Conflict Management Diagnosis at Project Management Organizations

The world is full of conflict. Conflict is a matter of life, occurring as frequently as conversation in some cultures. The organization, like any culture, is subject to conflict. The project management organization is even more apt to suffer from conflict, with its constantly changing environment. However, the effects of conflict on the organization are not always negative. How is the individual project manager to know when his or her organization is in a healthy state of conflict? This paper presents one method that engineering managers can use to diagnose conflict in their organizations. The method has been applied to diagnose conflict within the State Public Agency (SPA), engaged in design and construction of civil engineering projects. The results indicate that SPA engineers predominantly use a problem-solving style to find mutual win-win resolutions to conflict, showing that SPA can thrive under conditions of conflict. The results also indicate, however, that SPA may be suffering from a lack of conflict. The average intensity of conflict perceived by all engineers is 1.40 on a scale of 0-4, or only a slight impact. Likewise, the frequency with which conflict occurs is low, at 1.59 on the same scale. Recommendations are provided for SPA.