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The Telstar Scenario : Conflict With Multiple Failures

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The Telstar scenario describes a conflict with multiple failings. Firstly it resulted in a faulty product. Secondly, it reduced the relationship between the Structures Manager (SM) and the Project Manager (PM). It appears that neither party tailored conflict management techniques to the conflict.
This conflict is between two people with differing positions: one believes that the work should be carried out, the other does not. Fisher and Ury (2012, p14) state that “positional bargaining becomes a contest of will” meaning that one party will end up bending to the will of the other, causing resentment and anger. (Fisher and Ury, 2012) When interests, as well as positions, are considered this will improve the negotiations. (Funken, 2001) The interests may have been missed due to both parties seeing this as a conflict of control (Fisher and Ury, 2010) and using the Thomas-Kilmann method competing. (Bens, 2012) But their outcomes are different: the PM ‘wins’ and the SM ‘loses’ without attempting to find a win-win solution or to compromise. This not only means that they fail to find options, but will hinder relationships between the teams, potentially affecting future projects.
To be concluded successfully, this conflict could act as the storming phase of Tuckman’s stages of group development (White, 2009) this conflict could be part of a cultural change in the organisation: to collaboration between functions which will add value to this and future projects. It is easy for a

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