Handling Difficult Conversations - Essay Example

Handling Difficult Conversations Difficult Face-To-Face Conversation in a Professional Setting In the corporate world, working as a team is quite essential for effective business performance. In teamwork, different individuals come forward to work and make plans in order to achieve the desired common organizational goals. Every individual is different from the other with respect to culture, sex, knowledge and race among others. In an organization, under different circumstances conflict escalates due to face-to-face conversation raising difficult situations (Edmondson & et al. 2006).In my organization setting, I have witnessed adverse situation in handling difficult conversation.

Employees are engaged in gossip with each other. Due to gossiping, the employees were not able to focus in their work. Additionally, avoidance of the situation has led to inefficiency in the work procedure, which further was identified to be accountable for unproductivity. This was hampering the work culture and environment of the workplace. As a Human Resource (HR) manager to overcome the situation, a meeting was organized with the employees. In the meeting, an interaction was developed in order to determine the reasons for gossiping during working hours in order to develop an appropriate strategy to overcome the difficult situation.

In this respect, I have implemented an effective communication strategy of motivation based on which the employees would be able to develop respect and compassion amid employees and accordingly, they will be able perform their operations productively. Subsequently, the strategy aided in squashing the habit of gossiping amid employees (Guo & Sanchez, 2005). Analyze the Difficult Conversation and Approach to CommunicationDifficult conversation is identified as a process of communicating messages that are accountable for raising confusion, pain, embarrassment, fear or anxiety amid employees in a workplace (Harvard Business School Publishing, 2014).

Difficult conversation can be mitigated through good communication process between managers and subordinates from top level along with middle level managers to labor groups. In this regard, managers should adopt different communication techniques that include manage self, manage conversation and manage relationship (Edmondson & Smith, 2006). Additionally, communication process is required to be based on three important factors that include temperance, clarity and neutrality (Weeks, 2001). In this context, the strategies of managing self, conversation and relationship with the assistance of effective communication would facilitate in managing difficult conversation successfully.

Communicating at regular interval with employees in a clear and precise manner would facilitate in squashing gossiping habit amid employees effectively (Edmondson & Smith, 2006; Weeks, 2001). Preparation for Mitigating Difficult SituationOn facing a similar difficult situation relating to employee gossiping in the workplace, as a HR manager, I will organize a group meeting in order to analyze the situation by listening to the employees elaborately. I will give them a chance to talk about the difficulties as well as other problems faced by them.

In this context, on understanding the difficult situation, I will communicate with the employees in a precise and clear manner with neutrality, so that the employees are able to comprehend the adversity of the situation. The employees will be communicated about the unproductivity and inefficiency in business operations that would further adversely affect business performances as a whole in future, so that they conduct their operations in accordance with business objectives for better business sustainability (Edmondson & Smith, 2006; Weeks, 2001; Binzer, n.d.).

In this respect, the approach of managing self, managing conservation and managing relationship with the assistance of effective communication based on clarity and temperance will facilitate in the management of difficult conversation. Subsequently, managers adopting the aforementioned different approaches to communication would be able to maintain an effective workplace environment grounded on trust, respect, integrity and compassion (Edmondson & Smith, 2006; Weeks, 2001). ReferencesBinzer, S. (n.d.). Improving understanding with communication strategies.

Retrieved from http://hope.cochlearamericas.com/sites/default/files/resources/FUN2041%20Adult%20Communication%20Strategies%20TP.pdf Edmondson, A. C., & Smith, D. M. (2006). Too hot to handle? How to manage relationship conflict. California Management Review, 49(1), 1-27Guo, K. L., & Sanchez, Y. (2005). Workplace communication. Chapter 4, 77-110. Harvard Business School Publishing. (2014). Difficult conversations: Nine common mistakes. Retrieved from http://hbr.org/web/slideshows/difficult-conversations-nine-common-mistakes/10-slide Weeks, H. (2001). Taking stress out of stressful conversations.

Harvard Business Review, 1-9.