I’m in a Pickle…Again

Workplace dilemmas
 
Sometimes workplace matters can cause an employee to feel like they are caught in the middle of the game, “Pickle”. Rather than succumbing to futility, individuals in such frustrating positions may instead choose to initiate a thoughtful and articulated set of responses. While most people strive to abide by a code of ethics and moral responsibility, the following workplace conflicts may challenge these senses, invoke fear, and collide with a need for job security, causing employees to carefully consider effective communication techniques as they navigate troublesome issues.
 
Case #1—The Boss’s Expense Report
Your boss conveniently loses his expense report for his last trip. On his way into a meeting, he drops a blank report on your desk and asks you to fill in the blanks, saying, “Make it add up to $300 or so.” What will you do? 

Given, the matter involves a supervisor and a subordinate, this situation requires the use of subtlety and tact. As the authors of the class text state, “Workplace relationships are more or less mandatory relationships (if one wants a job and intends to keep it)” (Cahn & Abigail, 2014, p.268). In this case I think the prudent approach would be to conveniently assume that my boss simply forgot to give me the receipts and respond accordingly.

C’mon! We’re Not Teens Anymore…

I guess some of us still act like teenagers!

Once again, my naiveté had taken over and I assumed that my new neighbors and I would be life-long friends. After all, our daughters were the same age and became fast friends. Surely, their teenage conflicts wouldn’t affect our interactions. What could possibly go wrong? A problem ensued when the parents of the other girls decided to participate in a matter which was simply a teenage spat. Their slander of my name and reputation created an unnecessary conflict, but one from which I learned a great deal. Conflict is a constant in human interaction and understanding why it occurs and utilizing effective communication techniques wherein we recognize the common contributors such as the role of different personality types, stress and anger, and the positive and negative effects we can improve the outcome of such situations.

Conflict will occur even in situations which are seemingly innocuous and involve friendships of all ages. Emma was the younger version of her mother Tammy, and the first time we met, she had one foot on the bicycle seat, the other extended straight out behind her and her arms followed suit. I quickly nicknamed her, “Cameron’s Circus Sideshow Friend”. Lori’s daughter, Emily was a sweet and precocious red head who at our first meeting stood in my drive way dipping pickles in a jar of peanut butter as she gave me the run down on her list of pets. Tammy was hilarious and Lori was warm and welcoming, their daughters were reflections of this and so, I welcomed the new friendships between our daughters and us, with open arms.

The AAA Theory: Approach, Anticipate, Analyze

There it is; someone put a kink in the garden hose again. Despite the best intentions and even in the most idyllic of circumstances, difficulties and personality clashes occur. Once productive employees may fall into patterns of apathy, hostility, or sub-standard performance and skillful conflict resolution is crucial to successful management. While workplace conflict is inevitable, constructive communication methods allow management to effectively approach an employee, anticipate the response, and analyze which resolution techniques will be the most productive.
As an example of interpersonal conflict in the workplace, a case study was offered for review and analysis. The circumstances of this are as follows: A mid-sized company that provides technical support has a department consisting of ten employees. This team that requires superlative knowledge and distinguished customer service has been experiencing complications due to actions of a particular individual who has been with the company for two years. The numerous complaints from coworkers and customers include issues of poor work performance and a confrontational demeanor, which has led to a contentious work atmosphere. A meeting must be scheduled in which the employee is given an ultimatum of immediate improvement or dismissal.