Pizza Today - July 2024 - 27

From a legal perspective, having an attorney
ensure that you've covered
everything is a good idea. Even the smallest
pizzeria is a huge financial undertaking,
and setting up a legal partnership
protects all partners and their families.
Respect Your Partners
You entered into partnership because
you valued and respected the other person's
contributions. Show your respect by
listening to their input and resist micromanaging
them. The flip side: understand
and respect their limitations. If their main
skill is financial, don't expect them to run
the kitchen.
In addition, " people need to feel psychologically
safe, " emphasizes Birke. " In
order to prevent disputes, you need freeflowing
conversations. If somebody feels
like they can't hear or bring up something
negative or raise a new idea without it
being shot down, that's a problem. "
ADDRESSING CONFLICT
Be Proactive
It's important to be proactive and
address conflict early. Don't let a small
problem grow into a big one by avoiding
the discomfort of addressing it. According
to King, common problems include " they
don't have the words, they don't have
the skill set, they may be fearful, they are
avoiding conflict, and so they just don't
communicate. "
However, always take a cooling-down
period if needed before starting a dialogue.
Don't " approach someone in anger
and high emotions, " says King. " Take
some time to calm down, think through
your words, maybe write down what you
want to say, and then meet in a neutral
place. "
Communicate Effectively
Birke advises that " it helps to start with
separating our productive disagreement
from unproductive disagreement. I think
about that as task conflict versus relationship
conflict. " When you are deciding
on concrete matters that have several
different and legitimate perspectives, such
as pricing or expanding, " and people are
defending their ideas, that's good. " However,
" if people aren't listening to each
other well, are taking things personally,
that's an unproductive kind of conflict, "
explains Birke.
King suggests these communication
tips:
* Tone down your volume.
* Choose your words carefully.
* Repeat what you've heard to make
sure you've got it and to reassure
the other party.
Listen actively.
*
* Consider cultural differences in
how people express themselves.
Before you start the conversation, King
says you should know what outcome
you want. " It could be something like I
really want to resolve this because I love
working with you. I know we share the
same desire for this to be successful. Let's
put our heads together and come up with
something. "
Identify Everyone's Motivation
When you're communicating about
disagreements, identify everyone's motivation.
If one partner is motivated by cost
cutting and another by customer satisfaction,
negotiate about that higher-level
difference of opinion, not about the nutsand-bolts
of implementation. " Identify
interests, yours and theirs, " says Birke.
" Create options to meet those interests
and compare them to the alternative if
you don't resolve the issue. Focus hard on
the problem and be easy on the people. "
FORMAL RESOLUTION STRATEGIES
If
you and your partners can't discuss
your way out of your conflict, you may
need to take formal steps. According to
Birke, there are four primary strategies:
mediation, arbitration, litigation and dissolving
your partnership.
Mediation: In mediation, a neutral
third party helps the quarreling partners
communicate and come to an equitable
solution on their own. A professional
mediator has the skills to help people
share their perspectives constructively
and come to a mutually agreeable, nonbinding
agreement. In Birke's experience,
" most people wait until they're in litigation
and their lawyers or a judge recommends
mediation. It's often by that time
become very expensive, so I say pursue
mediation as early as possible. "
Arbitration: Arbitration is the next
level of formal negotiation. Arbitration
involves a neutral third party serving as a
judge who resolves the dispute by listening
to both sides and rendering a binding
decision. Arbitration can involve lawyers
and evidence, as decided by the parties in
dispute. Both parties enter into arbitration
recognizing that the decision cannot be
appealed. The resulting evidence, negotiations
and agreement remain private.
Litigation: Both mediation and
arbitration are much more economical
than the next option: litigation. Litigation
entails lawyers and a courtroom, with a
judge or a judge and jury. Lawyers argue
on behalf of each party and the judge
(and jury, if applicable) will make a ruling.
This takes place in court and the trial is
entered in the public record. On the one
hand, Birke says that " lawsuits are often
the only way to get people's attention. "
However, he also says that 99.4 percent
of all lawsuits are resolved by negotiation,
mediation or arbitration, so escalating
to the legal system should be a very last
resort.
Parting Ways: If mediation, arbitration,
and litigation leave you unsatisfied, it
may be time to dissolve your partnership.
Birke observes that sometimes litigation
is " going to be so expensive relative
to the cost of the dispute that walking
away may be your best alternative. And
that has costs as well. " This is an extreme
response to an extreme situation, and it's
likely to still require some legal assistance.
Ideally, your initial negotiations with your
partner(s) included an exit strategy to
help streamline this process.
While friction is inevitable between
partners, you can help ensure the best
possible outcome by anticipating conflict,
communicating in the calmest and
most skillful way you can, and enlisting
an experienced mediator as soon as the
need arises. Overcoming your disputes
promptly and effectively will improve your
business while also increasing peace of
mind for all partners.
ANNELISE KELLY is a Portland,
Oregon-based freelance writer.
Pizza Today - July 2024

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