I was a CEO of a manufacturing company located in Denver, Colorado. During my time as CEO I launched a number of company culture initiatives. One of the first initiatives I introduced was a method of dispute resolution.
The associates that I employed were blue collar workers who work eight hours per day manufacturing sheet metal products. Disputes were an inevitable part of the manufacturing floor. The nature of the disputes ranged but they all had the potential to become malignant. Disputes were also a trigger point for staff turnover. I looked at potential dispute resolution methods as opportunities for continuous improvement (kaizen).
My company was small but growing revenue 100% yr/yr for four years in a row. The growth strained every aspect of the company. I knew I had to employ a dispute resolution technique that would empower my team, reduce turnover and improve quality. I introduced the following three points of dispute resolution.
- Facts about what had happened
- How it made the aggrieved party feel
- What the aggrieved party wants the other party to do about it
Facts About What Happened
Just the facts, nothing but the facts. I don't want to hear what the aggrieved party thinks why the other party did something or what they think precipitated the dispute. Tell me what happened without commentary. This is very important in defusing raw emotion from the situation. Allowing commentary or opinion will lead to further emotional escalation and loud disruptive arguments. Hurting someone's feelings is counterproductive to dispute resolution.
At the end of the day everyone must work together to make the company function. Emotionally charged team members will work to sabotage one another. As far as the customer is concerned this is a direct reflection on quality and the senior manager of the company. In other words, you will look like a fool to your customers.
How It Made Me Feel
Now is the time for commentary, but this is limited to how the aggrieved felt not what the aggrieved felt were the motivations of the perpetrator. Creating a sense of personalization is important in creating empathy. A resolution is far more likely and permanent if all parties understand how something impacts one another.
If everyone understands the impacts of their actions then they are unlikely to do things that adversely impact the team. This is a huge breakthrough in improving the way your company produces its product. I say this because I believe everyone wakes up in the morning with the intention to do the best they can. I don't believe anyone wakes up with the intention to do mediocre or bad work.
What I Want Done About It
Just telling someone how something impacted them is cathartic. Now is the time to complete the process. What does the aggrieved party want done about it. If there isn't something that can be done to remedy the problem then the problem was poorly outlined in the facts.
If there is no resolution, then is there really a problem? We're trying to resolve work place problems not remedy psychological imbalances.
Example
A common complaint I heard from my manufacturing team was "you took my tools." These are fighting words for some people. So lets break it down.
Fact: you took my duck-billed pliers, used them and then left them where you used them.
How it made me feel: I needed the pliers to complete my work, I felt like you don't care about my timely completion of my assigned duties or taking care of my tools.
What I want: If you need my tools then I want you to ask me if you can use them, then put them back in my toolbox when you are finished with them.
Obviously this was a simplified version of a dispute, but it illustrates sticking to the facts can quickly cut to the problem. Emotions will cloud the true issue about using someone else's tools. Who cares why someone did it, lets find out how we can prevent it from happening again.
Inevitability of Disputes
Work place disputes are inevitable. It's how we react to them that determines how the dispute will impact our business. Using disputes to identify and resolve inefficiencies is an effective tool for continuous improvement. Your team will recognize the impact of their actions and will seek to improve creating greater efficiencies and improving quality of deliverables. Your customers will appreciate the improvements in deliverables and your accountant will be impressed by an increased net margin.