Introduction: 

In this era of highly competitive market conditions, there is a huge significance of the problem solving and decision making for contemporary business organizations operating in various sectors. The problem is generally considered as a systematic procedure of working after evaluating and analyzing the details of a specific problem so as to accomplish an effective solution to that problem.

Question – 

BMSK4004 – Problem Solving and Decision Making Sample 4

The entire procedure of problem-solving includes methodical and organized operations and is implemented as a gauging tool for the critical thinking attributes within an individual. In this context, this report is also developed to discuss major workplace issues known as workplace conflict. Irrespective of the size, nature, operations, etc. of any business organization, workplace conflict is inevitable and all-pervasive. The workplace conflict is extensively influencing the performance efficiency of the business organization all over the world. Sainsbury’s is one of the renowned business organizations within the UK, is engaged in the retail industry as well as retail banking. The total employee strengths of Sainsbury’s is 1,86,900 which are engaged in providing retailing services in more than 1400 retail outlets of Sainsbury’s all over the world.

Workplace Conflict: 

The conflict can be described as the sharp opposition or disagreement of ideas or interests. It is important to note that the individuals within the organization operate together and conflicts are an integral part of the operating business. Workplace conflicts can be considered as the natural and normal part of every workplace. Whenever workplace conflict occurs, it leads to a decrease in the employee’s morale, a gradual increase in the employee’s absenteeism as well as low productivity (Prause, and Mujtaba, 2015).  In the recent past, Sainsbury’s has witnessed a series of conflicts among its employees within the workplace due to different reasons. Successful management and resolving the workplace is assumed to be the most prominent challenges for the managers and supervisors operating within Sainsbury’s.  The conflict among the employees has been observed at various operational and management levels within the company. It is important for the company to understand that the wherever individuals work together, the probability of conflicts rise significantly and thus it presents a major challenge to which the management of Sainsbury must respond constructively in order to change a potentially destructive condition into an opportunity for improved performance and creativity (Prause, and Mujtaba, 2015).   

The most prominent factor of workplace conflict is assumed to be the personality clash. Every individual has diverse beliefs and values which influence the way employees approach their assigned jobs and responsibilities. The clashes among the employees happen when the employees experience difficulty in comprehending or accepting the methods of others. According to Huan, and Yazdanifard, (2012), some other factors which lead to workplace conflict are ineffective communication, scarcity of resources, misunderstanding, etc. which encourage competition among the workers as well as a poor performance by some of the workers and ultimately resulting in conflicts within the workforce.   

The scope of workplace conflict: 

With the passage of time, the significance of workplace conflict has gradually increased within the business organization. Various scholars have classified workplace conflicts into various categories. The interpersonal conflict within the workplace comprises of personality clashes and discrepancies while operating with other employees. Both the issues results in the employees showing antagonism and further leads to the exchange of negative comments. The workplace conflicts also comprise of employee’s disagreement with the organizational procedures and policies, individual entitlement, and management decisions which leads to the divergence between the employer and the employee. The workplace conflict has far-reaching impact on the overall performance of the Sainsbury in delivering quality products and services to its customers as well as accomplishing high profitability. The Sainsbury’s has witnessed a gradual decrease in the performance of the organization as employees are unable to deliver their optimum performance towards achieving the goals and objectives of the company (Huan, and Yazdanifard, 2012). 

The Effects of Workplace Conflict: 

The major effects of workplace conflicts within the Sainsbury’s are discussed below: 

At operation level: 

• Due to the high level of conflict in the workplace, the productivity of the employees deteriorates extensively. If the conflicts are unresolved it will eventually lead to the high absenteeism, worker exhaustion, mistake, etc. hampering the overall production capacity of the employees working within the Sainsbury. As per Prause, and Mujtaba, (2015), in case the conflict among the employees prevails for a longer period of time, the morale of the employee will tend to decrease as they are worn down by the tension. 

At the financial level: 

• If the conflicts persist for too long or the tension runs high, the employee may prefer to leave the job. In such a case, Sainsbury will require to appoint new employees to fulfil the vacated job along with providing training and development programs. All these activities will leads to additional costs for the company. Thus, it will ultimately result in decreasing the profitability of the organization in long run (Huan, and Yazdanifard, 2012). 

At the social level: 

• There is a huge social significance of the conflict within the workplace. In case the conflict is unresolved, it may escalate to violence which may have a severe and adverse effect. Moreover, people who are unable to learn the appropriate ways to deal with conflicts generally tend to develop passive-aggressive behaviour. Such behaviour generally fuels frustration and anger among individuals. Within the workplace, the passive-aggressive behaviour of the employees like gossiping, inefficiency to operate effectively, tardiness, overlooking to convey the vital message to colleagues, etc. may hamper the performance of the otherwise valued employees (Huan, and Yazdanifard, 2012). 

Analysis of the workplace conflict: 

The evaluation of workplace conflict within Sainsbury is shown with the help of SWOT analysis: 

Strengths: 

• Sainsbury have effective organizational strategies and policies to handle workplace conflicts. 
• Sainsbury persistently put efforts to ensure a favourable working environment driven by an appropriate organizational framework and structure so that a high level of employee satisfaction can be achieved. 
• The positive conflicts among the workforce of Sainsbury also encourage and promote innovation and creativity within the organization (Huan, and Yazdanifard, 2012). 

Weaknesses: 

• Sainsbury is ineffective in maintaining effective communication policies which creates opportunities for workplace conflicts. 
• The conflict management team of Sainsbury has also been taking active measures to reduce the conflicts among its employees. 
• The procedure of managing conflicts within the organization is unfair and unmerited and thus, the conflict within Sainsbury’s persists for too long (Ayoko, and Konrad, 2012). 

Opportunities: 

• The potential risks of the conflict in the workplace allow the conflict management team of Sainsbury to frame and implement a proficient system to manage the conflicts. This system will help in reducing the number of conflicts with the passage of time. 
• The managers or supervisors dealing with the conflict management are initiating to deal with the parties involved in the conflicts constructively so that it benefits the organization (Huan, and Yazdanifard, 2012). 

Threats: 

• The high level of workplace conflicts may hamper the reputation of the Sainsbury along with reducing the image of the company under its CSR initiatives. 
• The unresolved conflicts among the workers will promote the development of passive aggressive behavior within the employees. In the opinion by Ayoko, and Konrad, (2012), it will impose the threats of low overall productivity of the organization.  

 

The cause and effect relationship of workplace conflict by Fishbone diagram: 

 With the help of the fishbone diagram, the cause and effect relationship of workplace conflict are shown below: 

Figure 1: Fishbone diagram of workplace conflict

Sources: (created by the learner)

The fishbone diagram is shown above clearly depicts the major causes of workplace conflict both at the organizational and personal levels of employees. Communication is a major contributor to conflict. The ineffective communication strategy within the organization leads to confusion and misunderstanding among the workers and promotes conflicts. Further, the biases and preferences culture of the organization embarks a sense of disappointment among the employees leading and fostering the conflicts. Further, management or leadership may also be a major factor within the workplace conflict. The inefficiency of the leaders or management in dealing with internal conflicts results in workplace conflict (Ayoko, and Konrad, 2012). Similarly, the personal evaluation of the employees such as stress, status, work pressure, lack of job security, sense of accomplishment, etc. may be the crucial element in workplace conflict.  Further, the unrealistic expectations of employees such as the desire to have preferential treatment by the organization may trigger conflicts. Lastly, the personal attributes of the employees such as short-temperedness, lack of attentiveness and aggressive nature may lead to conflicts within the organization (Ayoko, and Konrad, 2012). 

Solutions for workplace conflicts: 

Retail business organizations like Sainsbury are required to formulate and apply various active corrective measures for reducing and effectively dealing with the issues of workplace conflicts. In this regard, some of the solutions for workplace conflicts are discussed as follows: 

1. Embrace conflicts: in case of any conflict, it is essential for the conflict management team to embrace the conflict and deal effectively with the uncomfortable issues promptly before the conflict gets worsens. This will allows for prompt addressing of the conflict (Einarsen, et al., 2018). 
2. Talk together: It is essential for the conflict management team to talk with the parties involved in the conflict effectively without any biases or preferences. The parties are allowed adequate time to convey their views without any attack or assigning blame. In this way, the company will resolve the conflict by arriving at mediating decisions (Teague, and Roche, 2012). 
3. Find agreement: It is equally important for the company to find a common ground on which both the parties of conflict can agree. In this process, the conflict management team must shed light on commonalities so as to provide value to both parties. It will help in quick resolving of the conflicts or issues (Einarsen, et al., 2018). 
4. Provide guidance: The conflict management team of the company must take a leadership position and provide guidance to the employees regarding the future course of action. In this process, the conflict management team must emphasize conveying the positive aspects of the process and actions ensuring the avoidance of conflict in the future (Teague, and Roche, 2012). 

Conclusion: 

The above-mentioned clearly states the major theories, concepts, and philosophies regarding the major problems within the workplace and the ways by which proper decision making can be done. Contemporary business organizations such as Sainsbury must understand the importance of problem-solving and decision making so that it can recognize the issues and disputes in their workplace. In this regard, this study has extensively discussed one of the major workplace issues known as conflicts among the employees. The majority of business organizations are experiencing these issues and it has adverse effects on organizational efficiency and profitability. For the said purpose, this study has also discussed the various strategies to resolve this respective issue. Not only that, but this study has also analyzed the concerned problem for Sainsbury with the help of SWOT analysis and Fishbone diagram.

References: 

Ayoko, O.B. and Konrad, A.M., 2012. Leaders’ transformational, conflict, and emotion management behaviours in culturally diverse workgroups. Equality, Diversity and Inclusion: An International Journal, 31(8), pp.694-724.

Einarsen, S., Skogstad, A., Rørvik, E., Lande, Å.B. and Nielsen, M.B., 2018. Climate for conflict management, exposure to workplace bullying and work engagement: a moderated mediation analysis. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 29(3), pp.549-570.

Huan, L.J. and Yazdanifard, R., 2012. The difference of conflict management styles and conflict resolution in the workplace. Business & Entrepreneurship Journal, 1(1), pp.141-155. 

Prause, D. and Mujtaba, B.G., 2015. Conflict management practices for diverse workplaces. Journal of Business Studies Quarterly, 6(3), p.13.

Teague, P. and Roche, W.K., 2012. Line managers and the management of workplace conflict: evidence from Ireland. Human Resource Management Journal, 22(3), pp.235-251.