Bruce Crowe Consulting

Interpersonal skills

Interpersonal skills coaching assists the development of interpersonal skills needed to deal with the variety of people relationships managers and professionals encounter. It aims to optimise the outcomes of their personal initiatives and teamwork.

Case Study

A HR professional reported a difficult workplace conflict situation that was getting out of control, and sought advice on how to tackle it. The section concerned was part of her HR Consultant responsibilities with her employer.

The professional was taken through conflict resolution methods until an approach was settled upon that might work with the situation she was tackling. The approach and related options were simulated, and alternative and related tactics that could become relevant depending on how the situation unfolded were also simulated. A step-by-step plan with alternative options was drafted, and initial steps to test the water were tried.

The trial steps worked, so the main part of the plan was used by the professional to convene and conduct meetings with the antagonists. The action plan succeeded in defusing the intense emotionality in the situation, and opened the way for rational proposals to be accepted. The conflict, which was about a new boss being rejected as incompetent by sitting staff, was then resolved through management channels without further open conflict.

The professional was supported by phone and email between meetings, and went through a detailed debrief after the matter settled. The coaching and support was regular over the month or so the matter took to resolve.