Create a crisis action plan

How can a manager handle claims of sexual harassment in the workplace between two employees? Conflicts and crisis are inevitable in almost all organizations and it can be seen that a holistic approach is required in order to solve these. Claims of sexual harassment in the workplace between two employees are common and there are different measures that can be taken in order to resolve such kinds of conflicts. As such, this paper seeks to discuss the measures that can be implemented in order to handle the crisis of sexual harassment in the organization.
Managing crisis in an organization is a process that requires a holistic approach by the responsible authorities. It is also important for the management to attempt to create goodwill in the company so that it can have a good image in the eyes of the (Flippo, 1961). There are different steps that can be taken when resolving conflicts in an organization. According to Armstrong (1994), there are mainly four stages that are involved in conflict resolution which involve the following: carry out research about the root cause of the conflict, design an action plan, implement the plan and finally evaluate the effectiveness of the crisis action plan.
Some claims of sexual harassment that are reported in the organization are baseless hence the need to conduct some investigations to establish if the case has actually happened. In the event that sexual harassment claims are real, a proper course of action will be required in order to rectify the issue so that the parties involved can work together in harmony again. The action plan ought to involve the parties involved in the case of sexual harassment. This action plan should not only be limited to the people who are directly involved in the case but should be a leading example to the would be offenders in the future. The people involved should be brought to the drawing table where their case is openly discussed. The views of both parties are taken into consideration and a solution that is satisfactory to both parties is found. For the sake of progress and unity in the organization, reconciliation is the way forward when the offender and the victim have understood each other and have agreed to forgive each other.
Thus, in the case highlighted above, the action plan involves the parties involved burying the hatchet and working together in unity. However, this course of action ought to be implemented by a responsible person like a leader in the organization. In order to implement this course of action, the leader should make sure that the people involved do not revert to the issue again but they should just focus on pulling their efforts towards the attainment of the desired goals in the organization. When the action plan has been implemented, it becomes the duty of the leader to evaluate the progress in order to establish if the desired outcome is being realised. Basically, “ evaluation is the process of systematically gathering, organising and interpreting information about a program or practice,” (Uswe, 1997, p. 81). The leader ought to evaluate the action plan to see if there are positive results in as far as behaviour change among the people involved is concerned. Changes can be made accordingly in order to ensure that the desired results are achieved.
Over and above, it can be seen that conflicts are inevitable in different organizations. To solve such crisis, a holistic approach is required so as to allow the leaders to come up with a long lasting solution to the crisis that can otherwise impact negatively on the viability of the organization. If properly implemented, the four stage approach to crisis resolution discussed above is a very effective strategy that can be adopted by different leaders in order to deal with similar scenarios in their respective organizations.
References
Armstrong, M. (1999). Human Resources Management Practice. 7th Edition. NY: Kogan Page Limited.
Flippo , E . B (1961). Principles of Personnel Management. New York: McGraw-Hill.
USWE (1997). How to research and evaluate. CT: JUTA.