Got Conflict? Measure the $ Cost with the Conflict Calculator™
/Got Conflict? Is it helping or hurting your team? Find out right now by measuring the $ costs.
Try it Now - Conflict Calculator™
“Show me the money!” After a year of interviews, research, and working on the Resologics model I have heard that statement from many, many people. Business savvy folks want to know what a conflict is actually costing them in real dollars. We set out in to build a single calculator that would show exactly that. That journey has reinforced three major points:
There is a duality to conflict. Conflict will always exist and there are positive and negative outcomes from conflict depending upon how it is managed.
Creativity and innovation are deeply affected by how a work team deals with conflicting ideas and task conflicts.
It is the positive and negative outcome of conflicts that we are able to measure and put a value on.
The results - we launched to the public two new tools instead of one and we have a third in the works.
Conflict Calculator™ measures the negative outcomes of conflict on a team and puts a dollar value on them.
Innovation Estimator™ measures how well a team uses conflict to build positive outcomes. It puts a dollar value on the loss of innovation associated with untapped conflict.
This post introduces the Conflict Calculator™. The next post will introduce the Innovation Estimator™ and the concept behind the third, the Conflict Auditor™.
Conflict Calculator™
This easy and fast to use tool estimates what the team has spent so far and how much it will spend in the future on unproductive outcomes from conflict. It outputs easily measured solid $ costs that are based on industry research and the users’ custom answers. Based on nine questions, the most common and largest dollar value costs are calculated.
Major benefit to users:
Looks at negative outcomes from conflict in a new way and starts a conversation within the team that is different, quantifiable, and actionable.
Features:
Calculates Multiple Costs
Outputs Past, Current and Future Expenditures
Instant On-Line Results
No Sign-in Required
Confidential
Full Report Feature
FREE to Use
Easy as 1, 2, 3
The first step in building the calculator was to understand what it needed to measure and output. We quickly determined that there were 37 costs that came as a result of negative outcomes from conflict. Several are fairly easy to measure and estimate while most are quite difficult to put a dollar value on. Check them out in this post...
The second, and unexpected complication, was working with the idea that most conflict can also result in positive outcomes and how to measure whether a team was good at that. We determined that it would make sense to split the calculators in two for the most accurate and understandable results.
The third step was building the tools. Easier said than done! Several test rounds later (thank-you Alpha and Beta testers!) they are working well. Supporting data on how we did that can be found right here…
Conflict is normal, inevitable, and some would argue required to succeed. The real question is whether or not you and your team will experience positive or negative outcomes as a result of it. The Conflict Calculator™ measures the costs that can be most reliably measured, in a quick to use format.
Please try it out, support your team, share it with people you know who may be able to use it, and please, let us know what you think.
Cheers,
Mark
A Complete List of Conflict Costs
from TOO MANY NEGATIVE OUTCOMES
(A) Easily Measured Solid Costs
WASTED TIME - real productivity cost of wasted time. Company paid for time and got nothing.
WASTED OPPORTUNITY for Billable Hours - Services were not performed so no billing or production toward service happened.
LOST TIME - Due to Absenteeism. Sick Leave, Lost performance due to conflict-related absenteeism. Real Productivity cost of wasted time. Company paid for time and got nothing
LOST OPPORTUNITY - Due to Absenteeism for billable hours. Services were not performed. Services were not performed so no billing or production toward service happened.
STAFF TURNOVER RELATED, ATTRITION - Severance/ Termination Package costs - voluntary or involuntary, recruitment & staffing costs, training and development costs associated with new replacement employees, loss of human capital investment in skilled employees, loss of opportunity for billable hours during transition and training.
LEGAL SUPPORT - fees and time associated with inside and/or outside support from attorney's, arbitrators, and outside decision making entities.
NON-LEGAL SUPPORT - fees and time associated with inside and/or outside support from mediators, therapists, counselors, specialty trainers and other conflict crisis managers.
Cost of Formalised Conflict/Grievances Processes
Workers Compensation
Fines / Penalties
(B) Difficult to Measure Solid Costs
Bad Press, Marketing Issues
Degraded decision quality
Lost Opportunities (non-time related) short & long-term
Lowered job motivation and productivity
Health of employees costs
Quality of Work or Service
Market Entry Delay
Restructuring around the problem
Reputation; re Clients & Public
Reputation; re Employees & Prospective Employees
Hiring Difficulty
Creativity Lost or Reduced
Demotivated Staff due to lack of progress
Injury and accidents
Disability claims due to conflict
Conflict-incited theft, sabotage, vandalism, and damage
Loss of Core Skilled Employees
Erosion of Shareholder Value
Project Failure
(C) Nearly Impossible to Measure Soft Costs
Stress, frustration, and anxiety
Strained relationships
Increased client complaints
Presenteeism
Diminished Funding potential
Diminished Team Morale
Customer Service Reduced Quality
Loss of sleep
When we join a company, partnership or team, our expectation is that everyone involved will exhibit professional behavior toward us and each other. Instead, it’s highly possible that we may become one of the more than 60 million adults in the United States who are affected in some way by bullying behavior at work.
What kind of behaviors are we talking about? Our definition is any interpersonal behavior that causes emotional distress in others sufficient enough to impede their productivity or disrupt organizational functioning. It isn’t just a personality conflict — it’s a chronic pattern of disrespectful behavior.