Turn Conflict into Collaboration at Work

Discover practical tools to handle workplace challenges, including a Conflict Resolution course hosted by Duke Learning & Organization Development on Aug. 6

Fists bumping over a desk

As Director of Academic Services and Administration for the Sanford School of Public Policy’s Master’s program, Belen Gebremichael supports students and faculty, assists school leadership and collaborates with colleagues across programs.

With many stakeholders involved, it’s natural that differing goals or perspectives occasionally lead to challenging conversations.

“I deal with conflict on a regular basis,” Gebremichael said. “They may not be big problems, but they’re still things that need to be addressed and resolved.”

Build Your Skills

From Crucial Conversations to Communicating with Diplomacy and Tact, check out the professional development courses from Duke Learning & Organization Development. The Conflict Resolution course is on Aug. 6.

Course Listings

Learning how to sort out differences for a way forward is part of many roles no matter the workplace. Citing challenges arising from intergenerational teams and remote work policies, LinkedIn recently listed conflict mitigation as the second-top “Skills on the Rise” list for 2025, trailing AI literacy.

Duke Learning & Organization Development (L&OD), a unit in Duke Human Resources, offers several professional courses that address ways to effectively navigate differences in a respectful and productive way.

“Technical skills are easier to learn, I think,” Gebremichael said. “But it can be harder to teach people how to communicate, how to compromise and solve conflicts.”

This spring, Gebremichael completed L&OD’s half-day Conflict Resolution course, which will be offered next online on August 6. The course helps participants identify the causes of conflicts and approaches for finding solutions.

“Conflict resolution isn’t about ensuring you win every time, it’s about accurately reading the situation and minimizing the negativity,” said Senior L&OD Consultant and course leader Don Shortslef.

With help from Shortslef and colleagues who completed L&OD’s Conflict Resolution course in April, learn how the course can help you.

Finding the Right Approach

Director of Academic Services for the Sanford School of Public Policy's Master's Program Belen Gebremichael

Before the course starts, participants complete the Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Mode Instrument, which is a questionnaire that reveals someone’s preferred approaches, or modes, for addressing conflict. The five modes featured in the survey are competing, accommodating, avoiding, collaborating and compromising.

While participants will learn which mode they tend to default to, the course shows how each approach can be useful in specific types of conflicts.

“It all depends on the situation,” Shortslef said. “Each of these modes can be used in an effective way in a particular situation. But each of these modes can be overused or underused, which can have a negative impact.”

Gebremichael learned that most conflicts she faces can be resolved using the collaborative approach, where both parties share their visions and work together to find a suitable path forward.

“This was helpful,” Gebremichael said. “There are a lot of situations where both people can get what they want, but they have to do a little work.”

Reading the Situation

Duke University Health System Talent Acquisition Consultant Holly Price

For Holly Price, a Talent Acquisition Consultant with Duke University Health System, learning how to identify the factors that shape the conflict was a helpful takeaway from the course.

To do that, course participants learn about the eight key attributes of conflict situations, which include, among other factors, the stress level of the situation, the complexity of the differences, the level of trust between parties and the effectiveness of the communication.

By taking a moment to consider these attributes before trying to resolve a conflict, Price can get a deeper understanding of the underlying tensions at play and figure out the best approach to take.

“By working my way through these questions – sometimes I feel like I need a little checklist – you can figure out what to avoid and what can help you work through the conflict,” Price said. “It all depends on where you are with these attributes.”

Get Comfortable with Conflict

Duke Lemur Center Assistant Curator Mikey Sullivan

Duke Lemur Center Assistant Curator Mikey Sullivan describes himself as “conflict averse.” In the past, he’d accommodate others to avoid the tension that can come with disagreements.

After taking the Conflict Resolution course and learning the different ways to gauge and effectively navigate conflicts, Sullivan said he’s able to approach such situations with a more constructive mindset. Instead of something that can create negative feelings, with the lessons learned in the course, Sullivan now often sees conflicts as opportunities to generate positive solutions.

“Because you’re seeing a conflict for what it is and understanding that you have all of these tools and your own skill level, you don’t have to approach it like it’s a negative thing,” Sullivan said. “You have options for how to handle it. When a conflict arises, it’s more like a puzzle to solve rather than something you just have to get through.”

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