Conflict is a natural part of the workplace. As a manager, you will be looked upon to deal with conflict as it arises. If you are unable or unwilling to, you may lose the confidence of your staff in dealing with difficult situations.

Since conflict is inevitable, what can I do to solve it when it happens?

Conflict exists in small and large forms. In addition, conflict may occur between individuals or between groups of people.

There are several ways to effectively deal with conflict. If the conflict is menial or small, you may just want to ignore the conflict. This would be an ideal resolution method for conflict such as two coworkers are fighting over who has better office furniture. Since there is no real resolution, ignoring the conflict may be best. You must be careful though as the conflict may seem minor but in reality it is not.

Imposing a solution is a popular method of conflict resolution. Imposing a solution is the most authoritarian conflict resolution method - you simply hear both sides and make a decision. Unfortunately, one side may come out unhappy with the resolution.

Negotiation is a method by which you sit the two parties down to negotiate an amicable solution. This method is a popular one used by managers to solve conflicts between two individuals (or by using representatives, between two groups).

Steps to conflict resolution.

1. Be prepared. Walk in to the situation knowing the facts. If you are not aware of the situation, the participants are going to be less apt to listen.

2. Do not judge. The situation may seem trivial to you, however, a lot of trivial conflicts add up to a major one. Listen to both sides equally.

3. Find the source of the conflict. The top surface conflict may not be the complete problem. Probe to find the true source.

4. Be decisive. Once you have made a decision, stick to it. Don't waffle in decision making - employees prefer a definitive solution.

5. Remember to follow up. By keeping track of the situation, you can determine if your resolution really worked or if more problems crop up.