Ways to lessen groupthink in the department.
John should be impartial in leading the department. He should keep his personal and subjective interests away from the workplace and encourage the other employees to act objectively (Desivilya & Yagil, 2005). John should also encourage staff members in his department to come up with their own solutions instead of relying on the management to make all decisions. In addition, he can organize team-building exercise to enhance teamwork and cohesion among his employees (Desivilya & Yagil, 2005). Strategies for preventing and responding to team conflicts
John can establish and explain a chain of command that the employees can use to express their grievances and dissatisfactions with certain issues. He should also involve all the employees in seeking solutions to existing conflicts by obtaining their thoughts and solutions to existing conflicts. John should also lead by example. He should practice clear communication, active listening, identification of solutions, demonstrating respect, being objective among other conflict management aspects and teach the same to his employees (Huang, 2010). Strategies to lessen bullying behavior in the workplace
First, John should identify the main bullies at his workplace and send them on leave or retraining depending on the extent of their bullying. Going by Huang’s (2010) assertion, John can also organize for trainings on cohesion, importance of respect and appreciation at the workplace among other relevant topics that can minimize bullying. The management can come up with clear job descriptions and terms of work that enlighten employees on their rights, roles and responsibilities, relationships with their colleagues at work among other issues pertinent to peaceful and harmonious working (Desivilya & Yagil, 2005).
Offer ways that conflict can be beneficial
Conflict helps in the identification of deep-seated characters of people. It is during conflicts that people with leadership qualities come out. The tensions and realignments that come with conflicts help in downsizing, reshufflings, and sackings that the people who are left behind after the conflict gel and work harmoniously.
References
Desivilya, H. S., & Yagil, D. (2005). The Role of Emotions In Conflict Management: The Case Of Work Teams. International Journal of Conflict Management, 16(1), 55-69.
Huang, J. (2010). Unbundling Task Conflict And Relationship Conflict: The Moderating Role Of Team Goal Orientation And Conflict Management. International Journal of Conflict Management, 21(3), 334-355.
