Development of Conflict between Members of a Small Team and the Essay

Development of Conflict between Members of a Small Team and the Measures Taken To Solve the Impasse - Essay Example This paper illustrates that a recent experience that forms the main basis of this reflection forms the researcher’s experience of a workplace conflict in a team of four and the associated measures the author had to take to intervene in the situation being the supervisor. Mr. Michael, a new employee at the company, was recently transferred from another branch to the environmental department of that comprised of three members of staff and the researcher, as the supervisor in the department. Mr. Michael was African and as the author would later discover his arrival resulted in tension and misunderstanding in the department. Mr. Moses, the department long-serving officer was involved in a heated discussion with Michael on the jobs allocated to Mr. Michael that turned out to be more than the other two were given and in the process, Moses used a racial slur. Mr. Michael believed that the other members of the department were in a collision since they did not agree to share work equal ly resulting in hostility developing into workplace conflict among the four members of the department. Mr. Moses and the other department members believed that they were superior having only interacted with department members of the same color since Mr. Michael was the first employee in the company of a different ethnic community. In hindsight, it has come to my view that the author could have taken different measures that could have resulted in a better solution to the situation. After the confrontation, the work environment was edgy and filled with anxiety that no work was being completed successfully owing to the no-talking terms between Mr. Michael and the other members of the department including Mr. Moses. After meetings with the department members and one-on-one conversation with Mr. Michael and Mr. Moses to help resolve the situation to no avail, the author felt that he need to step in and solve the issue for the benefit of the organization and the success of the department. Since the department was running well before Mr. Michael’s arrival, the author requested his transfer, which he previously requested when the discrimination occurred since he believed he could not effectively work with the team. On reflecting on the solution, the author believes it was not morally correct to have undertaken that decision.