What Managers and Organisations Can Do Differently to Prevent Conflict Escalating

In the final part of her conversation with Pete Colby, founder of Pragmatism, Anna moves into what organisations and managers can do differently to stop conflict escalating, and why the current approach to employment tribunals represents a massive and largely avoidable problem.

Pete opens with a practical challenge to the way organisations handle flexible working requests, arguing that the form should follow the conversation, not replace it. The same logic applies to performance improvement plans, grievance policies, and almost every other formal process: the structure exists to document what should already have happened, not to substitute for it.

The conversation takes a genuinely surprising turn when Pete makes the case for trade unions as one of the most powerful and underused allies a manager can have. Drawing on his own experience taking a site from twelve grievances a week to one, and helping Rolls-Royce avoid 2,000 compulsory redundancies, Pete explains why the relationship between management and unions is almost always about trust, and why the person you least want to talk to is usually the one you most need to.

Anna and Pete also address the broader backdrop to rising grievances and tribunal claims: the cost of living, the pressure people are under outside work, and why workplaces have become one of the few places where people feel they can push back. Pete's response is characteristically direct. You cannot fix everything, but you can listen. And being heard matters more than people realise.

The episode closes with Pete's advice for managers who feel uncomfortable having difficult conversations: that discomfort is normal, it is not a personal failing, and the way through it is to develop the confidence to have a go.

Find out more about Pete's work at https://pragmatism-uk.co.uk

Connect with Anna

Got a question or a topic you'd like covered on the podcast? Anna would love to hear from you. Find her on LinkedIn, Instagram, and TikTok, or visit The People Expert to find out more about her work supporting line managers and HR professionals.

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The People Expert: ⁠https://www.thepeopleexpert.co.uk⁠