Conflicts present SoMe of the greatest challenges for fire departments staffed by volunteers. They can break a department into cliques, destroy personal relationships, and transform a seemingly functional department into one that has lost its spirit and camaraderie. Unfortunately, most fire department leaders have had little or no training in conflict resolution, and many will avoid becoming involved in conflict issues at all costs. Leaders should not ignore conflicts within their organizations.
Conflicts arise for a variety of reasons. Most often, however, they come down to personal values vs. organizational values. Some conflict is normal. Leaders need to accept it as a normal part of successful organizations. Two human beings brought together for common purposes will disagree on direction, process, andin some casesjust for the sake of disagreeing.
You cannot eliminate conflict. There will always be some type and degree of conflict. There are times when you may even disagree with yourself, so how can you expect to have two or more human beings agree all of the time? However, there are times when conflict must be confronted head-on. Failure to confront conflict that threatens the success of an organization is like ignoring an infectionwithout treatment, it will only get worse. The degree to which conflict is managed determines success or failure.
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