Conflicts within a value-added project committee or the board room of an operating business will not only divert attention away from important business issues but can also affect critical decisions relating to the viability of the business.  However, conflict is a daily reality for everyone. Some conflicts are relatively minor and easy to handle. Others are greater in magni­tude and require a strategy for successful resolution or else they will create constant tension and lasting enmity in the group. Knowing how to manage and resolve these conflicts is important for the overall success of the business.  To resolve conflicts in your group read Resolving Conflicts between Business Associates.

There are other times when individuals in your group may be under stress which causes them to become emotional.  If you have this issue, Techniques for Dealing with Difficult People can help you through this period.

Conflict is not necessarily bad. Properly managed, moderate doses of conflict can be beneficial. Conflict is the root of change and allows people to learn and grow and make better decisions. It stimulates curiosity and imagination. After conflict, closer unity may be established. To understand how to use conflict for your benefit, read Using Group Conflict to Improve your Project.

Family Business Tensions: The Good and the Not So Good provides you with a video/audio presentation on learning to work with creative and distracting tensions to strengthen your family business.

Managing Conflict in Family Business provides you with a video/audio presentation on insights to manage conflict.

For more information on this topic, see the links listed below of articles posted on related Web sites.

• Managing Conflict – North Dakota State University Extension -- Usually a disagreement is not resolved until we take charge and deal with it.
• Coping with Criticism – North Dakota State University Extension -- We can learn how to live through criticism without being devastated. We might even make it work to our advantage.
• Focus on Interests: Conflict and Collaboration – University of Nevada Extension -- Resolving conflict requires that stakeholders focus on their interests in the issue.
• Managing Conflict – Kansas State University Extension -- Interpersonal conflict is suppressed in favor of group harmony. Suppressing conflict only drives it underground to reappear later in some more destructive form.
• Understanding Conflict in the Workplace – University of Florida Extension -- Understanding conflict and how it can be used for effective resolution strategies is important for effective communication and productivity in the workplace.
• Dealing with Conflict - Education Leadership Toolkit - Conflict occurs when individuals or groups are not obtaining what they need or want and are seeking their own self-interest.