Chapter 40 Leading & Managing

1.   Physical therapy and nursing at a local rehabilitation hospital are in conflict over which department is responsible for transporting patients to and from therapy appointments. The members of the therapy department state they do not have sufficient time to come to the nursing unit to pick up the patients, who often are not ready to be transported. Nursing staff members state that they do not have the time to transport the patients from the unit and this leaves a shortage of nursing personnel on the floor. Managers from both departments have attempted to resolve the conflict with input from the staff members. All attempts at conflict resolution have failed. What is the next step the managers should take?

• a.   Inform the nurses that they must take the patients to and from therapy.
• b.   Inform the therapists that they must take the patients to and from therapy.
• c.   Ask the hospital administrator to make an unbiased decision.
• d.   Begin informal negotiation between the two departments.

ANS: D

One of a manager’s responsibilities is to function as an informal negotiator when a resolution to conflict cannot be reached.

2.   The manager is conducting an informal negotiation between two staff members who have had ongoing difficulty working together peacefully. Most recently, there was an argument about who would be scheduled first for lunch each day. At this stage of the informal negotiation, the manager is focusing on managing the emotions and setting the ground rules. Which stage does this demonstrate?

• a.   Setting the stage
• b.   Conducting the negotiation
• c.   Making offers and counteroffers
• d.   Agreeing on resolution of the conflict

ANS: B

The manager has begun conducting informal negotiation. This includes managing the emotions, setting ground rules, and clarifying the problem. The first step of conflict resolution

is introspective and is similar to data gathering. The negotiator thinks, “What am I trying to achieve? What problems am I likely to encounter?” The next step, setting the stage, may involve confronting the two parties with their behavior toward one another and making direct statements designed to open communication and challenge them to seek resolution of the situation. After conducting the negotiation, the parties move to making offers and counteroffers, and then to agreeing on the resolution of the conflict.