Business Communication, Third Edition

SQ3 How can you manage interpersonal conflict?

Even if you follow all of this chapter’s advice about listening and speaking, conflict will inevitably arise when you work with others. Conflict can include differences in opinion, disagreements about how to handle issues, complaints about performance or fairness, criticism about the behavior of others, and personality conflicts between people who just do not get along.

Conflict is one of the most significant and costly problems in a workplace. A study by CPP, Inc., a company that specializes in conflict management, found that U.S. companies spend more than 2.8 hours per week addressing workplace conflict, which adds up to approximately $359 billion in paid hours per year.²⁶ When companies do not ...