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April 2000 #3 Greetings and welcome to the third issue of my newsletter. I trust that you are enjoying the newsletters as much as I enjoy putting them together. Access to past newsletters is a click away! http://www.egroups.com/list/conflictmanagement/ I appreciate all new subscribers for making the effort to come on board through eGroups. I am still encouraging those on my email list to do so voluntarily. I appreciate all the encouragement and feedback I have received. Please feel free to send more. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. Articles Mediation In Employment Cases Is Too Little Too Late: An Organizational Conflict Management Perspective On Resolving Disputes by Aimee Gourlay and Jenelle Soderquist The resolution of workplace conflicts should take place as early as possible and should begin by asking whether the organization understands how conflicts arise, how they are resolved, and whether there is a need for change in the methods of dealing with conflict. http://www.spidr.org/article/hamline.htm ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 2. Perspectives The latest edition of 'Perspectives', the online newsletter of Spidr's Organizational Conflict Management sector is available online. To review its contents click here. http://www.spidr.org/ocm/ocmhome0200.htm ADR in the Workplace SPIDR's Track One committee is developing practical guidelines for the-design of-conflict management systems in the workplace. http://www.spidr.org/ocm/news0200.htm The World Bank integrates Mediation into its Conflict Resolution System http://www.spidr.org/ocm/news0200.htm ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 3. On-line Conference: "Managing by Agreement" Stewart Levine, author of the best selling book "Getting to Resolution: Turning Conflict Into Collaboration," will host an on-line conference titled "Managing By Agreement" on April 20, 2000. The conference is free and open to anyone with internet access. Participants are expected from throughout North America and abroad. The conference will be held April 20 at 11:00 am PST. To attend, go to http://www.mediationworks.com/chatsch.htm. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 4. News from Southern Africa Mandela praised for Burundi talks role: Burundi's Tutsi President Pierre Buyoya yesterday congratulated Burundi peace talks facilitator Nelson Mandela for convincing two dissident Hutu guerrilla groups to participate in the peace negotiations. "I would like to pay tribute to his excellency the facilitator for crossing the first hurdle; that is, having convinced the representatives of the armed groups to come to the negotiating table," Buyoya said. The Star, 20000328 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 5. The Worldwide Open Space Technology Website Open Space Technology is one way to enable all kinds of people, in any kind of organization, to create inspired meetings and events. This site was created in the spirit of the simple, powerful functionality that is Open Space Technology -- to provide easy access to the growing number of Open Space organizations, practitioners and resources available on the web. http://www.openspaceworld.org/ ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 6. Quotes "The whole business starts with ideas, and we're convinced that ideas come out of an environment of supportive conflict, which is synonymous with appropriate friction." Michael Eisner CEO and Chairman of Disney, in Harvard Business Review Jan-Feb 2000 "I see too many arrogant facilitators that pride themselves on their supposed "neutrality" and "objectivity", which I just don't believe exists. At best we can be clear, ethical, transparent and equidistant." Dr. Gilbert Brenson Lazan Bogotá, Colombia ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 7. New Books The Violence-Prone Workplace A New Approach to Dealing with Hostile, Threatening, and Uncivil Behavior By Richard V. Denenberg and Mark Braverman Almost every week reports of violence erupting in the workplace make headlines. Contrary to popular opinion, such incidents are not random and senseless, but, according to the authors, typically result from conflict that has been allowed to fester. Combining the insights of both crisis management and dispute resolution, their book presents a comprehensive look at the problem of violence on the job, including ways of preventing it. Rather than focusing on the supposedly "lethal" or dysfunctional employee as the source of danger, the authors point to the dysfunctional workplace as the problem. They describe underlying factors in the workplace which can foster extreme behavior and prevent an effective response. Calling for early intervention in situations that could result in violence, the authors suggest specific techniques for ensuring that an office, plant, or school is prepared for crises arising from threats or a climate of hostility. Cornell University Press www.cornellpress ---------------------------------------------------------------------- |