Training
Sharp Resolutions nationally-recognized professionals have trained hundreds of organizations and thousands of individuals in state-of-the art techniques for preventing, managing and resolving conflicts. Training programs that can be tailored specifically for your organization’s unique challenges include:
- Effective Communication This workshop will teach participants how to have meaningful, productive and respectful conversations with fellow employees, clients and others. Training topics include active listening, acknowledgment and appreciation of other viewpoints, maintaining perspective and focusing on interests.
- Managing Difficult Relationships Almost every organization is challenged with relationships that are strained. Difficult relationships interfere with an organization’s ability to meet its mission and goals. This workshop teaches participants how to manage these relationships by identifying the underlying causes of conflict, providing processes for issues to be addressed and developing agreements for future respectful behavior.
- Dealing With High Conflict People While the Managing Difficult Relationships program above works for most challenged relationships, certain types of individuals are unwilling or unable to alter their behavior. These individuals often have particular types of personality disorders (narcissist, borderline, histrionic and sociopath) – sometimes characterized as “High Conflict People.” A recurring pattern of conflict manifests throughout the organization with these individuals in a variety of contexts causing substantial disruption. This workshop helps participants identify these personalities and provides guidance for dealing with them so that conflicts can be reduced and productivity enhanced.
- Making Meetings Work This workshop will provide executives, supervisors and other leaders the tools needed to run productive and meaningful meetings. The course will teach participants how to: structure effective agendas; use proven facilitation techniques to keep meetings moving and focused; employ problem solving methods to address and resolve difficult issues; and, reach consensus agreements with action plans going forward.
- Mediation Organizations can learn how mediators resolve disputes in this mediation training course tailored to their specific conflicts. Programs vary from a half day overview of mediation techniques to a two to five day mediator training workshop. Full mediator training programs include: (1) Opening Statements; (2) Perspectives of the Disputants; (3) Processing Emotional Issues; (4) Identifying Underlying Interests; (5) Brainstorming Options; and, (6) Creating Win/Win Agreements.
- Conflict Resolution Skills This workshop will teach participants the tools needed for effectively resolving conflict. The workshop includes: understanding the underlying dynamics of conflict; using empathic listening to pivot conversations; changing the focus from posturing to discussions about needs and interests; and, learning how to brainstorm win/win options that yield satisfying and durable resolutions.
- Creating a Positive Environment Some organizations choose to combine several of the concepts and techniques from the programs above into a series of workshops or a multiple day retreat. This comprehensive approach can substantially help an organization create a respectful environment where staff members effectively communicate, work together to develop goals and objectives, and feel a sense of ownership in the organization’s mission.