Workplace Conflict Resolution Essentials For Dummies, Australian and New Zealand Edition

Chapter 9

Offering Proposals and Crafting Agreements

In This Chapter

Reconvening a mediation session

Creating settlements

Closing the meeting on a positive note

You’re ready to continue your open session discussion with the two employees engaged in this conflict. Your hope is that the continued discussion will lead to proposed solutions and an agreement that settles the conflict.

In this chapter, I show you how to make room for quality communication, acknowledge new perspectives and encourage your employees to have a positive outlook on their future working relationship — which inevitably will include some conflict. You also find tips on how to give your staff the hope they need beyond the meeting to know they can address future problems and not just solve this one issue in a vacuum. Finally, I tell you the six non-negotiable attributes of a solid agreement.

Continuing Negotiations

As you prepare to continue negotiations, know that your employees’ communication improving is more important than coming to consensus right away. As their manager, you may be itching for them to give each other some sort of agreement that you can document but, at this point, you just have to trust ...