This fall, UNLV is offering a large number of professional development workshops for employees, and the Ombuds Office is happy to take part in the Human Resources Professional Development program (HRPD). Our six-part Working Better Together series highlights conflict resolution tips and techniques, with spots remaining in many classes.
Each 90-minute workshop is highly interactive. In most, brief lecture-style interludes introduce key topics, with extended group discussion and exercises following. This is to allow participants to actually use and think critically about the techniques discussed, rather than just hearing about them.
The first session, “What Are We Really Arguing About?” was held in person on September 13. It walked participants through common conflict drivers and examined what caused conflicts to escalate. While that seminar has already been held, there is good news: if you would like UNLV Ombuds David G. Schwartz to deliver this seminar to your group, he is happy to do so. As an added bonus, he can customize it specifically for your group, with exercise scenarios that are fine-tuned to the work you do.
Depending on when you read this, the second session may have passed as well (the semester goes by quickly!). “Exploring Conflict Styles,” which is scheduled for 9 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. on Thursday, September 22, explains the concept of conflict styles, which was first developed by Kenneth Thomas and Ralph Killman. Before the session, each participant should take a linked online quiz that will help you learn what your default conflict style is.
And, if you missed it, don’t worry. As with all the other sessions, Dr. Schwartz would be glad to deliver it for your group.
Do you struggle with difficult conversations? Sure, we all do. If we didn’t, they wouldn’t be called difficult. There is no big red button to push that makes difficult conversations easy, but there are some techniques you can use to prepare and to engage that can help to make them less fraught. That will be the subject of the September 29 (start time at 9:00 a.m.) session, “Difficult Conversations: How to Make Them Less Painful and More Productive.” This one is virtual, and will feature interactive polling and group discussion as a way to keep things interactive.
Group conflicts can be divisive, tearing units apart, sometimes for decades. The October 13 in-person seminar, “Back from the Brink: Navigating Group Conflicts,” delves into the anatomy of group conflicts, exploring how they escalate and why it is crucial to address their root causes early. Working through real group conflicts, participants will get a sense of why they can spiral out of control, and put into practice principles discussed in “What Are We Really Arguing About?” (Don’t worry: there will be a refresher if you weren’t able to attend that one).
By a happy coincidence, “Back from the Brink” will be presented on Ombuds Day, the annual celebration of ombuds work whose theme this year, “Resilience. Respect. Resolve,” fits nicely with the idea of resolving group conflicts in a respectful way, which is a goal of this session.
Quick note: the Ombuds Office has a whole week of activities planned around Ombuds Day. You can check our events page for more information, or read all about them in an upcoming blog post.
Having tackled group conflicts (and had time to recover from our Ombuds Week festivities), we will then, on October 20, present an in-person workshop called “Resolving One-on-One Conflicts.” There is never a one-size-fits-all solution to conflict, not least because of the complications that power differentials present. This session explores how conflicts with peers, supervisors, and subordinates can manifest differently, and how, keeping in mind the large role that power plays in such conflicts, they can be resolved.
The final workshop in the series, “Leadership Lessons from a Las Vegas Legend,” explores the myth and history that has developed around Benjamin “Bugsy” Siegel, whose role in the opening of the Flamingo casino has been discussed for decades, with key shifts in the early 1960s and 1990s. Examining the historical record, this session asks us to consider how we can learn from his brief time at the top of the Las Vegas Strip icon.
All in all, these workshops should give participants a better understanding of how conflicts typically unfold, and how they can be resolved. All sessions are free and open to UNLV employees. A few seats remain in each session as I write this, but they do appear to be filling, so register today.
No matter how much you learn about conflict, you never have to face it alone. Whether you are a student, faculty member, or other UNLV employee, the Ombuds Office has many resources available to help you through any stage of a conflict. If you are having an issue and are uncertain where to go, it is an excellent zero-barrier first stop. If you would like to talk privately and confidentially about any work- or campus-related concern, please make an appointment with the Ombuds. Our door is open.
David G. Schwartz
UNLV Ombuds