Podcasts, powerpoints and/or papers from the presentations are available to LEADR members and
'kon gres 2011 participants via a password protected area. Click here >>

Luise and Sandy have collaborated to produce a book for the Victorian State Services Authority about practical strategies to help deal with difficult behaviours including basic intervention strategies and system-wide responses.

Sandy and Luise will be taking on the characters of Lily Hopgood and Sam Devereaux to explain the tips and techniques for managing high conflict behaviours.

Everyone has at some time in their work life come into contact with a high conflict personality and been unsure of how to respond. While the temptation might be to avoid the person or ignore the situation, this may be impractical in the long term.
This presentation looks at the costs of high conflict in the workplace and how it can be effectively managed. A number of practical strategies are explored from identifying the potential for high conflict in responses to interview questions, becoming more comfortable with conflict, understanding the difference between constructive and destructive conflict and setting limits on unacceptable behaviour.

Employers have a duty of care to provide a safe working environment for their staff. High conflict behaviours can have a devastating effect on morale and productivity. By giving people a suite of practical strategies they can use in high conflict situations their skills and confidence will grow. This will benefit everyone in the organisation.

The Victorian State Services Authority has worked closely with Dr Sandra Fenton and Victorian public sector organisations to develop and test the strategies presented. Leading thinkers in this field such as Bill Eddy, Baruch Bush, Joseph Folger and Judy Saul have also been consulted. These strategies are outlined in the SSA's new book: Dealing with High Conflict Behaviours (right)

Sandy and Luise will invite the audience to think about the range of workplace situations where people need to actively manage high conflict behaviours, the strategies they have used in the past and the success they have achieved.

The aim of the session is to show the audience how the strategies presented in the book can confirm their beliefs about the management of high conflict behaviours, add to their suite of tools or offer alternatives to traditional techniques. Feedback on the strategies will be encouraged.

This is the first time that such a publication has been available in Australia. It will be distributed widely within the Victorian public sector and published on the SSA website from late September at:

www.ssa.vic.gov.au/products/view-products/dealing-with-high-conflict-behaviours.html

Podcast: Listen to Sandy and Luise talk about this session pre-kon gres (6 mins) >>

Snakes are not only in the Serengeti

Sam Devereaux, principal scientist with the Vogel Institute was previously a wildlife photographer in Africa. She decided to join the Institute because she heard the working conditions would be better. Those cold nights on the Serengeti had begun to lose their charm for her. She now finds that snakes don't only populate the grass in the Serengeti. Tricky behaviour is rife in her team and she needs help.

Sam seeks out Lily Hopgood, the Institute's HR manager. Lily has seen it all before. She understands what works and what doesn't and guides Sam towards a better future.