Covert Conflicts in Business Organizations

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Table of Contents

Introduction
Main text
Conclusion

Introduction

Current research deals with the real practice of covert conflict as it is reflected in conflict strategies, games, behavior, and possible ways for conflict resolution. There is no denying the importance of the fact that covert conflict is a very widespread phenomenon in business organizations as they are deeply entrenched in controversies and problems that happen due to improper organization of working relations, adaptation, subordination, and another mechanism. In the absence of the mechanisms which are to create stability and understanding consequences, covert conflicts are often developing.

In one business organization, there occurred a covert conflict between two branches of lower management. In fact, one branch of the management was responsible for sales management including supervision and other functions. And the other interests and responsibilities lied on the intersection between company’s clients and the sales management department. Therefore, functions, mandates and responsibilities led to covert conflict situations between these branches of management. The difficulty of the situation was exaggerated by the fact that the management structure of the enterprise was not vertical but rather flexible including the possibility for autonomous decision-making.

Main text

There is no denying the importance of the fact that this situation stimulated the development of conflict behavior between different parties to the conflict.

Sales division of management created its own sector of clients with which it communicated at the expense of other management branch. Its model of conflict behavior can be described as passive disobedience and miscomprehension of management directives. Sales management pursued its own policy mechanism while formally obeying the decision-making structure of the company. During the first period of conflict development, the higher divisions of management and even lower opposing management groups did not know anything about this double policy.

The management policies and company’s development followed their ordinary path and the overall working climate in this company was rather stable. Conflict situation however was exposed later when covert conflict took the form of personal conflicts between different managers who were exposed to the higher branches of decision-making. Besides this, due to negative and sometimes contradictory reactions on the side of clients, higher branches of management had to pay attention to the internal processes taking place in the company.

The covert conflict finally led to the total inability of two conflicting management branches and departments to find a common language and accommodate their interests with the interests of the general company’s development. Finally, annual financial and developmental accounts showed that the firm’s progress was haltered, its reputation badly damaged by conflict and the client’s confidence shaken. Hence, covert conflict showed the trend of self-exposing which resulted in negative consequences for the firm. Covert behavior, games, and strategies though they had helped to expose real reasons for the conflict, delayed the time of its understanding by the decision-making.

The conflict situation was resolved by the higher management which was considered due to covert behavior and strategies. Top management improved imbalances between rights and responsibilities of two conflicting management departments and created horizontal and cooperative channels for their permanent cooperation and decision-making. It was found that conflict situation was at a large extent provoked by personal clashes between managers and therefore some of them were moved to other departments to lessen negative consequences of conflict situation. Besides this, top management promoted a decision of improving overall communication patterns in the company by creating new mechanisms of control and initiative.

There is no denying the importance of the fact that negative consequences of this conflict situation for the company would not have been so detrimental if necessary communicational and conflict resolution strategy was implemented.

First of all, it should be mentioned that top management interfered the conflict only after it took overt forms and it acted reactively rather than proactively. The first reason for that was that top management didn’t have good horizontal channels of communication with two conflicting departments but rather disseminated direct orders to them without knowing how they are implemented. Personal communication with these departments was also rather limited.

One of the best strategies of conflict resolution that could have been implemented is personal participation in conflict resolution. It could include mediating negotiations and decision-making between management departments, finding out the causes of conflict, interests that are pursued, personal conflicts. By means of creating understandable and predictable development of conflict it could be used positively since conflicts in fact are often positive things if they are used in a proper way.

Besides this I would pay attention to one of the eight management skills that could play important role in solving the problem. It is leadership. There is no denying the importance of the fact that a person with good leadership skills could make conflicting parties prone for searching the best solution to the conflict. Good leadership could increase awareness of conflict’s negative consequences for the company and its parties themselves which would in its turn mobilize all necessary accommodative, intellectual, and consensual resources needed for finding best possible decision.

Conclusion

What concerns communicational infrastructure its weakness or even absence were among the primary factors contributing to the covert conflict. To avoid them in the future I would recommend the development of flexible communication channels between top management and lower branches not only vertical but horizontal as well as strengthening ties between different management departments avoiding their isolation and inflexibility.

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Covert Conflicts in Business Organizations

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