Whenever a group of people gather together, you can be certain of one thing, no matter how much everyone likes everyone else, eventually disagreements and conflict will arise. This is due to the simple fact that every one of us is a unique person, with our own tastes and temperament, and, being imperfect human beings, miscommunication and other misunderstandings just naturally occur.

Even when we come together for altruistic reasons, such as to help others as volunteers, conflicts still occur more frequently than most of us realise. According to Volunteering Australia, a 2011 survey on issues faced by volunteers revealed some startling statistic about the rate of conflict at nonprofits.

The Facts about Conflicts and Volunteer Work

While it seems hard to believe at first, the study found that10% of volunteers have a difficult or troubled relationship with their nonprofit’s employees and 25% report that they experience conflict with the nonprofit’s employees or its other volunteers. Left unresolved, conflicts can result in decreased performance and morale and lead to volunteers and others leaving the nonprofit.

Misunderstandings and other conflicts can also leave the nonprofit open to risk such as damage to the reputation of the organisation, as well as potential legal liability should damages occur. In addition to these risks, many nonprofits also struggle to enlist enough volunteers to meet their mission and goals, so conflict management is an important aspect of running a sustainable organisation.

Steps to Limit Conflict at Your NFP

While disagreements are likely to arise, unresolved conflict that leads to lasting damage can be reduced or avoided. There are steps that administrators, board members, and even volunteers can take to strengthen relationships, increase openness and understanding, and limit conflict at their NFP.

Increase Communication

One of the primary sources of conflict is a lack of communication. You can reduce conflict in your organisation by increasing communication. After all, it’s much more difficult to misunderstand someone or to become angry and stay mad at someone when you already have a solid relationship established with that person.

Look for ways to make it easy for everyone associated with your NFP to connect and get to know one another. Making use of social media is a great way to help your volunteers connect with each other, as well as with staff and board members, especially when everyone is spread out over large distances.

In addition to social media, consider creating an intranet site where volunteers and employees can connect and communicate privately, but virtually. Consider hosting on-site meetings and events as well so that your people can socialise in person as well.

Get Everyone on the Same Page

Conflict is more likely to occur when folks don’t understand what is expected of them. Take some time to ensure that your volunteers, board members, and employees all understand their roles and responsibilities.

Consider creating an online wiki with this information, or at least a physical handout that your people can refer back to, so that everyone is on the same page and knows what is expected of them. You may also wish to have meetings to go over what is expected, especially when you have new volunteers, board members and employees join.

As time goes on, it’s important that you continue to update this information as roles and responsibilities as well as positions and people in your organisation change. It can also be a good idea to offer periodic reviews of each person’s performance in their role so that they know how they are doing, and what steps they can take to improve.

A Thank You is Never Simple – the Importance of Recognition and Respect

Every human being has a need to be acknowledged for their effort and work, so don’t forget to recognise both your volunteers and your employees for all that they do to make your mission a success! Offer frequent praise when you catch them doing something “right,” and remember that saying something as simple as thank you, shows respect and is very powerful!