Conflict management in workplace teams

Provide discussion responses: A. Dr. Jones/class, I worked in the Navy as maintenance division personnel, where I served as an Aircrew Survival Equipmentman and disagreed with the aviation maintenance control team about the turnaround time for survival gear inspections and reconfigurations. It was maintenance control who thought our shop was keeping aircraft unavailable and causing a major blow to the flight schedule, and our technicians felt they were being forced to rush inspections, which had a direct impact on the safety of our Aircrew. Morale, communication tone, and cooperation began to suffer during daily maintenance production meetings and shift turnovers. For the handling of this issue, our Leading Petty Officer employed multiple conflict-resolution techniques in a professional manner. So, he opened the floor up in an internal production meeting, giving each side a fair opportunity to fully describe their workflow, responsibilities, and operational pressures. By repeating important points by way of listening, he practiced active listening, so neither team felt ignored. Then he hosted a mediated working session in which representatives plotted the inspection process step-by-step, noting potential bottlenecks. Lastly, the teams worked together to create a priority matrix with flight-critical gear, inspection timelines, and communication checkpoints. The result was better than we expected, as both teams understood that this was not about effort, but rather about understanding the operational risk. Maintenance control learned about safety regulations and inspection steps that legally could not be skipped, and our shop agreed to update in advance and to have realistic completion estimates. Aircraft downtime lessened, planning improved, and the tensions in maintenance meetings significantly diminished as work center collaboration increased. The biggest lesson for me was that most workplace conflicts are based on assumptions and not a lack of commitment to the mission. Trust grows naturally when leaders set an environment of safety with open dialogue about shared mission readiness. I also realized that clear and transparent communication staves off frustration, and teamwork is built on collective problem-solving. Effective conflict management does more than manage disagreement. It also helps maintain longer-term working relationships and operational efficiency. B. Hi class! One experience I had working in a team as an abstractor involved conflict over workload distribution and chart assignment during a peak abstraction period. Several team members felt that certain abstractors were receiving more complex charts while others had lighter workloads, which created frustration and lowered morale. The team leader used two primary conflict management tools: structured communication and data-based problem solving. First, a team meeting was held to allow everyone to express concerns in a respectful setting. This created psychological safety and reduced emotional tension. Next, the leader reviewed productivity reports and chart-complexity data to objectively assess workload balance. Using measurable data helped remove personal bias and focus the discussion on fairness and performance rather than blame (Edmondson & Lei, 2014). The outcome was close to what I expected. Once assignments were adjusted based on chart type and experience level, productivity improved, and complaints decreased. Some initial frustration remained, but transparency helped rebuild trust over time. Weekly check-ins were also introduced to prevent similar conflicts from escalating again. My key takeaway from this experience was that conflict is often driven by perception rather than intent. When leaders combine open communication with objective data, misunderstandings are easier to resolve (Thomas & Kilmann, 2008). I also learned that addressing conflict early is critical; delaying intervention allows resentment to grow and damages teamwork. Finally, I learned that neutrality is essentialour leader did not take sides but focused on problem-solving and fairness. This experience showed me that effective conflict management does not eliminate disagreement but channels it into collaboration, stronger relationships, and improved performance. References Edmondson, A. C., & Lei, Z. (2014). Psychological safety: The history, renaissance, and future of an interpersonal construct. Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior, 1, 2343. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-orgpsych-031413-091305 Thomas, K. W., & Kilmann, R. H. (2008). ThomasKilmann conflict mode instrument. Xicom.