The Best Conflict Management Tips for HR Professionals and Managers

According to SHRM’s Civility Index, 8.7 million acts of incivility take place every hour in US workplaces. Conflict occurs in every organization, regardless of size, industry or location. The subject of the conflict can vary greatly—from a disagreement over the direction of a project to who microwaved fish at lunchtime—but it’s always best resolved as soon as possible.

Personalities clash and opinions can differ, but what matters is that you have the right conflict management procedures to tackle these. How you manage conflict resolution at work not only affects the parties involved but also has a ripple effect in how the organization is perceived by others.

In this guide, we’ve considered best-practice conflict resolution strategies, plus how to manage and handle conflict in the workplace.

What is workplace conflict?

Workplace conflict refers to disagreement or tension among employees of an organization.  Such disagreements can disrupt workflow, prevent collaboration and stifle creativity.

While it is often believed that employees should work things out themselves or managers should handle conflict disputes, HR professionals are often better equipped to handle workplace conflict and resolve problems among employees.

What is the difference between conflict and disagreement?

It's important to understand the difference between conflict and disagreement. Each requires a different approach to reinforce workplace positivity.

Disagreements

These are bound to crop up in any business, they don’t normally require intervention and they’re usually a sign of collaboration and communication. In most cases, people are willing to talk and work together in a disagreement.

However, when disputes go beyond professional opinions and involve personal attacks, rudeness, or resentment (whether vented openly or passive-aggressively)—these step over the line of acceptable disagreements and hedge into unacceptable workplace conflicts.

Conflict

A conflict doesn’t have to be an all-out screaming match, either. Avoidance or silence, which can lead to frustration and resentment, can also be a sign that there’s an issue and flag that it’s time for HR to step in with conflict resolution strategies.

Am I dealing with a disagreement or a conflict?

Here are some questions to ask yourself before you decide how to approach an issue between colleagues in your business.

• What effect is the situation having on the parties involved? Is it negatively affecting their mood or performance? (Conflict) Or do all parties remain respectful towards one another? (Disagreement)
• Is the discord between parties causing stress or negatively affecting other employees’ morale? (Conflict) Or do teammates and subordinates feel encouraged to speak out and challenge the status quo? (Disagreement)
• Are there personal issues coloring the argument? (Conflict) Or are the parties involved simply differing in their professional opinions? (Disagreement).

What are the most common types of conflicts in the workplace?

Conflicts come about for several reasons, many of which are often outside HR’s control. Research from Harvard Law School notes that conflict in the workplace can be divided into three categories:

• Task conflict. Employees may have different opinions on how something should be done or how project resources should be divided.
• Value conflict. This type of conflict typically involves a difference in values, preferences, and opinions on issues such as politics, religion, or other personal beliefs.
• Relationship conflict. This conflict stems from team members thinking differently in matters of style, taste, and personality.

Other reasons for conflict could include:

• Competition for budget or resources
• Varying levels of experience
• Interpretation of company communications and policies (or lack thereof)
• Assumptions about intent

No matter the cause of workplace conflict, common issues can usually be overcome by improved communication and compromise on the parts of those involved. However, sometimes these problems can get out of hand and require professionals to intervene, so knowing when to step in is important.

How to manage conflict in the workplace in 8 steps

To better tackle this difficult subject, we’ve compiled a step-by-step guide on how to resolve conflict in the workplace.

1. Step in early

Whether it’s an employee coming to you or something you notice, stepping in before it becomes a more serious problem improves the working environment for all those involved. You’re also reducing stress for other employees who often feel the ripple effect of negativity, even if they’re not the central actors in a conflict.

Additionally, if you’re dealing with an openly aggressive employee, you may need to send that employee home for the day before trying to attempt any sort of resolution. It’s important to immediately defuse the situation and protect the ones on the receiving end of the aggression. First, put an end to the outburst and then deal with why it happened.

2. Meet with all parties involved

Another key step in dealing with conflict at work is to understand the situation by conducting a proper investigation. HR needs to interview those directly involved and possible witnesses. Depending on the situation, you may need to first meet with each individual separately before meeting together for mediation. It’s a good idea to first hold individual meetings or conversations with the involved parties, and only inviting others as needed.

Alternatively, you may decide that it’s best not to have the different parties in the conflict meet at all. For example, in the case of more serious allegations, like physical or sexual harassment, your priority should be protecting employees and maintaining confidentiality, which makes it improper to meet with all involved parties.

3. Set ground rules for the meeting

Whether mediating between employees or meeting with individuals, you should aim to frame conflict resolution meetings with specific rules to help employees feel safe expressing their grievances. These rules also serve to remind them of your role as a mediator (rather than a judge).

Here are a couple of suggested rules:

• Have individuals use “I” statements when speaking. This helps them feel more empowered without putting the other person in a defensive position. E.g., “I feel…” or “My concern is…” rather than “You (or they) make me feel…” It also helps them get to the root of their emotions.
• Have each participant take notes while the other employee is taking their turn speaking. This helps the other participants listen more actively, rather than interrupting and trying to justify each complaint.

4. Brainstorm solutions together

Summarize your understanding of the issue back to employees to establish the common ground you’ll all be working from to find a solution. Have employees drive the conversation for how to fix the conflict—they’re more likely to stick to the plan if they come up with it. HR should ensure that employees suggest positive (rather than punitive) actions and that all parties agree on the plan of action.

5. Meet again, if needed

Workplace conflict resolution is not always going to be a one-and-done process. You may need to meet a few times if a single meeting isn’t enough for each person to have their say. Also, more sessions may be required to get to the root of an issue, or you may need leadership to approve a certain plan of action.

6. Check in and monitor progress

Make sure the action plan includes measures for HR to stay up to date. These mechanisms can include employees submitting reports and HR holding check-in meetings with managers to review day-to-day improvements in employee interactions to measure and encourage progress.

7. Escalate response if no progress is made

If any of the employees renege on their agreement and fail to change their behavior, you will have to decide on the next steps. This will depend on the severity of the conflict, of course, and what’s feasible in your organization.

If you have more than one location or different teams, you might offer employees the opportunity to transfer if they aren’t able to resolve their differences. There may be grounds for disciplinary action to deter future issues. Alternatively, if employees aren’t improving their behavior despite your best efforts, then you might need to consider terminating their contract.

8. Make sure the same problem won’t happen again

The best conflict resolution processes not only resolve current issues but also help prevent the same problem from occurring in the future. Once things have calmed down take a closer look at how the problem arose and the factors involved, there may be an underlying issue with morale or a process that you need to fix first to avoid the conflict escalating again.

When should HR get involved with resolving workplace disputes?

Although situations can vary across multiple types of industries, HR should get involved in any situation where an employee violates the company’s policy on worker conduct.

The amount of involvement and the consequences for these violations should be established beforehand so employees understand what action will be taken by the company because of their behavior.

Let managers do their jobs—unless they’re involved

To make sure managers have adequate conflict resolution skills, you may need to train them on how to both recognize and address conflict professionally. If the incident is between a manager and a direct report, HR may need to step in as a neutral party.

Don’t wait to investigate or intervene

Some conflicts call for more drastic conflict resolution strategies in the workplace. If the incident is particularly egregious, like a threat of violence, an allegation of sexual harassment, or bullying, you need to step in to protect employees and put an  immediate  stop to the behavior.

When there’s a conflict of interest, get a neutral third party involved

HR has a responsibility to keep conflict resolution at work fair, so it’s important to remain neutral. If a HR representative is too close to the situation, you’ll need to assign the case to someone else on the HR team or hire a contractor, depending on the situation. If you fail to get a neutral party involved, any attempt at a resolution is unlikely.

Establish a code of conduct

HR experts agree that it’s important to clearly communicate your company’s policies and conflict resolution process from the start. At the very least, make sure they’re included in the employee handbook and that management fully understands them.

A handbook communicates your guiding principles and values, making it a part of your conflict management strategy, and by including a code of conduct in the handbook, you’ll let your employees know the basic expectations for behavior in the workplace.

The added bonus is it'll help employees onboard and adjust to your company culture more quickly.

Here are a few examples of what you might include in your handbook’s code of conduct:

• Communication policies
• Anti-discrimination and anti-harassment policies
• Rules for appropriate use of office space
• Dress codes, where applicable

How to build a conflict-free workplace

While it’s impossible to completely prevent conflict in the workplace, you can create an atmosphere that minimizes conflict by encouraging openness, tact and trust. You can also train your employees to have better conflict resolution skills so your entire organization feels empowered to build a positive working culture.

Build a culture of open communication

One way to keep problems from escalating past the point of no return is to build a resilient culture that everyone—from leadership to brand new hires—contributes to. HR can be a strong driver for company culture and a cheerleader for the managers and employees doing their best to put it into practice.

Here are some suggestions for starting a culture of openness at your workplace:

• Get honest feedback from your employees about how your organization is doing, how they feel at work, and how their managers are doing — and take that feedback seriously.
• Have leadership and management communicate openly about how the company is doing, plans for the future, or other initiatives, positive or negative, that will affect employees.
• Evaluate your performance review process and make sure that performance reviews are frequent enough to tackle problems as they arise. You should also ensure that reviews focus on building employee strengths.
• Discuss the onboarding process with leadership and managers to decide how to best communicate your value of transparency and train them to screen for communication skills during interviews with candidates.
• Incorporate training for your values and culture during onboarding.

Train managers and employees on conflict resolution skills

HR shouldn’t have to shoulder the load of conflict resolution all by themselves. Everyone should work together to build a workplace that's free from stress and conflict.

To achieve this, learn your managers’ styles, then train your team on how to address conflict appropriately within the workplace. While this should address your org’s specific needs, there are a few kinds of employee training that generally work well.

Communication training

Communication training can be an effective tool for teaching new skills and help to set the right tone for what is and isn’t appropriate in your organization. When deciding how to go about tailoring the training, consider the following questions:

• Company values:  What does your organization value or prioritize when it comes to communication between employees? Tying your efforts to the company’s mission or values will help you decide where to focus your training efforts and will also strengthen your culture.
• Specific outcome:  What specific skill or set of skills would be most helpful for your employees? Focus on what’s most relevant rather than diluting the training with too much information.

Mindfulness

Mindfulness is all about being present in the moment rather than letting our thoughts and emotions hijack our attention and feelings. Being exposed to stressful situations, such as conflict with team members, puts employees at risk of struggling with poor mental health.

Research from the Headspace 2024 Workforce State of Mind Report notes that 77% of workers believe stress caused by work has negatively affected their mental health.

Mindfulness can resolve some sources of worker conflict by alleviating stress, helping develop emotional resilience and empathy, and building confidence.

Next steps: strive for harmonious company culture

Conflict resolution isn’t the most glamorous part of HR, but it’s imperative to have conflict resolution strategies in the workplace to help establish and maintain a healthy and effective working environment. Always remember, no one is perfect, and conflicts may arise, but it’s important that employees feel safe enough to bring up their problems.

To build a workplace that resolves conflict, HR needs to:

• Think of conflict management as a broad strategy that should be included in all policies and processes
• Step in to resolve conflicts as soon as possible
• When conflicts do flare up, help mediate between employees so they can come to a compromise and work towards improving their relationship
• Provide training on how to communicate respectfully and how to build a positive work culture for both employees and managers
• Bring the team together more to encourage collaboration and foster better relationships.

A truly inspired HR professional won't just manage workplace conflict effectively—they’ll also recognize the hidden opportunities it provides to help create a better overall working environment.