As my volunteers and I progress in creating videos for Community television in Hawaii on avoiding, preventing, resolving conflict using peaceful means I continue to learn. In our latest panel discussion the clear benefit of mediation and facilitation was yet again highlighted – choice.  As the scope of choice develops in our series the element of choice is being examined in the context of WorkTeams. Organizations of all sizes use WorkTeams for a variety of projects both internally and in concert with outsiders like contractors in an owner-contractor relationship. We created a vignette highlighting a variety of disputes, work as well as personal related, and our panel members started to home in on choice between a conflict or resolution environment. In our vignette the WorkTeam operated in a conflict environment. However, if they had or would take the proper steps they could operate in a resolution environment. This moved to the topic of creation of either environment. In our vignette the WorkTeam operated in a conflict environment as they did not have the personal skills nor the processes to deal with conflict. The panel pointed out that in order for the environment to be a resolution environment both processes and skills in such areas as mediation and facilitation were required. In addition an understanding of how each member of a team is going to have to interact is necessary along with ground rules. Senior management support for a resolution environment is critical.

We use a simple example in our vignette. The WorkTeam has a conflict between technical personnel and QA in document review and approval. They are in conflict as members of the team play out power roles – QA using its power to require changes or refuse to approve, technical personnel attacking the Team Leader for not challenging QA – and individuals attacking each other for personal reasons. Were they operating in a resolution environment they would be stepping in to address the issues by committing to resolution of the document problems in a collaborative manner.

In the conflict environment it will probably take senior management intervention (forcing the team to give up choice) to force a resolution while in a collaborative and resolution based environment the team can continue to maintain choice. Part of the resolution environment clearly takes the skills inherent to win-win negotiations as well as those of a mediator or facilitator.