Conflict within an organization

How should I handle conflict within my organization?

Embrace it! Thank the members for their differences of opinion and their willingness to share. Without healthy disagreement and discussion, organizations become stagnant. If the boss hires nothing but clones, the organization may be “tight knit” but that is at the expense of being able to relate to the rest of the world. Without various opinions, ideas are never explored. The environment becomes stifling and individuals no longer step out to express themselves. Any good meeting facilitator (or mediator) will reserve ample time for brainstorming without reaction or criticism. A meeting to generate product or process improvements needs open, frank discussion without the fear of retribution. Think about Apple or Google and you can see how conflict can be very beneficial.

However, (isn’t there always a “however” or a “yes but” – unless you’re an attorney in which case it becomes a “but for” or “except that”) unmanaged conflict dissolves or escalates, depending upon the viewpoint, into disputes. Then the organization becomes dysfunctional either short term or long term. In an organization where there is a culture of conciliation, individuals may overlook the offense, talk to each other, involve a coach to assist with the reconciliation, or involve an internally trained mediator.

If the dispute is not resolved internally, the parties may seek assistance using an external mediator or arbitrator. Beyond those alternatives, they start on the path toward the courthouse.

Fortunately, Collaborative Law has now moved beyond the arena of Family Law to the business world. Disputes with or between employees, with customers, and with suppliers are now being resolved outside the courthouse without the use of third parties.

With the final reading and approval of the Uniform Collaborative Law Act in 2010, states will have a model for statutory implementation (some states will no doubt enact their own statutes before 2010 and the Texas legislature will take up the issue when they meet again in 2011).

But we don’t have to wait for legislative involvement since the courts in our area recognize and support the collaborative process.

If you have conflict, appreciate it and manage it. If you have disputes, deal with them early and effectively using the process most likely to deliver the desired results for the parties.

It may be legal, but is it right?

Business owners need to ask about alternatives to litigation

I’m a business owner. I dedicate most of my day to running the business. I grew up in a society that solves problems immediately. I don’t have an attorney on staff and I don’t have a reserve fund for litigation. I don’t have time to take away from my business for three to five years of litigation. Isn’t there an alternative to litigation? Why do the lawyers want to sue everyone?

If you have similar thoughts, you should ask about alternative dispute resolution. Ask your attorney about conflict prevention, conflict avoidance, conflict management, and dispute resolution without litigation. Greater than 90% of all conflicts are settled before trial and yet discovery, depositions, expert opinions, and numerous filings over a three to five year period leading up to the trial means big business for most law firms.

Lawyers are in a service profession and respond to the needs and demands of the clients. And yet, many see dollar signs when it comes to dispute resolution. For the client, in many cases, little if any value is created by the litigation process.

Until clients ask for alternatives to litigation such as mediation, arbitration, or the collaborative process, most law firms will continue to push litigation as the only method of resolving disputes.

Certainly, for some situations and some clients, litigation is the best method; but for many, the alternatives are very attractive.

It may be legal, but is it right?