CONFLICT BETWEEN DEPARTMENTS MANAGERS' OPINIONS

Interdepartmental conflict is a vital but frequently underrated cause of organisational inefficiency and sub‐optimal performance. The views are presented of a number of practising managers in large manufacturing enterprises on the issue of interdepartmental conflict. Managers' comments are reported in the following categories: personality of managers, communication, objectives and interdepartmental priorities and perspectives. The comments indicate the prevalence of interdepartmental conflict, and suggest that the essence of the problem is limited managerial effectiveness and a paucity of mutual interdepartmental understanding.