Dealing with scarce resources : open-minded interaction for resolving budget conflicts

Organizational power and politics researchers contend that the conflicts over scarce resources intensify competition and conflict but can be useful for an effective distribution of resources. A total of 59 managers with budget responsibilities from both expanding and retrenching organizations were interviewed on specific budget conflicts. Consistent with the power perspective, these conflicts could be productive. Open-minded discussion of opposing views contributed to making these conflicts useful for productivity, relationship development, and unity. In contrast with organizational power theorizing, cooperative goals, not competition, shaped the productive management of conflicts over scarce resources.