201: Managing conflict and promoting inclusion

Conflicts are complicated. They can arise when personalities clash, or beliefs and opinions are challenged. It could be miscommunication, misunderstanding, or confusion, or from naturally differing views on current or controversial issues. It’s a good idea to work with your admin team to develop a conflict mediation strategy to minimize, manage, and resolve conflicts consistently and constructively. Consider potential conflict situations, agree on the mediation process, and prepare clear responses ahead of time to help your team manage disputes as they arise.

We recommend that you encourage your members to hold each other accountable and report any problems to the admin team as soon as possible, so you can take immediate action to minimize the negative impact of conflict.

When conflicts do occur, step in quickly to ease tension and make sure to:

• Remind members of community rules and the consequences of bad behavior
• Gather information to identify the source of conflict and understand why it occurred
• Listen carefully without judgment or bias to understand each member’s point of view
• Work with the members involved to resolve the issue, and remind them how they can positively interact with each other

It can also be a good idea to adjust Group settings to temporarily allow only admins to send messages if a particular Group thread has gotten out of control. This will allow you to pause the conversation and allow members to calm down while you consider your next steps.

How to change group privacy settings

A simple misunderstanding can quickly become a full-blown argument when members feel threatened or isolated. By reaching out to members privately you show that you care and are there to help. It demonstrates that you understand their intention and viewpoint and helps them realize how they can positively contribute and recover from conflict. Remember that sometimes people need a moment to calm down before talking about what happened and how they feel. Give members time to step back and cool off before further discussion.

Explain the rules they may have broken and listen carefully so that they feel heard and respected. Try to get to the core of the problem so that you can understand their feelings and why the issue arose. Do remember that even aggressive people may feel overlooked or undervalued so be open and empathetic, even when enforcing rules.

However, if mediation isn't working and members continue to be aggressive, consider removing them from your Group or community.

A healthy and thriving community supports diverse voices and different perspectives. Use your community rules to inform members how they are expected to interact with others. This can set the stage for a respectful, inclusive community that welcomes and celebrates difference.

It’s important to model the behaviors you wish to see in your community. By ensuring your admin team has members from various backgrounds who bring different strengths, ideas, and approaches, you can build a strong foundation for diversity and inclusion.

Try to promote respectful disagreement and debate by encouraging understanding and respect for members of different backgrounds and views. Create opportunities for members to speak about their experiences and share their stories. Learning more about your community is a great way to create bonds and help members discover people they can identify with.

Managing conflicts is stressful and can be mentally and emotionally exhausting. It’s important to monitor your own mental health, and protect yourself from negativity. Make sure you’re calm and thinking clearly so you can help resolve problems in the best possible way. If necessary, take a step back and ask your fellow admins for help.

It’s a good idea to work closely with your admin team to support each other and share the role of observing and managing conflicts in the community. Alert your team when you are dealing with challenging and difficult members and discuss the situation with them to hear other views, discuss potential solutions and agree on relevant action to take. If you need to, ask a fellow admin to reach out to the members involved.

You may also benefit from researching strategies and case studies to learn from others who have successfully navigated similar conflicts.