M3 · Managing People, Conflict & Communication

This asynchronous session is voluntary and can be completed at any time before the next in-person meeting in March 2026.

Focus

This session will explore advanced communication strategies and conflict resolution techniques. It explores how to navigate complex interpersonal dynamics in order to enhance leadership effectiveness and foster a collaborative academic environment.

Content Overview

There are five activities, some of which require active listening or readings, while others ask you to be more self-reflective or to do some additional tasks.

Activities:

1. Warm-up

2. Empathy, Boundaries, and Conflict: Skills for Stronger Leadership

3. The Conflict Styles

4. Conflict Resolution – Self-Diagnostics

5. Practical Exercises

1. Warm-up (5–10 min)

Reflect briefly on a recent conflict in your academic environment.

→ How did you react? What made it difficult?

2. Empathy, Boundaries, and Conflict: Skills for Stronger Leadership (60 min)

Brené Brown – Empathy with Boundaries
It challenges you to reconsider your approach to empathy in communication. It can also be used as a starting point for deeper discussions about effective interpersonal communication.

Former Harvard Professors’ Secrets to Conflict Resolution
This podcast explores practical, research-based strategies for navigating and resolving conflict. It emphasizes self-awareness, effective communication, and reflective leadership practices that help academic leaders approach challenging situations with clarity, confidence, and resilience.

3. The Conflict Styles (10–15 min)

Review The Thomas Kilmann Conflict Resolution Model:
→ What Lesson for Organisational Conflict Management can be Drawn from this Model
Focus on:
– When each style is useful
– When it becomes dysfunctional
– Gender bias: women leaders being pushed toward over-accommodation

4. Conflict Resolution – Self-Diagnostics (20–25 min)

Reflect on your personal tendencies and triggers in conflicts: Self-Reflection Questionnaire

5. Practical Exercises (15 min)

Choose a real conflict and map:
• What happened (facts)
• My interpretation
• My emotional triggers
• The other person’s possible perspective
• What I want to achieve
• A small step I can take to resolve it

M3 · Managing People, Conflict & Communication

Content Overview

Suggested Additional Resources