Ways to Deal Remote Employee Conflict

Some people want to work remotely,  others love the office, some people like to work independently, others need people around them. How do you prefer to work?

While remote work has been around for a while, the COVID-19 pandemic has hastened our transition to more flexible work arrangements. Because of this, both businesses and people could choose to work remotely. If you assume all disagreements are face-to-face, you’re mistaken. Conflicts may emerge when a team works from home. In reality, conflicts in remote workplaces have become the norm. 

Workplace conflicts affect not just the people involved, but also the team’s participation, drive, and spirit. To handle conflicts quickly, Human resource management teams must have a conflict resolution plan, notably for virtual workers.

In what ways can you deal with conflict when your staff work from home?

1. Hold regular meetings

COVID-19 discourages staff from meeting in person for break times or after-work parties, limiting their interaction after or during the job. As such, team members need to put extra effort into communicating their emotions and assessing how they are perceived by others to overcome the physical barrier during regular virtual meetings to keep them engaged with one another and in the business.

2. Acknowledge the conflict immediately

Recognising the problem is the next step toward resolving it. If you try to avoid or ignore the conflict, it will only become messier. Although disagreements may seem little at first, they may quickly escalate into major issues and even cause people to leave your organisation if not addressed.

3. Promote empathy and Co-create solutions

Get your remote team to put themselves in the other person’s shoes and respond empathetically to difficult situations. In doing so, you can start discussing potential strategies for resolving the disagreement with each employee which can help you arrive at the best outcome. They probably have the same ideas that will make your job much simpler and this is an opportunity to foster mutual understanding, unity and compassion. 

Together we are stronger and collaborative working means that projects are successful, and work is completed.