PMP Practice: Apply emotional intelligence to promote resolution

This conflict stems from legitimate but competing concerns—market responsiveness versus regulatory compliance. As the project manager in a hybrid environment, Chidera should facilitate a collaborative resolution by bringing both stakeholders together to understand each other's underlying needs and constraints. This approach addresses the root cause of the conflict by helping stakeholders see beyond their positions to their interests, enabling them to jointly design a solution such as phased releases with compliance checkpoints, beta testing with proper consent frameworks, or iterative compliance reviews. By facilitating this dialogue, Chidera helps transform an adversarial relationship into a collaborative one, which is essential for ongoing project success and team morale. The scenario specifically notes that team members feel caught between the executives and that morale is declining, making relationship repair and collaborative problem-solving the clear priority.

**Why not A:** Implementing the compliance officer's requirements and telling marketing to accept it takes sides rather than facilitating resolution. While regulatory adherence is important, this approach dismisses the marketing director's legitimate business need for timely releases and will likely deepen the conflict rather than resolve it.

**Why not B:** Creating separate communication plans so stakeholders do not interact avoids the conflict rather than resolving it. This isolation approach allows both stakeholders to continue operating under conflicting assumptions and does not address the underlying tension that is affecting team morale and project direction.

**Why not D:** Escalating to the project sponsor for a priority decision is premature. The PM has not yet attempted collaborative resolution, and both stakeholders' concerns can potentially be addressed through a release approach that incorporates compliance checkpoints within an iterative delivery model.