Conflicts are natural in any type of relationship, whether personal or business. Conflict isn’t always bad, but in the workplace, it needs to be managed and resolved to keep harmony in the team. With more remote teams than ever before, it is more challenging to manage conflict. These conflicts can arise from disagreements about tasks or ideas, work style, leadership, personality clashes, or discrimination.
Why Does Conflict Happen With Remote Teams?
You’d think that keeping people separated and working in their own homes would minimize conflict, but that’s not always the case. Workplace conflicts happen in every company, regardless of the team's location. The issues you face managing conflict increase because they can fester in a remote environment.Why does that happen? Simply put, inhibitions are lowered. When employees are part of a team that is working from home, they feel like they’re working by themselves. They don’t see their coworkers in person each day, nor do they catch up in the breakroom. This creates a disconnected feeling.
In turn, that disconnection leads to communication problems. Most of the communications in a remote work environment are in written form. It’s far easier to send an email or direct message than to call. Those messages can be misinterpreted, and hence, conflict begins to fester.
How Conflict Coaching Can Benefit Your Remote Team
Fortunately, you don’t have to allow your team to wallow in conflict, no matter how physically far apart they are. Conflict coaching can be a tremendous asset, even when everyone is working from home.1. Promotes Self-Reflection
Conflict coaching for remote teams helps everyone take a good look at themselves. They see how they may be coming across to others and learn about their body language and their choice of words.2. Sustains Changes in Behavior
Instead of everyone being on the defensive from simple miscommunications, conflict coaching gets everyone on the same page. It then elicits changes in behavior that benefit everyone on the team.3. Better Understanding and Communication
Everyone is different, and in a remote work environment, employees tend to forget that they each have their own style and way of communication. Conflict coaching helps them all see eye to eye.4. Improved Confidence in Challenging Conversations
Remote work poses a huge difficulty in having challenging conversations. Conflict coaching can help every team member build confidence and adapt their style to make managing difficult conversations easier for all.5. Reconcile Conflicts as They Arise
Conflict coaching helps calm tense situations by teaching the team a better understanding and allowing each individual to move forward in a more positive direction.In essence, conflict coaching is an excellent tool for any remote business in any industry. It allows everyone to air their concerns in a safe space and grow together rather than apart. Since the very nature of working from home is isolating, it will further benefit your team to help them come together in solidarity.
Learn more about how to stop conflict before it starts by visiting peacefulleadersacademy.com/conflict-coaching/.
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