Coaching practices for How to Resolve Workplace Conflict Between Two Employees
Describe almost anything you are working through and IX Coach finds the practices whose real-world fit is closest. For How to Resolve Workplace Conflict Between Two Employees, these are the strongest matches in the current practice library.
Does this sound like the set of challenges you might be facing?
- We both keep digging into our positions and neither of us is really hearing why the other one cares
- Every time we get into this it turns into my side versus theirs, two solutions dug in, and it never occurs to either of us that we might actually want the same thing underneath the fight.
- Somewhere in this I stopped seeing a problem we both have and started seeing the other person AS the problem
- We solve the immediate thing but the same ugly dynamic underneath stays exactly the same, so the next disagreement plays out identically
- We’re both dug into opposing positions and treating it like one of us has to lose, but this is someone I’ll keep working with and the outcome genuinely matters to both of us
Practices that may help
- Collaborating (assertive and cooperative)
Work the underlying interests until you find a solution that genuinely meets both sides’ needs.
The Five Conflict-Resolution Styles - Find mutual purpose
Establish a shared goal both people care about so the conversation is "us vs the problem".
Crucial Conversations, Made Practical - Separate the person from the problem
Treat the conflict as a problem you face together, not a contest you fight each other.
The Third Alternative, Made Practical - Transform the relationship, not just the issue
Use each conflict as an opportunity to raise the quality of the relationship itself.
The Third Alternative, Made Practical - Use Collaborating when the relationship and the solution both matter
Collaborating — high assertive, high cooperative — finds a solution that genuinely works for both parties, but it takes time.
The Thomas–Kilmann Conflict Mode Instrument (TKI) - Engage in productive ideological conflict
Teams that avoid conflict don’t avoid disagreement — they bury it, where it grows into resentment and bad decisions.
The Five Dysfunctions of a Team, Made Practical - Adapt your conflict approach to the other person’s DISC style
Conflict lands differently for each style — match your approach to reduce defensiveness.
DISC Behavioral Styles - Disagree with your manager constructively
State your disagreement clearly, give your reasoning, and then commit to the decision — without sacrificing either honesty or loyalty.
Managing Up: Practical Skills for Working with Your Boss - Fight the problem, not each other
Reorient conflict so both partners face the problem together rather than facing each other.
Secure-Functioning Relationships - Storming: name the conflict without taking sides
Surface the tension that’s already there rather than managing it away.
Tuckman’s Stages of Team Development
Related concerns
- How To Resolve Workplace Conflict
Use each conflict as an opportunity to raise the quality of the relationship itself.
Transform the relationship, not just the issue
- Collaborative Conflict Culture
Collaborating — high assertive, high cooperative — finds a solution that genuinely works for both parties, but it takes time.
Use Collaborating when the relationship and the solution both matter
- How To Address Workplace Conflict
Teams that avoid conflict don’t avoid disagreement — they bury it, where it grows into resentment and bad decisions.
Engage in productive ideological conflict
- How To Handle Conflict At Work
Pursue your own position firmly when speed, principle, or stakes outweigh the relationship cost.
Competing (assertive, uncooperative)
- How To Handle Workplace Conflict
Conflict lands differently for each style — match your approach to reduce defensiveness.
Adapt your conflict approach to the other person’s DISC style
- Synergy In Conflict
Collaborating — high assertive, high cooperative — finds a solution that genuinely works for both parties, but it takes time.
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