Question

- Second, suppose that you are the manager of a store that sells medical supplies for the handicapped or infirm. You see three major sources of conflict at the store: (1) many of the staff members who work the front desk do not like one another, (2) those who stock the shelves and work with the customers are resentful that they are not paid more, and (3) all employees are required to work nights and weekends, which cuts into their family and personal time.

Explain how you would manage any two of the three sources of conflict.

(answer in paragraph)

Answer 1

Conflict 1:

To improve team performance, it is important that the team members bond well. As the manager, I would first speak to the staff members to know the reasons why they dislike other staff members. I would first try to resolve the problems between the staff members through mutual discussions. Then, I would involve the staff members who dislike each other in small teams in which they would be required to work together. This would help to develop bonding between the staff members. I would also plan outdoor team activities for the staff members. The outdoor team activities are very helpful in developing team motivation, improving the bonding between staff members, and in increasing team productivity.

By following the above steps, I would be able to develop a positive team culture between the staff members and would be able to improve the bonding between them.

Conflict 3:

Night shifts and working weekends can be tough for employees, as they can affect the employee's personal time and family time. I would first check how important night shifts and working weekends are for the store's operations. If there is a possibility to reduce night shifts and working weekends, without effecting the store's performance, I would make suitable changes in night shifts and working weekends. This would help in a reduction in the number of days in which staff members would have to work in night shifts and working weekends.

The second thing that I would do is optimal scheduling for staff member shifts. I shall equally distribute the night shifts and working weekend duties between all the staff members. This would help in reducing these duties for each staff member. Each staff member would be required to come for these duties once or twice in a week, or once or twice in a fortnight, depending on the number of total staff members. Staff members would generally be comfortable with such duties once or twice in a week or fortnight, as it would not adversely affect their personal and family time.

I would also explore the option of hiring more staff members. If it is possible without affecting the store's costs much, I would hire some staff members. This would help me to better schedule the night shifts and weekends so that each staff member is required to do a minimum of these duties.