P3知识点讲解：Conflict management and the accountant as project manager(二)

　　Potential conflict exists within any department but become particularly acute in the area of project management, which involves bringing together individuals from different departments. The project leader in this situation has four additional pressure points that can promote conflict：

　　The staff they manage are assigned to the project on a part-time basis and have responsibilities to their 'home' departments, giving rise to conflict of work schedules.

　　Team members bring different skills and there may be different levels of participation and contribution among team members.

　　The different specialists bring their different perspectives, which may not be compatible with each other.

　　Different individuals may be receiving different rewards, reflecting their positions within their home departments rather than their specific roles in the projects.

　　Such difficulties are exacerbated by the fact that the project manager cannot have superior knowledge of all areas of specialism within the team. As a consequence, they cannot rely on expert and position power in leading the team. The project manager has inevitably the problem of managing the potential destructive conflict that situation can cause while promoting constructive conflict. Destructive conflict can impede effective performance and can involve either too much or too little conflict. Too much destructive conflict divides a team, deepens differences, destroys relationships, motivation and morale and distracts the team from critical issues. Too little conflict tends to produce complacency and the avoidance of risk taking and innovation.

　　The aim of the project manager must be to promote constructive conflict that helps to clarify problem situations and potential solutions and opens up new ways of thinking and doing. Where conflict is recognised and effectively managed further significant benefits arise from the development of team cohesion, richer communication, team member engagement and a sense of achievement and success.

　　Given the potential benefits of effective conflict management, project managers need to be able to recognise and diagnose conflict situations. Brooks (2001) has developed a useful analytical tool for assessing whether team conflict is being approached positively or is becoming unhealthy. His original proposal viewed the analysis being done at organisational level, but it seems equally applicable to a project team situation. It can be used to open up a dialogue regarding this critical issue among team members. Brooks distinguished 10 features of group behaviour (see Table 1 below) that are assessed at two levels：

　　a) the current situation; b) the desired situation and where there is a 25% difference between the total scores for each of these assessments - Brooks would argue that conflict resolution activities need to be instigated.

　　If issues are left unaddressed, Brooks argues that a downward spiral in relationships will build its own momentum and is unlikely to get better without positive intervention.