According to the CIPD Good Work Index, a quarter (25%) of UK employees – an estimated eight million people – have experienced workplace conflict in the past year, with many managers feeling underprepared for managing conflict in the workplace effectively. Understanding how to manage conflict at work isn’t just a nice-to-have skill – it’s essential for maintaining productivity, employee wellbeing, and a positive company culture.
But what exactly constitutes workplace conflict, and how can managers develop effective conflict management strategies before issues impact your business? Here’s our practical guide to understanding and managing conflict in a team.
The different types of workplace conflict
Workplace conflicts inevitably come in different forms, and recognising this is the first step in addressing them. Just a few of the conflicts we’ve dealt with include:
- Interpersonal conflicts – arising from personality clashes, communication differences, or misunderstandings between colleagues. These can manifest as ongoing tension, avoidance, or even open hostility in the workplace. They often develop slowly over time, making them difficult to identify until they’ve already affected team dynamics.
- Task-based conflicts – typically centre around disagreements over work responsibilities, project approaches, or decision-making processes. While some healthy debate can drive innovation and improvement, persistent disagreement without resolution can stall progress and create frustration. These conflicts frequently occur during periods of change or when teams are under pressure to deliver.
- Value-based conflicts – emerging when employees have fundamentally different beliefs, ethics, or priorities that affect their work approach. These can be particularly challenging to resolve as they often touch on deeply-held personal values. They might surface during discussions about company direction, ethical decisions, or approaches to customer service.
- Organisational conflicts – these can arise when there are structural issues such as unclear reporting lines, resource competition between departments, or misaligned goals across teams. These systemic conflicts can persist even when individuals within the organisation change, pointing to deeper structural issues that require leadership attention.
- Leadership conflicts – these often develop when management styles clash with employee expectations or when there’s inconsistency in how policies are applied across the business. These can undermine trust in leadership and create an environment where employees feel rules are applied unfairly.
The challenge for managers
Managers face several significant hurdles when managing conflict at work. Early identification of brewing issues requires emotional intelligence and regular communication with team members. However, many conflicts simmer beneath the surface before becoming obvious, and managers who maintain open dialogue with their teams are better positioned to spot potential problems.
Another challenge can be remaining objective, particularly if the manager is personally involved, or is managing team members where there are different relationships at play.
Finding adequate time to address conflicts properly while managing day-to-day operations and deadlines often proves difficult. It can be tempting to put off addressing interpersonal issues in favour of more tangible tasks, but this short-term thinking usually backfires.
Many managers lack formal conflict management training and may feel uncomfortable facilitating difficult conversations. Without proper techniques, these conversations can feel awkward or unproductive, discouraging managers from addressing issues promptly.
With hybrid and remote work arrangements becoming increasingly common, conflicts can be harder to detect and address when communication is primarily digital. Subtle signs of tension may be missed in video calls or text-based communications, allowing conflicts to escalate unnoticed.
Why workplace conflict needs to be tackled
It can be easy to ignore the issue or dismiss tension as a natural part of working life, especially during busy working periods. However, unresolved conflict can have significant negative consequences for your business. These include:
- Impacts productivity: employees can become distracted when there is conflict in the workplace. Instead of focusing on tasks, they can become consumed with the issues at hand, inevitably lowering their focus and quality of work. What’s more, Persistent conflict contributes significantly to workplace stress and can lead to burnout. The Mental Health Foundation reports that workplace tension is a primary factor in employee mental health concerns. The emotional toll of ongoing conflict affects not just work performance, but overall wellbeing.
- Impacts morale: conflict in the workplace inevitably impacts the atmosphere. It doesn’t just stop there, as tension can spread throughout a team, impacting everyone’s morale. Staff can start dreading coming to the workplace.
- Impacts staff turnover: eventually persistent conflict, or a working environment filled with conflict, pushes employees to leave. Losing employees costs time and money in replacing them, but can also damage the remaining team’s morale.
- Creates a toxic culture: essentially, a workplace filled with unresolved conflict becomes toxic. This leads to a lack of trust, teams feeling isolated and a breakdown in communication. This has a knock-on effect on staff retention and recruitment, if your business gains a reputation as a toxic working environment from previous employees and on review sites.
- Impacts customers: toxic workplaces don’t translate well into a good customer experience.
Ignoring conflict should not be an option for any manager or business owner. Over time, it will lead to significant damage including a lack of trust from staff, escalation of conflict, demotivated and stressed staff.
Common mistakes when managing conflict in the workplace
Even well-intentioned managers can make mistakes when handling workplace conflicts. The most common error is avoidance – hoping conflicts will resolve themselves without intervention almost always leads to escalation. When managers notice tension but fail to address it, they inadvertently send the message that such behaviour is acceptable.
Taking sides in a conflict situation can damage trust and create deeper divisions. When employees perceive that a manager favours one person over another, it can undermine the legitimacy of any resolution and create long-term resentment.
Rushing to solutions without understanding the root causes means the same issues will likely resurface. Effective conflict management requires patience and a willingness to explore underlying issues, not just address symptoms.
Addressing sensitive matters in front of colleagues rather than in private conversations can create embarrassment and resentment. Conflict discussions should always be conducted with appropriate privacy and discretion to maintain dignity for all involved.
While HR support is valuable, managers who immediately delegate all conflict issues miss opportunities to build trust with their teams. Employees often want to see their immediate manager take ownership of team dynamics, rather than outsourcing this responsibility.
Unaddressed conflicts can create a toxic atmosphere that affects even those not directly involved. A culture where conflicts simmer unresolved sends a message about organisational values and priorities, potentially damaging morale across the entire workplace.
How to manage conflict in a team
- Recognise the signs early
The first step in resolving conflict is acknowledging that it exists. Be aware of subtle tensions in your team. These could be things like reduced collaboration, passive-aggressive behaviour or changes in the overall mood the team. Most importantly, don’t wait until things reach boiling point. Addressing small issues promptly when they arise will stop them from escalating. The skills and confidence to tackle conflict as a manager are vital here.
- Encourage open communication
If staff feel they can communicate openly and honestly, you will create a workplace that allows them to feel comfortable with voicing their opinions without fear of repercussions. Managers should lead by example, modelling this behaviour. If staff see that managers / business owners are receptive to feedback or concerns, they are more likely to flag issues before they escalate.
- Create clear policies and expectations
These form the foundation of effective conflict management. Organisations should develop and communicate a conflict resolution policy that outlines the process for addressing disagreements. All employees should understand behavioural expectations and consequences for violations. Having these guidelines in place before conflicts arise provides a framework for fair and consistent resolution.
- Take a structured approach to conflict management
This helps keep the process fair and productive. Managers should meet with each person individually to understand their perspective before bringing parties together. Identifying common ground and key differences helps focus subsequent discussions. Joint conversations should emphasise finding solutions rather than assigning blame. Documenting agreed actions and following up consistently ensures accountability and demonstrates commitment to resolution.
- Have difficult conversations
Constructive conversations can be difficult, but are essential in nipping issues in the bud. Managers should be neutral and empathetic, encouraging all parties to express their views from their perspectives. Being empathetic to all parties and acknowledging their feelings can help to make the workforce feel that they are supported and encourage them to continue speaking up in the future. They should use active listening techniques, giving the employee their full attention, and ask open-ended questions to get to the heart of the issue. Asking follow-up questions can help to show that you’re listening and helps to avoid misunderstandings. Read our guide to having difficult conversations. Focusing on behaviours rather than personalities reduces defensiveness and keeps conversations productive. Framing discussions around specific actions and their impact, rather than making character judgements, helps separate people from problems. This approach makes it easier for individuals to modify behaviour without feeling their identity is under attack.
Encouraging direct communication between team members creates a culture where minor issues can be resolved before requiring managerial intervention. Employees should feel equipped and empowered to address concerns with colleagues respectfully. This builds conflict resolution skills throughout the organisation and prevents the escalation of minor misunderstandings.
- Play the role of mediator
Where there are conflicting employees, the manager’s role is to act as a mediator, creating a safe space for open and honest communication. Once each side has shared their views, look for common ground. Are there any shared goals or values that can be highlighted? Ask the employees to suggest all the ways in which they think the conflict can be resolved, help them talk through the suggestions and choose the ones which have the biggest win-win outcome. Employees should be encouraged to realise that they are on the same team and that resolving the issue will benefit them and the business itself.
- Identify the root cause
Trying to find the root cause of the conflict is critical to ensure the resolution is effective, lasting and addresses the real issue rather than just the surface-level symptoms. Understanding the root cause allows for solutions that directly address the core of the conflict, rather than applying generic or ineffective remedies. This increases the likelihood of both parties being satisfied with the outcome and can promote accountability and self-reflection on their own contributions to the situation.
- Set out clear expectations
Once the conflict has been discussed, employees will need to be set clear expectations for future behaviour. Steps should be agreed on how to improve the relationship, for example you might highlight particular communications strategies or timelines. Encourage open lines of communication by setting the expectation that employees will provide regular feedback to one another and escalate issues early before they grow into larger conflicts.
- Recognise when to escalate things
Recognising when to escalate conflict in the workplace is crucial to prevent it from becoming more damaging to individuals, teams and the business or harming productivity, morale and professional relationships. Whilst conversations can help resolve conflict in early stages, in cases of bullying, harassment or serious misconduct, you will need to use a more formal process. This could include involving an HR professional or a mediator to assist with the situation.
- Follow up
After the conflict has been resolved, ensure you follow up with both parties to see that the solutions are working and that there are no further issues.
- Train managers
Training managers on dealing with conflict resolution can help avoid future issues. This will teach them how to handle conflict constructively, giving them the tools and confidence they need to address issues effectively. Investing in conflict management training for all leadership positions equips managers with essential skills for handling difficult situations. This training should cover active listening, mediation techniques, and maintaining objectivity during difficult conversations. Even experienced managers benefit from refreshing these skills periodically.
Workplace conflict is inevitable, but it doesn’t have to be detrimental to your business. By recognising the signs early, fostering open communication, and addressing conflict in a constructive manner, you can create a workplace where employees feel valued, heard, and motivated. If you need HR advice, get in touch with our team for a free 15 min advice session.