how to identify conflicts of interest with colleagues and the measures that can be used to manage them?

Answer 1

Conflicts of interest in a team are often associated with each person's role e.g.

The customer wants their expectations met at the lowest cost
The technical types want things to be easy and fun to do
The financial types want things to come in on budget
The old school folks don't like risky changes
The younger folks don't want to see the same mistakes made
The managers want targets met so that they look good
The company wants to make a profit
Researchers want to try new things out
The risk-averse don't want anything to go wrong.

In many ways these can be positive things. If everybody has balanced say and input then they can each 'fight their corner' until a compromise is reached.

I think the most valueable management technique is to clearly establish expectations. Everyone needs to know what is expected from them and what they can expect to receive.