A new study from the Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution (CEDR) shows 88% of Britons recognise the high cost of conflict in working life, but the majority of organisations are ill-equipped to engage in “tough talk”. Only 16% said that HR was best-suited to deal with conflict management. One in four stated that neutral advisors were the most effective in conflict situations.
88% of participants in the 2010 Tough Talk survey Commissioned by the Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution (CEDR), agreed that the cost of conflict is damaging to the UK economy. The study showed that more people (59%) cited internal factors – which include management (32%) and other co-workers (27%) – as the top sources of “challenging conversations” and 63% of respondents felt their organisations were ill-equipped at handling conflict. The survey of 1,000 people in full-time employment also revealed that people were twice as likely to cite workload than money as the primary trigger for conflict.
Only 38% of all respondents believe that managers are the most effective at conflict management, whilst less than half (44%) of managers had the same level of confidence in their own abilities. Furthermore, human resources – typically, the guardians of employee well-being – ranked second-to-last in conflict management efficacy, with only 16% of people saying that HR was best-suited for this role. By comparison, one in four (24%) said neutral advisors were the most effective in conflict situations.
November 2010
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