What are the best ways to identify the root cause of a conflict between team members?

1 Listen actively

The first step to identify the root cause of a conflict is to listen actively to both sides of the story. Active listening means paying attention, asking open-ended questions, paraphrasing, and empathizing with the speakers. It also means avoiding interruptions, judgments, and assumptions. By listening actively, you can gain a deeper understanding of the situation, the perspectives, and the feelings of the parties involved. You can also show respect, build trust, and reduce defensiveness.

2 Use the 5 Whys technique

The 5 Whys technique is an effective way to get to the bottom of a problem. It involves repeatedly asking "why" to get to the core of the issue. For example, if two team members are arguing about a customer complaint, you can ask why they are upset, why it affects their performance metrics, why they have to spend more time resolving it, why they don't have a clear process for handling such cases, and why they haven't received enough training or guidance. Through this process, you can uncover the root cause of the conflict: the lack of training or guidance from the manager. This simple tool can be used to reveal deeper insights and help address underlying issues.

3 Identify the conflict style

Another way to identify the root cause of a conflict is to recognize the conflict style of each team member. According to the Thomas-Kilmann model, there are five main conflict styles: competing, collaborating, compromising, avoiding, and accommodating. Each style has its own strengths and weaknesses, and can influence how a team member approaches and resolves a conflict. For example, a competing style is assertive and aggressive, but can also be perceived as domineering and disrespectful. A collaborating style is cooperative and creative, but can also be time-consuming and unrealistic. By identifying the conflict style of each team member, you can understand their motivations, expectations, and needs better. You can also adapt your own style to match or complement theirs, and find a more suitable solution.

4 Use the iceberg model

The iceberg model is a metaphor that compares a conflict to an iceberg, where only a small part is visible above the water, while the larger part is hidden below. The visible part of the conflict contains its symptoms or manifestations, such as behaviors, words, or actions. The hidden part of the conflict holds its deeper causes or sources, such as values, beliefs, or needs. To discover the root cause of a conflict, you must look beyond its surface and explore what lies beneath. You can do this by asking yourself or other team members questions like: what are you really trying to achieve or protect? What are your core values or beliefs that are being challenged? What underlying needs or interests are not being met? By utilizing the iceberg model, you can uncover the root cause of a conflict, which is often related to the hidden part of the iceberg.

5 Seek feedback and input

The last way to identify the root cause of a conflict is to seek feedback and input from others who are not directly involved in the conflict, but have relevant knowledge, experience, or insight. These could be other team members, colleagues, mentors, coaches, or experts. By seeking feedback and input, you can gain a fresh perspective, a different angle, or a new idea that can help you understand the situation better. You can also validate your assumptions, check your biases, and challenge your conclusions. However, when seeking feedback and input, you need to be open-minded, respectful, and constructive. You also need to avoid gossiping, blaming, or venting about the conflict.