In this chapter, the authors focus on the possibilities that can help improve relations among employees. The aim of the research was to review whether the so-called in-house mediation office has a positive impact on conflict management in the workplace. An online survey was conducted within two medium-sized organizations in the Republic of Slovenia. The main purpose of the research was to examine mediation leadership in business organizations, and its inclusion in particular leadership segments. The second goal of the research was to determine the advantages of mediating communication in an organization. A comprehensive overview of results indicates that employees prefer internal mediation in the case of proactive mediation, which additionally improves good relations, as well as in the case of informal mediation, in which mediation skills are used in the discussion.
TopIntroduction
Successful cooperation in both private and business life rests on good interpersonal relations which in the first place stemming from the basic cell of a society, i.e. in the family. There is harmony in such a family and its members share harmony further among coevals in a kindergarten, in groups for leisure activities, among co-workers in a working organisation, and like-minded individuals in an association. In this way, we can definitely provide a good basis for further development of interpersonal relations. Harmony is concordance on all levels of human activity, and if we are talking about business environment, it is the basis for an organisation's excellence (Taskiran et al., 2017, pp. 133). Openness and acceptance of others, their opinions, and actions enrich us, too. This is what makes us grow, develop, and allow us to stay on the way to a better and nicer future.
In this chapter authors’ research focuses on relations between employees in business organizations, or to be more specific on the possibilities for improving these relations. The management which is aware of transformational processes in themselves first, and consequently, in employees, knows that their co-workers work successfully, i.e., efficiently, only if they feel good in their workplace (Viswanathan, 2017, pp. 11; Kiarie, Maru, & Cheruiyot, 2017, pp. 133–146). Thus, in the selection of candidates, it is very important that employers pay attention to continual learning-oriented skills of potential employees (Mohapatra & Mohanty, 2017, pp. 195–203). It becomes all the more important in times when enterprise globalisation is increasingly present (Tarakanov, Kalinina, & Kryukova, 2017, pp. 38–44). Excellence of an organisation increasingly gains priority among management tasks, as it results in profits, which is the most important for business owners (Selvarajah & Meyer, 2017, pp. 391–418).
To the already mentioned constant learning, to which some researchers (Pathak, 2017, pp. 4–6, Riel, & Rowell, 2017, pp. 667–688; Dajani & Mohamad, 2017, pp. 42–57) refer as the key element of good leadership, authors add several additional variables that can also have a crucial impact on good interpersonal relations. In different phases of the work process, a leader must be able to provide appropriate feedback to co-workers. It should be “a sandwich feedback”, so the criticism is provided in a way acceptable for co-workers (Knutsen, Le Bigot & Ros, 2017, pp. 77–87; Nguyen, et al., 2017, pp. 1024–1034; Ajjawi, et al., 2017, pp. 129–143). It includes praise, constructive criticism, and positive, forward-looking, i.e. goal orientation.
When researching the literature, authors found another frequently mentioned variable: mediating communication. Gochhayat, Giri and Suar (2017, pp. 491–505) emphasise that such an approach is important on all leadership levels without exception. In their article, Chan and Lai (2017, pp. 214–223) highlight the importance of mediating communication that exceeds even the concept of salary.