Interorganizational Conflict Management

Abstract

The organizational niche is naturally a world of conflict. Whenever there are people working together, the inevitability of conflict arises. This happens for the simple reason that people will not always be in perfect agreement on all issues, goals, or perceptions. Individuals will always have varied ways of thinking which may then lead to unfavorable events. This descriptive research paper aimed to find out concepts that relate to interorganizational conflict. The study attempted to illustrate the causes and effects of interorganizational conflict and how they are managed by the parties involved in the conflict situation. The paper mainly concentrated on general problem question: How were the causes and effects of conflict between two organizations managed effectively? Specifically, the research probed to answer the following questions: 1. What caused the conflict between Company X and Company Y? a. How did the conflict affect the two organizations? b. What were the perceived feelings and thoughts caused by the conflict? 2. How did Company X and Company Y handle the conflict situation? a. Who were the people involved in managing the conflict situation? b. What strategies were used in managing the conflict between the two organizations? c. How did the strategies help in managing the conflict? The study employed the purposive sampling technique in selecting the sample population from Company X and Company Y. Interviews were used to select who were deemed to be significant for the study. The respondents were singled out according to a set criteria, namely: knowledge on the situation, affiliation with the company, and role played or involvement in the conflict situation. With the use of focus group interviews, the research sought to determine the causes, effects, and strategies which were involved in the interorganizational conflict between Company X and Company Y. The focus group interview was the chief instrument in uncovering the particulars of the conflict situation. The open-ended nature of the questions helped in extracting pertinent information on how the conflict evolved and how the two companies plan to resolve the situation. To further supplement the study, the Thomas-Kilmann Instrument was employed to reveal which conflict management strategy the respondents preferred in settling the conflict. Results revealed that the interorganizational conflict between Company X and Company Y was rooted from unsettled debts due to scarcity of financial resources. Moreover, poor communication worsened the conflict situation as certain individuals refused to deal properly. The effects of the conflict have been generally negative as relations between the two organizations have turned sour. The people involved were primarily composed of two key individuals, from both organizations. However, a mediator was also involved in the conflict resolution process. According to the interviews, the respondents felt that the best way to resolve the situation was to find a middle ground. Furthermore, the Thomas-Kilmann Instrument (TKI) showed that compromise had the highest score. With the interviews and the Thomas-Kilrnann Instrument, findings confirmed that the best style in managing this particular conflict situation would be through compromise. Although the conflict situation between Company X and Company Y has not been fully closed, the strategy of compromise has proven to be beneficial for the two organizations. The study implied that interorganizational conflict can have different causes which in turn have varied effects. Moreover, the strategies to be used depend highly on how the matter will be taken by the two organizations. In this research, it was evident that because of the involvement of personal issues, it was rather difficult to manage the conflict. Since thoughts and feelings were concerned, appeal to the emotions was used to work out certain differences. This study showed that conflicting issues that concern family or relatives are rather difficult to settle. As the findings revealed, business concerns were inevitably mixed with personal matters.