A Novel Way to Resolve Workplace Feedback and Conflict: Address it in Real-Time

There seem to be three known ways to address workplace feedback and to resolve conflicts:

1. 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐏𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧
2. 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐑𝐞𝐬𝐨𝐥𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧
3. Real-time Deterrent

𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐏𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧
Has its issues, with most management consultants focusing on this approach, encouraging managers to build a culture of trust, openness, and psychological safety. We’re told to walk the talk, lead by example, set the tone from the top, and of course, bring our whole selves to work. It’s all about fostering a growth mindset, embracing diversity, breaking down silos, and building bridges, not walls.

But here’s the rub: when the rubber hits the road and unreasonable behavior rears its ugly head, all these platitudes are like lipstick on a pig. You can talk the talk about values and mission statements, but when push comes to shove, culture eats strategy for breakfast and without real tools, teams are left to circle back, take it offline, or agree to disagree.

In the end, proactive prevention kicks the can down the road, offering little more than wishful thinking and empty slogans when things go sideways. As they say, hope is not a strategy, and without a plan for real-time intervention, all that positive intent just becomes another item gathering dust on the shelf.

𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐑𝐞𝐬𝐨𝐥𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧
Personally, I have a bone to pick with the whole reactive feedback and conflict resolution concept.
Example: if we used the same idea for a soccer match and the referee came up to you 1 week later and said, “You played well last week; however, in the 43rd minute and the 65th minute, I believe you did two unfair challenges and one, I believe, deserved a yellow card”.
This would be laughable, I mean, who can remember?

Feedback, after the fact, is just a complaint and comes across as punitive, in my book, and very difficult to remember and prove. I believe that unless feedback is in real-time, it is out of line. Real-time and direct feedback is usually more like an objection and priceless with contemporaneous information within the real-world data.

To me, designing a way to deliver real-time feedback is like the Wright brothers developing controlled flight, difficult but possible, and game-changing.

Real-time Deterrent
This is my favorite and one I have been working on for an embarrassingly long time. SpatzAI is designed to help teams address unreasonable behavior as it happens; not by punishing or shaming, but by giving people a structured, fair way to acknowledge and correct themselves in the moment. It shifts accountability away from potentially punitive HR departments or managers and places it directly into the hands of the team, where small issues can be recognized and defused before they grow.

With simple steps like the verbal caution, and the three-step chat app and team review platform, when needed, team members can flag minor misbehavior respectfully, explain the impact, and resolve tensions without letting them fester. SpatzAI supports this process by providing a clear, shared language and an immediate feedback loop, so nothing is left hanging in the air or swept under the rug.

At its heart, SpatzAI’s real-time deterrent isn’t about control, it’s about creating an environment where people can take responsibility, stay open to course correction, and keep working together without unnecessary friction or resentment.