Conflicts are common in the workplace between employees in almost every company or business. As a boss, you need to have the right skills and strategies to deal with the conflict between your workers, as soon it arises. When ignored, the animosity between employees in the workplace can turn a peaceful and pleasant working environment into a chaotic and toxic environment.
If two or more employees do not get along at work, it is difficult for them to work together as a team to meet the company’s goals. In order to get rid of the animosity between your workers as a boss, you need to understand the main causes of animosity at the workplace.
Below are the main causes of animosity in the workplace and the solutions that can help you avoid it:
Poor communication
A workplace with a poor communication system among the workers is bound to generate a lot of conflict and animosity. Is there a clear channel of communication in your company?
If an employee has not understood the task they have been given, is there a clear definition of whom they should seek advice from?
In case one employee feels that a fellow employee is being rude or unwilling to participate in an assigned project, does the employee know whom to approach to help deal with the situation?
Solution
The only way your employees can know how to navigate workplace problems and conflicts is if the management has had a clear discussion with them about how to handle such situations.
Team building is a great way to create a friendly workplace environment and encourage proper communication. The myers briggs team building personality test can help your employees get a better understanding of themselves and others.
If each of your workers knows their strengths and weaknesses, they can focus on the strengths to form better relationships with one another at work. Better relationships result in better communication, thereby creating a healthy work environment.
Undefined job responsibilities and expectations
Did you know that small businesses in the United States make up at least 99 percent of all employers, according to a report issued by the Small Business Administration?
If you own a small business or company, you probably have many plans in place about how the business will grow over the next few months or years.
Naturally, small businesses have few employees. Therefore, as the business grows or expands, the employees may be expected to take on many additional roles that they did not sign up for when they applied for the job.
This is because most small businesses may decide to utilize their current employees as they grow to reduce costs and achieve set objectives. The undefined job expectations can cause animosity between employees because one employee may feel that they are overworked, underpaid, and unappreciated, thereby getting agitated with the performance of another employee.
Solution
As the owner of a small business, you need to consider several things when hiring new staff for your growing small company. They include:
What is the mindset of your new employees?
Do they relate to the vision of the company?
What are their current job responsibilities?
If you plan to add more responsibilities as the company grows, will you provide additional benefits to motivate them?
What are the expectations of your new employees towards you?
These are very fundamental questions that you should ask your employees during the hiring process, to develop their trust and find out whether they are committed to the growth of your business.
Final words
As many people will work most of their adult life, it is understandable why they would want to be happy in their workplace. It is the boss’ responsibility to provide a positive atmosphere.
The above issues, and their possible solutions, might just help create the ideal, animosity-free work environment.
