kind of return on investment can come from improving their managers’ and employees’ ability to handle conflict effectively. It is a similar question to those asked about other types of training. In the case of conflict, the answer is easier to give.

Cost Savings

The Dana Mediation Institute’s Organizational Cost of Conflict Measure provides an excellent tool for analyzing the out of pocket costs of conflict (www.mediationworks.com/ ). It categorizes a number of cost factors related to conflict and provides a means of estimating these costs for an organization. Some of the key costs include managerial time spent on conflict, employee retention, absenteeism, and legal costs.

The Dana measure helps organizations quantify this cost by asking about the amount of time typically spent by managers on conflict, average manager salary and benefits, and the number of managers in an organization. Even using conservative figures, most organizations find that the costs are very substantial. A number of studies over the past thirty years have asked managers about the percentage of their time they spend dealing with conflict. The numbers consistently fall in the 20-40% range. Improved conflict management skills won’t completely eliminate this number but it can certainly reduce it.

One of the most significant reasons for employees leaving a job is ongoing conflict with a supervisor or with colleagues. When factoring in the costs of finding a

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http://www.mediationworks.com/

http://www.conflictdynamics.org/blog/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/value.jpg


replacement and bringing the new person up to speed, such turnover can be expensive.

When employees experience distressing conflict at work, some will respond by staying away. This avoiding behavior can take the form of absenteeism which hurts overall productivity. Perhaps even more problematic is presenteeism, where the employee comes to work but isn’t effectively because they are obsessing about the problems, talking with colleagues about it, and avoiding interactions with those with whom they are having the conflict.

Many times the most visible signs of conflict come in the form of grievances or lawsuits. These more formal responses to conflict often occur after a time of build up where issues could have been addressed more easily. Once the more formal mechanisms are used, the costs of resolving the conflict goes up dramatically.

Improving Outcomes

While people usually think about cost savings first, the bigger benefits of effective conflict management come from improved creativity, enhanced decision quality, and superior implementation. While these elements are harder to quantify, they are so fundamental to organizational success that they provide even larger benefits than just cost savings.

When people are able to robustly debate issues, one idea can lead to another and generate new understandings that would otherwise have been missed. Research has shown that improve creativity and innovation can be linked to effective us e of conflict at least in situations involve novel, non-routine issues.

Decision quality is improved when ideas are rigorously vetted and

challenges. Flaws that might have been missed If people avoid debating

issue are found and optimal solutions are developed. When people have

taken part in this debate, they are more likely to support implementation

of a particular solution even though it might not be their preferred one.

This is because they have felt that their ideas have been considered and

that they have been involved in seeking a solution.

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LEARNING OUTCOMES

AVOIDING CONFLICT

Assessing & Reducing Risk

CONTENT AREA

Key Legislation and Policy

The SAFER approach

POP threat assessment

LEARNING OUTCOMES

Appreciate Violence and Health and Safety Responsibilities

Apply the SAFER approach to dynamic risk assessment

Assess a situation using the POP model

Understand the levels of threat

Self Awareness

CONTENT AREA

Responses to Threat

Emotional v Rational Fight and flight

Triggers and Inhibitors Stimulus and Response

LEARNING OUTCOMES

Understand the fight/flight response

Recognise human responses to threatening situations

Identify the conditions and behaviour that triggers or inhibits an angry

response in people

Choose the most appropriate responses to a situation involving potential

conflict

Proactive Service Delivery

CONTENT AREA

First Contact – managing expectations

Positive Communication

Common Flashpoints

Attitude and Behaviour Cycle

LEARNING OUTCOMES

Understand the importance of adopting an appropriate initial response

Demonstrate an understanding of the importance of positive communication to

avoid conflict

Identify the most common situations where there is a risk of escalation into

violence

Identify ways in which the expectations of the customer are managed towards

a realistic understanding of the situation

Demonstrate an understanding of the attitude/behaviour cycle

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DEFUSING CONFLICT

Blocks to Communication

CONTENT AREA

Communication – the basics

Blocks to communication

Channels of communication

LEARNING OUTCOMES

Understand the basic elements of communication

Identify the blocks to communication and understand how to overcome them

Recognise the importance of non verbal communication in emotionally

charged situations

Signalling non-aggression

CONTENT AREA

OPEN Palms

Appropriate eye contact

Safer stance

Controlling and maintaining space

LEARNING OUTCOMES

Understand how to use the Open PALMS model to signal non-aggression

Understand how to use appropriate eye contact in conflict situations

Understand how to adopt a safer stance when dealing with an aggressive

individual

Understand how to control space and maintain safe and appropriate distance in

conflict situations

High Risk Conflict

CONTENT AREA

Signs of escalation

The 4 ‘A’s Model

Defusing and calming

Confronting unacceptable behaviour

Lead and support

Exit strategies

The law relating to self defence

LEARNING OUTCOMES

Explain the 4A’s model

Understand how to defuse and calm

Understand how to apply the lead and support system to high risk situations

Understand how to remove himself/herself from a high risk situation

Recognise the difference between assertion and aggression

Choose appropriate assertive behaviour for confronting unacceptable

behaviour

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RESOLVING CONFLICT

Problem solving

CONTENT AREA

Building rapport

Empathy – recognising the customers point of view

Resolving the issue and the ‘win–win’ approach

LEARNING OUTCOMES

Understand how to build a sense of trust with an individual

Understand what empathy is and how to use it to recognise the customer’s

view of the situation

Understand how problem solving can lead to an acceptable resolution to a

problem or issue

Recognise a ‘win–win’ approach to dealing with conflict situations

Recognise value of ‘delivering a gift’

LEARNING FROM CONFLICT

Post Incident Considerations

CONTENT AREA

Support for Victims

Reporting and recording

Learning from what happened

Sharing good practice

LEARNING OUTCOMES

Understand how to provide support for victims

Understand the need for recording incidents

Explain the importance of reflecting and learning from the experience of

conflict

Understand the importance of sharing good practice contributing to long term

solutions to re-occurring problems and issues

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Confilict Management

Documents