UKMJ - Issue 15 by Iconic Media Solutions

Welcome to

Issue

15 UK Mediation Journal & Conference

We’d like to take this opportunity to thank our contributors, sponsors and subscribers for their continued support and dedication to advocating ADR and mediation. Our commitment to provide those in the workplace with the skills and contacts to mediate and offer effective training is unwavering.

We’d also like to take the opportunity to welcome you to UK Mediation Conference 2025 . The event is presented by Iconic Media Solutions and Acas with the aim of bringing together HR professionals, leaders and experts in ADR to better understand managing workplace conflict.

Thank you to our sponsors, speakers and event partners; Acas, the BBC, The TCM Group, Consensio, CMP, Sheridan Worldwide, We Restore Calm, SMG Mediation Ltd, IPOS Mediation and Tutu Foundation UK.

We hope you enjoy the day and find the content both insightful and practical. We look forward to seeing you at future conferences!

Craig Kelly, Managing Director

Read all issues and subscribe:

Published by Iconic Media Solutions Ltd, 60B Westcote Road, London SW16 6BN

t: +44 (0)20 3693 1944

e: info@iconicmediasolutions.co.uk w: www.iconicmediasolutions.co.uk

Transforming Work: How mediation and coaching can be used to align People, Culture and Leadership

Essential Conflict Management Skills for the Modern Workplace

Kintsugi-ing your Workplace Culture: Fostering a Repair Culture To Build Strong Bonds, Resilience and Excellence in the Workplace

From Grievance to Resolution: Reframing Conflict in the Workplace

Directory of Mediation & Training Providers

www.ukmj.co.uk

www.ukmediationconference.co.uk

Whilst every care has been taken in compiling this publication, and the statements contained herein are believed to be correct, the publishers do not accept any liability or responsibility for inaccuracies or omissions. Reproduction of any part of this publication is strictly forbidden. We do not endorse, nor is Iconic Media Solutions Ltd affiliated with any company or organisation listed within. It is advised before appointing a mediator or trainer that you carry out your own quality and competence checks.

T he mult i award-winning ant idote to grievance, discipline, and per formance procedures. Trusted by hundreds of leading organisat ions, including Next , KPMG, t he BBC , NHS England, TSB, Aviva and Burberr y.

TCM’s Resolution Framework allows people to discuss their issues to find a quick and workable outcome. It’s just good business sense – Ant hony F itzpatrick , Head of Colleague Experience & Employment Policy at Aviva

T he 2025 edit ion has now been packed wit h power ful new updates, including:

An AI-powered Resolut ion Hub™

Fresh insights and evolved capabilit ies of T he Resolut ion Framework™ + Resolut ion Index®

Bonus access to t he new Pocket Coach™ for managers

It’s yours to download for free! Scan t he code or visit: resolut ionframework .com

Transforming Work: How mediation and coaching can be used to align People, Culture and Leadership

By David Liddle, CEO and Founder, The TCM Group

In a world defined by volatility, uncertainty and accelerating change, our traditional approaches to people, culture and leadership are no longer tenable. The outdated paradigms of excessive inaction or punitive overreaction were never fit for purpose, and they certainly aren’t now. The time for a resolution revolution is now, and it is urgent. The successful organisations of the future - measured in terms of talent acquisition, talent retention, productivity, customer experience and investor sentiment - are those which adopt a transformational culture. A culture which is rooted in fairness, compassion, justice, inclusion and sustainability. For it is these principles which are the drivers of high performance, not autocracy, power, hate, polemic, blame, punishment and retribution.

As a species, we are rapidly approaching an inflexion point. That inflexion point is being felt in every organisation across the globe. And it’s not just AI. Now more than ever, organisations must prioritise meaningful dialogue, human connection, and emotionally intelligent leadership.

The symptoms of a broken system are clear: bullying, incivility, toxic cultures, and overflowing grievance caseloads. These aren’t isolated issues – they’re systemic and structural

failures designed and overseen by HR professionals, lawyers and leaders. At TCM, we believe the time has come to radically reframe resolution and rehumanise the workplace. This is the mission that energises our work in partnership with thousands of organisations across the UK and internationally.

Recent data reinforces the urgency. Gallup’s 2025 State of the Global Workplace report found global employee engagement fell from 23% to 21% in 2024 – only the second drop in a decade – costing the global economy $438 billion in lost productivity. Much of this decline is linked to a drop in manager engagement. Meanwhile, Deloitte’s 2023 Global Human Capital Trends report revealed that while 93% of organisations recognise the value of moving to a skills-based model, only 20% feel ready to make the shift. These figures reflect not just a leadership deficit, but a cultural one.

The Resolution Revolution: From Process to People

At TCM, since 2001, we’ve helped more than 2,000 organisations transition from outdated grievance and

David Liddle

disciplinary procedures to purpose-led, values-based, person-centred approaches. At the heart of this shift is our Resolution Framework™ - a holistic model that fuses procedural rigour with restorative dialogue, enabling early, compassionate and constructive resolution.

This isn’t theory – it’s practice. Organisations including Burberry, BBC, Nationwide, Next, KPMG, NHS England, and the London Ambulance Service have seen measurable impact: increased engagement, reduced tribunal risks, improved leadership confidence and stronger cultural cohesion. So confident are we in the model’s effectiveness, we offer it open-source and work hand-in-hand with clients to embed it meaningfully.

As Deborah Arnold, Regional HR Manager at Next, put it: “TCM’s Resolution Framework has truly impressed. It is fully aligned with the needs of the business and what our people need. Introducing a ‘resolution first’ approach has empowered our managers to engage in early-stage conversations in a supportive and non-confrontational way.”

Yet despite the clear evidence, mediation and restorative approaches remain underused. In an age where the tools are readily available, continuing to rely on adversarial processes is not just outdated – it is organisational malpractice. Change is not optional. It is long overdue.

The Cost of Conflict: Why Strategic Action Can’t Wait

According to Acas, unresolved workplace conflict costs the UK £28.5 billion a year – over £1,000 per employee. But this isn’t just a financial issue. The real costs are eroded trust, diminished psychological safety, rising stress levels, and cultures of fear and reactivity.

The Resolution Framework™ flips this paradigm. It equips HR teams, leaders and employees alike with the skills and confidence to prevent, navigate and resolve conflict before it escalates. Our training, coaching and consultancy services

enable organisations to move from ‘power over’ to ‘power with’ and from fear to fairness.

Participants in our mediation training frequently tell us how life-changing the experience is. Sharon McKoy, Assistant Director at the University of Wolverhampton, shared:

“I began as a complete novice, feeling in the dark – but completed the course with confidence in my potential as a mediator. Thank you, TCM!”

Her story is a reminder: transformation isn’t just possible, it’s inevitable when we invest in people with care and intention. This isn’t about firefighting or risk mitigation – it’s about designing workplaces where the fire never ignites. All too often, traditional HR processes are the match that sparks the blaze, while those invested in maintaining adversarial systems, and costly legal processes hurl stones at the fire engines… if they arrive at all.

Coaching and Mediation: A Transformational Partnership

Let’s shift metaphors from fire engines to aviation. Think of mediation as the departure gate, coaching as the runway, and the Resolution Framework™ as the control tower. At TCM, we help relationships achieve lift-off. By integrating transformational coaching into mediation, we build emotional insight, interpersonal skill and a readiness for sustained resolution.

Clients like Superdrug, Daikin and Canterbury Christchurch University have seen the power of this synergy. Whether preparing a senior leader for a difficult conversation or supporting employee’s post-resolution, coaching offers the emotional scaffolding that enables sustained growth and repair.

Through our coaching programmes, we regularly address imposter syndrome, psychological safety, avoidance behaviours and communication breakdowns. Our HR as Coach and Mediator course, one of our most in-demand

offerings, empowers HR professionals to lead resolution with presence, confidence and compassion.

As Ruth Banks from Sopra Steria noted: “TCM’s HR as Coach and Mediator course is excellent –insightful, practical, and packed with strategies to support managers through conflict and change.”

Leading with Dialogue: Mediation as the Anchor

Let’s be crystal clear – mediation isn’t a ‘nice to have’. It’s a business-critical capability for 21st-century leadership. We train over 1,000 workplace mediators annually through our National Certificate in Workplace Mediation™ and have supported hundreds of organisations to establish in-house mediation schemes. Our award-winning FAIR Mediation Model is built on empathy, impartiality, and psychological safety – delivering a 93% resolution rate.

Recent TCM masterclasses on Influence, Authority and Bias in Mediation have shown how hungry professionals are for psychologically rich, socially aware, and practically applicable approaches to resolution. We must confront these dynamics head-on if we want truly fair and inclusive systems.

For hybrid teams and frontline staff alike, mediation provides a faster, more effective and humane alternative to formal litigation-style processes. It transforms conflict into connection – friction into insight.

A Transformational Culture: Building the Future of Work

The Resolution Framework™ is one pillar of our broader Transformational Culture Model™ – an operating system that aligns purpose, values, behaviours and systems. Our diagnostic tools, including the Resolution Review™ and Culture Insights® audits and our multi award-winning consultancy and training services, help organisations build

inclusive, values-led and high-performing cultures from the inside out.

As I often say, “Culture is not built by chance. It is created by choice.”

In this VUCA world – volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous – organisations must move beyond process and procedure. What the future of work demands is courageous leadership, compassionate cultures, and systemic approaches to fairness and inclusion.

As Andrew Massiah, HR & EDI Manager at LSE put it: “TCM offer a high-quality, customer-focused service from start to finish.”

Join the Movement

If you’re a mediator, coach, HR leader, CEO or policymaker – this is your moment. Let’s redesign the workplace around connection, accountability and trust.

• To find out more about our training, consultancy, and comprehensive resources, visit www.thetcmgroup.com

• We are offering the Resolution Framework™ to organisations on an open-source basis. Visit www.resolutionframework.com to request your copy.

David Liddle is CEO and founder of The TCM Group, a leading expert in people, culture and resolution. He is the author of Managing Conflict and Transformational Culture, and a recognised thought leader in transformational leadership, organisational justice, and cultural change.

Essential Conflict Management Skills for the Modern Workplace

By Alexandra Efthymiades, Director and Co-founder of Consensio

We live in a time of extraordinary technological connectivity, yet our human connections often feel more fragmented than ever. The pace of work, the dominance of digital communication, hybrid and remote arrangements, and growing societal polarisation all play a part. We are constantly engaging, but how often are we truly listening? How often are we pausing long enough to consider how we speak and what impact our words may have on others?

In this evolving landscape, the skills required to manage workplace conflict have also shifted. We need to re-learn how to engage with one another in an open-minded, empathetic and self-aware way. These interpersonal skills are no longer optional soft skills; they are essential for building trust, maintaining psychological safety, and creating cohesive and resilient teams at a time when many people at work experience transactional relationships and disconnection.

Conflict often stems from a breakdown in how we

communicate and understand each other. Here are five modern-day drivers of workplace conflict, the skills we need to respond more effectively, and how leaders within organisations can embed these essential skills.

What’s getting in the way of connection?

Despite the best of intentions, many teams today struggle to connect in meaningful ways. These five common dynamics often sit beneath the surface of workplace tension, and can quietly erode trust, communication and cohesion.

1. Weaker relationships, built on tasks, not trust With fewer spontaneous conversations and more transactional ways of working, it’s easy for relationships to become surface-level. When our interactions are limited to tasks and to-do lists, we miss the opportunity to build deeper understanding and connection. Without that foundation of trust, it’s harder to have honest conversations, especially when there’s disagreement or tension.

Alexandra Efthymiades

2. Social glue is missing

In busy, dispersed teams, informal connection often falls by the wayside. The opportunities for coffee catch-ups, impromptu desk chats or shared laughter over lunch, have been reduced. These light-touch moments might seem small, but they play a powerful role in smoothing tensions and reinforcing a sense of belonging. Without them, we’re more likely to misread situations or let minor issues fester. Even hybrid teams can foster these connections by building in regular virtual catch-ups and social interactions like virtual coffees.

3. Silence isn’t always golden

In fast-moving workplaces, less communication often becomes the norm. We assume others know what we mean, or we avoid tricky conversations altogether. But less communication can lead to increased misunderstanding, isolation and disengagement, especially when people don’t feel seen or heard.

4. Miscommunication hides in the medium

Our dependence on emails and messaging platforms means we often miss the nuances that help us understand each other: body language, tone of voice, and subtle social cues. Without these, the potential for misinterpretation increases, and with it, the risk of conflict. A comment that might be brushed off in person can land harshly in writing.

5. Conflict can disappear from view, until it’s too late

When we’re not in the same physical space, or we don’t build in regular virtual check-ins, it is easier to ignore early signs of conflict. People may avoid addressing issues directly, or they may not even realise a problem is brewing. But unspoken tension doesn’t disappear. It tends to grow quietly in the background, until it reaches a point where it’s much harder to resolve.

Rediscovering

the communication skills that hold us together

In the face of today’s workplace pressures, it’s easy to fall into habits of rushed, reactive or surface-level communication. But when tensions arise, it’s the quality of our communication that will help us understand each other better and resolve the tensions we may feel in our workplace relationships. This is why how we listen, how we speak, and how we show up in conversation will determine whether conflict deepens or moves towards resolution.

These human-to-human skills are powerful tools for building trust, understanding and connection. And they can be learned, practised and strengthened, starting with how we listen.

Listening:

A skill that needs to be rebuilt

One of the most powerful ways to reduce conflict and build better relationships at work is to listen. This sounds simple, but genuine listening requires intention, effort and self-awareness. It’s about more than being silent while the other person speaks. It’s about being fully present, and willing to hear what’s being said without rushing to respond.

In practice, this means noticing where your attention is. Are you focusing on the speaker, or are you preparing your next reply? Are you open to their perspective, even if it differs from your own? It takes courage and curiosity to listen to views that are different to our own.

Deeper listening: Check for understanding

If you don’t understand something, say so. Ask clarifying questions. You could say: “If I’m hearing you right, you’re saying X. Is that correct?” This not only shows that you’re making an effort to understand, but it also gives the other person the opportunity to feel heard and clarify their point of view.

When conversations get difficult, stay curious and calm. Try: “I’d like to understand more about where you’re coming from.” This sort of language creates the conditions for dialogue rather than debate. And dialogue is where connection and resolution can grow.

Speaking thoughtfully, with purpose and care

When we address conflict, how we speak matters as much as what we say. Rather than launching into a criticism, such as, “Your email made me really angry!”, try, “Are you free for a chat? I’d like to speak about the email you sent me, and how I felt about it. I’d also like to hear your perspective.”

Framing the conversation in this way invites openness and signals your commitment to the relationship. Collaborative conflict conversations use language like: “I value working with you,” or “I’d like to understand what’s going on for you.” Even when emotions run high, staying open-minded, curious and respectful can shift the tone in a constructive way.

A timely investment in your people

Conflict is not inherently bad. When approached constructively, it can spark creativity and change, and strengthen our relationships. But in today’s working world, managing conflict well requires an intentional shift towards better communication, deeper listening, and more thoughtful engagement.

Many organisations are feeling the pressure. But those that invest in building these essential human skills, through training, coaching or specialist support, are setting their teams up for long-term success. In a future where connection and collaboration are key, this is an investment worth making.

Kintsugi-ing your Workplace Culture: Fostering a Repair Culture To Build Strong Bonds, Resilience and Excellence in the Workplace

By Raheena

Lalani Dahya LL.B., LL.M., Bloomsbury Mediation, Part-time Professor of Alternative Dispute Resolution, Longo Faculty of Business, Humber Polytechnic, Canada, Irene Grindell, Futurepoint Mediation, UK & Jess Goldsmith BSc (Hons), Futurepoint Mediation, UK

Conflict Resolution and Culture

- What’s the link?

Conflict in the workplace is inevitable and comes in all shapes and sizes, as do the approaches organisations take to address and resolve them. These approaches can range from proactively equipping teams with the skills to navigate and confidently address conflict, following formal grievance procedures, and everything in between, including coaching, mediation & investigations. An important consideration is the residual feeling parties are left with following repair-attempts or ‘resolution’. How do you want parties to feel, behave, talk about and role model - following a conflict? More importantly, how does this align to your Organisation’s culture?

What is Kintsugi?

Kintsugi is the Japanese art of taking a treasured vessel, traditionally a vase, that is passed down between the generations within a family; when the vessel eventually

cracks or breaks, one mixes gold with adhesive urushi sap, and uses this mixture to fill the cracks, repairing the item.The result, aside from repair, is the creation of a strong, beautiful and unique object.

How do we create kintsugi in relationships? When conflict arises, relationships are impacted - from hairline fractures to being completely severed. To “kintsugi” a relationship, parties need to be brought back together, creating a joint way forward and paving a new future way of working and communicating.

To enable this to occur, people need to feel safe enough to communicate their true feelings, respectfully. Creating a space where shared understanding and common goals are recognised and agreed. Feeling heard, understood and cared for is paramount for what we call relational kintsugi to occur.

Following a successful mediation the adjectives parties often use such as ‘heard’, ‘understood’, ‘empowered’, these are tell-tale signs that relational kintsugi has taken place. As

Raheena Lalani Dahya

Jess Goldsmith

Irene Grindell

we will outline below, relational kintsugi is the art of repairing relationships, rendering them stronger, more unique, and beautiful than they were to begin with.

How Does This Relate to Organisational Culture?

We’ve touched on the “residual feeling” parties are left with following a conflict. When relational kintsugi has occurred, parties return to the workplace with a renewed sense of hope, empowerment and confidence. However, the positive impacts, at an individual level, are only half the story.

Pouring the metaphorical gold into the cracks of relationships dials down the temperature in the wider team and organisation, impacting the overall culture.

If we think of toxic behaviour, the kintsugi-repair introduces healthy relationship skills and ultimately creates room for better, rebuilt, stronger relationships to thrive. Organisations are made up of relationships – multiple people connected to multiple others. The quality of these relationships informs and impacts the overall organisational culture.

What is the Relationship Between Kintsugi and Psychological Safety?

“Team psychological safety is a shared belief held by members of a team that it’s OK to take risks, to express their ideas and concerns, to speak up with questions, and to admit mistakes — all without fear of negative consequences.” –Amy Gallo, Harvard Business Review 1

Psychological safety is a prerequisite for relational kintsugi to occur. This requires trust, respect and openness. When organisations struggle to achieve these pre-conditions, not all is lost. A third party neutral, such as a facilitator or mediator, who can create these conditions can become an invaluable tool to catalyse relational repair.

Accepting that conflict will always occur, organisations

can choose how to respond. By nurturing an environment where employees constructively address, resolve and move forward following a conflict, creates psychological safety.

Another way to think about think about psychological safety is by thinking about the Window of Tolerance.

Introducing Some Theory: The Window of Tolerance

When people are within their window of tolerance (“WoT”), they are able to connect to their pre-frontal cortex, the part of the brain from which people engage in rational thinking, decision-making, and reasoning. From within the WoT people feel psychologically safe to engage in conversation, build relationships, share opinions, and feel comfortable to disagree and have difficult conversations.

When people are in conflict, they can often feel threatened, overwhelmed, uncomfortable with the subject matter, or conflict itself. This can lead to dysregulation.

When people exceed their window of tolerance, they are dysregulated. Dysregulation can be experienced as either hyper-dysregulation or hypo-dysregulation. Hyper-dysregulation can look like crying, screaming, yelling, ‘red face’, shaking; it can feel like looking perfectly calm on the outside but ‘seething on the inside’. Hypo-dysregulation can look like slumped shoulders, withdrawing, the body curling into itself, it can feel like suddenly becoming tired or sleepy in response to hearing something, or similarly, experiencing ‘fuzzy brain’. Hyper-dysregulation engages the fight or flight mechanisms; hypo-dysregulation engages most freeze mechanisms. 2

When we dysregulate, we cannot access our pre-frontal cortex; instead, we operate from the parts of our brain that take over when we are under threat. Fundamentally, we dysregulate when we feel psychologically unsafe.

Ogden, Siegel)

Hyper-dysregulation examples: crying, screaming, skaking, red-face, hostility, hyper-vigilance, signs of

examples: withdrawing, slumping, fatigue,

‘fuzzy brain’ flat affect, signs of depression or disorientation.

Raheena Lalani Dahya, Bloomsbury Mediation Inc., 2022 - 2025

Dysregulation can show up in the workplace as relational aggression.3 For example, ‘huffing and puffing’, eye-rolling, sabotage, diminishing and belittling others, exclusion, ‘freezing people out’, passive aggressive e-mails, flippant put-downs, or abusing a co-worker’s trust to gain social currency.

When multiple people within an organisation operate from a

place of dysregulation, thereby feeling psychologically unsafe, it begets a culture of dysregulation. Each conflict subtly yet fundamentally impacts each team, which can ripple into the wider organisational culture. Further, emotional contagion often sets in, emitting relational toxicity, contributing to a toxic workplace culture in which no one feels safe.

Culture is impacted by each relationship within the organisation; Each person’s state of regulation (psychological safety) is informed by culture

How do We Get From Dysregulation Back into the Window of Tolerance?

A trauma-informed mediator has the tools to support dysregulated parties, co-regulating (supporting and calming) them back into their window of tolerance. Similarly, when a trauma-informed trainer supports a team in developing conflict resolution skills, they support a team in developing self-regulation and co-regulation skills.

There are two pre-requisites required to resolve conflicts that involve dysregulation:

(1) knowledge and understanding of one’s own WoT; and

(2) a culture of a relational kintsugi (repair culture).

Together, these allow parties to risk being vulnerable and feel safe admitting, ‘I dysregulated in that moment’, when discussing a conflict-event. These disclosures create the foundations for meaningful apologies and genuine relational repair.

To paraphrase and extend Dan Siegel’s work 4 on attachment relationships: the quality of a relationship is not dictated by the severity of the rupture, but the quality of the repair. So too with organisational culture: the quality of the culture is not dictated by the rifts that occur but the extent to which relational repair is embedded as a core value.

Choosing a Relational Kintsugi Culture

Organisations have cultural choices to make: they can foster culture deliberately or allow the culture to emerge

organically. Relational kintsugi offers organisations the seeds to grow psychological safety. When conflict occurs, there are two options: do nothing or attempt repair. Doing nothing risks the status quo festering into a toxic culture. When repair is the choice, it can drive growth, innovation and organisational cohesion. Actively cultivating a ‘relational kintsugi culture’ allows your biggest asset – people, to thrive and be at their best.

References:

[1] Gallo, Amy, What Is Psychological Safety?, Harvard Business Review, February 15, 2023 [online: https://hbr.org/2023/02/what-ispsychological-safety] (last accessed June 17, 2025)

[2] These states are governed by the autonomic nervous system. ‘Fight and flight’ mechanisms are stimulated by the sympathetic nervous system, ‘freeze’ responses that are “accompanied by flaccidity of the muscles” (see Corrigan et al, below), such as feeling physically exhausted and ‘needing to stop’ are the result of parasympathetic nervous responses. However, ‘freeze’ responses that cohere with experiences of one being ‘scared stiff’ can be the result of both the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems being co-activated at the same time, per: Corrigan, F M, Fisher J J, & Nutt DJ, Autonomic Dysregulation and the Window of Tolerance Model of the Effects of Complex Emotional Trauma, Journal of Psychopharmacology, 0(00) 1-9, 2010 [online: https://pubmed.ncbi. nlm.nih.gov/20093318/] (last accessed June 17, 2025)

[3] See, for example, Swit, Cara S., & Slater, Nicola M., Relational Aggression During Childhood: A Systematic Review, Aggression & Violent Behaviour, Vol. 58, May–June 2021, 101556 [online: https:// doi.org/10.1016/j.avb.2021.101556] (last accessed June 17, 2025)

[4] See, for example: Siegel, Daniel, The Developing Mind, 3rd ed, London: Guilford Press 2020

Raheena Lalani Dahya, Bloomsbury Mediation Inc., 2025

Why Mediation Matters

The business case for mediation is clearer than ever. According to Acas research, workplace conflict costs UK employers nearly £30 billion each year—a staggering figure driven not only by formal disputes, but by the lost productivity, turnover, and reputational damage that follow in their wake. Despite this, many organisations still rely on rigid, adversarial processes that can deepen divides rather than heal them.

The good news? Mediation offers an alternative—a human-centred, pragmatic and legally sound way to address conflict at its roots and rebuild trust. But shifting from a grievance culture to a resolution culture takes more than goodwill. It demands active engagement from leaders, HR and employees alike.

Drawing on my own experience as a mediator and the collective insights shared at events such as the recent

Winmark and Acas sessions, this article explores how to bring people “into the room,” build the business (and human) case for mediation, and foster cultures where a grown-up discussion about resolution is not a last resort, but a first instinct.

Bringing People Into the Room: Overcoming Resistance

Convincing HR and Legal of mediation’s merits is one thing—getting reluctant employees to agree is quite another. Most employees and managers raised in traditional adversarial systems see workplace disputes as zero-sum games: someone is right, and someone is wrong and getting to a resolution requires proving it.

But in reality, few grievances are truly black and white. Mediation works because it acknowledges that conflict is rarely simple (or completely the fault of one or the other)—and that resolution does not need to be either.

Caroline Sheridan

Having a neutral mediator guiding a conversation can feel alien, or even threatening. So how do you persuade employees to engage? Our experience suggests that it comes down to carrot and stick:

The Carrot

Mediation’s well-established benefits—speed, discretion, flexibility and a 90% average success rate according to the 2023 CEDR Mediation Audit—can be powerful incentives. In mediation, employees retain control. They decide how much to share, when to take breaks and whether to continue. Unlike a grievance, where outcomes are imposed, mediation empowers individuals to co-create the outcome.

The Stick

Employers have the right to make reasonable management requests. In most cases, asking employees to attempt mediation first is just that—reasonable. If an employee unreasonably refuses to engage, and that refusal contributes to a breakdown in the employment relationship, it is fair for the employer to take that refusal into account when considering next steps.

Importantly, none of this makes mediation compulsory. Voluntariness is a cornerstone of the process. But it does mean that employees cannot always use a refusal to mediate as a shield against accountability for the consequences of that refusal.

Addressing Employee Concerns: From Fear to Empowerment

Employees’ reluctance to engage is often rooted in fear: fear of losing face, fear of retaliation or simply fear of the unknown. Mediators and HR teams can address these fears in advance by reframing the process:

• “I am right and they are wrong.” Remind participants that mediation is not about blame or vindication, but about finding solutions and building understanding. Formal processes often reveal shared culpability anyway—mediation just does it more quickly, with less collateral damage and sorts out a solution at the same time.

• Confidentiality worries.

Stress that mediation is a confidential process protected by law and mediation agreements. Breaching this confidentiality can be treated as misconduct. In contrast, formal grievances can involve larger audiences and weaker confidentiality protections.

• The principle of punishment.

For those seeking punishment of another rather than resolution, ask: What will change if formal processes fail to deliver the hoped-for outcome? Mediation does not preclude disciplinary action where needed—but it prioritises solutions that allow people to move forward. Revenge is not an attractive motivation for a complaint, since it is so rarely the solution to anything.

• Fear of confrontation.

Acknowledge that mediation can be daunting. Offer flexibility: separate sessions, neutral venues, breaks as

needed, and the option to be accompanied by a colleague or friend for moral support. Reassure employees that they will never be alone in the process and note that the stresses of a mediated discussion can be nothing compared to a formal adversarial grievance process.

The Business Case: Beyond Cost Savings

It is easy to focus on the financial benefits of mediation— days or weeks to resolve versus months or years for a grievance and legal claim, and far lower costs in legal fees, recruitment and lost productivity. But the human case is equally compelling.

At a recent Winmark conference, 63% of attendees noted that their organisations hadn’t even considered mediation in recent instances of workplace conflict. Why? Because most managers have grown up in systems where the first step is a formal process, not a real conversation.

David Whincup, Employment Partner at Squire Patton Boggs, reinforced the legal reality: the Acas Code requires fair handling, not formal processes by default. Mediation fully meets that requirement almost every time. It is structured, confidential, and voluntary—but also bound by agreements that keep it safe and purposeful.

Mediation does not just resolve disputes. It builds capability—teaching people to listen, to give feedback and to disagree well. It models the behaviours that organisations need if they are to survive and thrive in an increasingly complex and polarised world.

In the end it is its essential simplicity which is the key. Ultimately you are asking your employees and managers to do no more than sit in a room with another adult and have a grown-up conversation about what matters which it is to their mutual best interests to resolve, to hear and be heard and then to consider what they need to put the issue behind them. There is nothing in law or the Acas Code which prevents that. If you are an adult and want something to change, how hard can that be, as a minimum compared to pleading your case in front of Legal and HR?

The Path Forward

As organisations navigate an ever-changing world of work—marked by social tensions, generational divides and evolving legal landscapes—conflict is inevitable. But entrenched processes and fear-driven cultures are not. Mediation offers a way forward that is faster, more costeffective and more human. Formal grievances promise legal resolutions through the slowish adherence to written policies, but mediation offers real ones, both parties on board as designers of the solution, not victims of it.

By reframing conflict as an opportunity rather than a threat, we can build workplaces that do not just manage disputes but truly resolve them—restoring trust, strengthening relationships, and unlocking the full potential of every employee.

How to solve workplace conflict?

Everyone can resolve conflicts when they are empowered to create their own solutions. Sheridan Worldwide works globally to help people and organisations communicate effectively and strengthen working relationships through:

Focusing on team dynamics through honest and candid conversation coaching

Offering expert mediators

specialising in workplace and employment mediation

success rate in workplace mediation +90%

Providing strategic consulting

to support a shift to a resolution culture in mediation skills and conflict resolution

Coaching managers and leaders

MEDIATION JOURNAL U K

MEDIATION PROVIDERS

CONSENSIO

t: +44 (0)20 7831 0254 e: alex.efthymiades@consensiopartners.co.uk w: www.consensiopartners.co.uk a: 30 Niton Street, London, SW6 6NJ Contact: Alex Efthymiades

Consensio is a leading workplace mediation provider, helping organisations to manage workplace conflict. Our services include: 1) mediation and conflict resolution training ranging from taster events to accredited training, 2) external mediation services for two-party and team disputes, 3) conflict coaching and 4) consultancy services to transform organisational responses to conflict.

FOCUS MEDIATION

t: +44 (0)1908 231 132 e: mary@focus-mediation.co.uk w: www.focus-mediation.co.uk

Contact: Mary Banham-Hall

Focus Mediation is a CMC Registered Provider, established in 1999 we cover the whole of the UK and handle all types of mediation cases.. We have a team of fully accredited Workplace, Civil/ Commercial and Family mediators with a wide range of professional backgrounds, ensuring you can choose the right specialist mediator for your dispute. We can help with all types of workplace and employment problems, our team have handled cases involving from 2 to 50+ people and can tailor the right programme to meet your needs saving you management time and costs...

GARDEN COURT MEDIATION

t: +44 (0)20 7993 7600 e: mediationclerks@gclaw.co.uk w: gardencourtmediation.co.uk

a: 57-60 Lincoln’s Inn Fields, London WC2A 3LJ Contact: Lavinia Shaw-Brown

We offer a flexible, high-quality mediation service from the initial inquiry through to facilitating agreement. We have a team of experienced, professional mediators with the interpersonal skills to suit all civil, commercial, workplace and family disputes. Our aim is to help you find a resolution to the dispute quickly and effectively.

INMAN COX MEDIATION

t: +44 (0)798 537 3010 e: james@inmancox.com w: www.inmancox.com

Established for over 5 years, Inman Cox Mediation are specialist workplace resolution mediators. We provide expert advice, mediation and co-mediation services as well as on-going support and training .ICM provides organisations with the tools needed to resolve future disputes and help prevent them from arising in the first instance. Working with a select number of organisations we work with HR professionals to get disputes resolved quickly. Our experience has led us to develop a number of bespoke training packages to deal with team dysfunction. Contact : James on 07985373010 or james@inmancox.com for a free consultation. www.inmancox.com

INDEPENDENT MEDIATORS

t: +44 (0)20 7127 9223 e: imoffice@independentmediators.co.uk w: www.independentmediators.co.uk

Launched in 2007, Independent Mediators (IM) is a leading UK and international mediation chambers. IM were awarded Who’s Who Legal Mediation Firm of the Year 2019 in May 2019. We manage the practices of nine of Europe’s leading full-time civil and commercial mediators; Charles Dodson, Phillip Howell-Richardson, Kate Jackson, Michel Kallipetis QC, Jonathan Lloyd-Jones, Mark Lomas QC, Bill Marsh, Andrew Paton and Nicholas Pryor. All nine mediators feature in the top tiers of the leading legal directories. They have mediated in excess of 8,500 matters between them in their careers. The commercial disputes mediated range in value from tens of thousands to multi-billion pounds and include almost every sector of business and law with parties from all over the UK and internationally.

IPOS MEDIATION

t: +44 (0)333 014 4575 e: info@mediate.co.uk w: www.mediate.co.uk

a: The International Dispute Resolution Centre, 1 Paternoster Lane, London EC4M 7BQ

Contact: Joanne Claypole

Leading UK and International Mediation Chambers established in 1995. Handling civil, commercial, family, workplace and employment disputes. Our mediators have, between them, mediated thousands of disputes and many of our members are recognised as expert mediators by the legal directories. In addition, we offer a full case administration service; from helping the parties select a mediator to arranging the date, venue and paperwork necessary to make your mediation as smooth and as successful as possible.

JAMS INTERNATIONAL

t: +44 (0)20 7583 9808 e: mrushton@jamsadr.com w: www.jamsadr.com

JAMS is the world’s largest private provider of ADR services with a caseload of around 15,000 disputes a year. Its London office provides arbitrators and mediators for cross-border and UK domestic disputes as well as administering international arbitrations in various sectors.

KARIMA FAHMY, FOUNDER & MEDIATOR, THE INDEPENDENT NEUTRAL

t: +44 7958 973 389 e: karima.fahmy@independentneutral.com w: www.independentneutral.com

Karima is a CEDR accredited and CMC registered Civil, Commercial and Workplace mediator. Having practised as a Corporate lawyer for over 20 years, Karima has extensive experience of helping parties resolve their differences and reach mutually satisfactory outcomes. Karima’s mediation practice is focussed on employment and workplace disputes; real estate and construction disputes; joint venture, shareholder and board disputes. Prior to sitting as a mediator, Karima was General Counsel of an international real estate investment and development business. Prior to that she spent 10 years at Hogan Lovells. Karima brings experience of navigating complex and sensitive commercial and stakeholder contexts.

KINGSWAY LAW

t: +44 (0) 7825 894 893 e: larry.george@kingswaylaw.uk w: linkedin.com/in/larry-george-b9114a46 w: P.O. Box 516, Cambridge CB1 0BD Contact: Larry George

Qualified Barrister; CEDR accredited mediator, 2010. Larry has 30+ years of experience as a commercial legal adviser advising on corporate and commercial matters. He has specialised in the oil business including oil trading but also has a great deal of experience in general commercial areas including in contracts, terms of trade and related disputes. Mediation experience includes franchising, engineering contracts and professional negligence. Larry has wide international experience and is a fluent Russian speaker.

t: +44 (0)7957 8 12345 e: mia@miaforbespirie.com w: www.miaforbespirie.com

Mia Forbes Pirie is a mediator, executive coach and trainer. She works with teams, boards and directors, family businesses and individuals in conflict. Mia helps people to work better together and communicate under pressure. In addition to commercial clients, she has worked with MPs, governments, religious organisations, NGOs, and charities. Mia provides training online and in person. She is writing a book and working with UCL to help people Disagree Well. For more information see: www.miaforbespirie.com and her YouTube Channel : @miaforbespirie5289

THE MAVERICK MEDIATOR - TM DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATES LIMITED

t: +44 7905 868 058 e: tony@achievesuccess.org.uk w: www.maverickmediator.co.uk

Anthony Munday is an independent ACAS-accredited workplace mediator. He specialises in working with conflicted Senior Teams. His previous career as a detective and senior leader enables him to empathise with clients in senior management positions. He has developed a unique Conflict Resolution Method. Anthony works in partnership with HR Leaders to conduct a root-cause analysis of the impact of conflict in the organisation. The financial and human costs of conflict for the client are extrapolated. They use the client’s own data to create an inclusive and holistic Action Plan to mitigate future Risks and Costs.

PROMEDIATE (UK) LIMITED

t: +44 (0)20 3621 3908 w: www.promediate.co.uk

ProMediate provides mediation for the whole range of civil and employment disputes as well as being a CMC Registered Training Provider. We also resolve disputes between traders and consumers under the ADR Regulations. We have a panel of over 50 mediators available to mediate online by telephone or in person throughout the UK and in the EU.

ROGER LEVITT

t: +44 (0)7776 141 717 e: roger@rogerlevittmediation.co.uk w: www.rogerlevittmediation.co.uk

I undertake all types of commercial mediation including: Property, Construction, Partnership, Corporate, Professional Indemnity, Insurance Financial & Wills. Member of Civil Mediation Council Registration Committee. I’m approaching 100 mediations.

MIA FORBES PIRIE

STILLHR

t: +44 (0)7932 762 448 e: robert@stillhr.com w: www.stillhr.com Contact: Robert Still Qualified workplace and team mediators. Robert Still FCIPD, Leye Oladapo and Paula Symons. Over 10 years’ experience across the UK and Europe. CMC Registered Mediation Provider 2019. Resolving individuals and team conflict.

SHERIDAN WORLDWIDE

t: +44 (0)20 3753 5350 e: caroline.sheridan@sheridanworldwide.com w: www.sheridanworldwide.com

Contact: Caroline Sheridan

At Sheridan, we help organisations worldwide maximise their potential and drive lasting change by providing the guidance and inspiration necessary for their people to succeed. Our award-winning work focuses on tailored one-to-one, team and group coaching to support the development of leadership and management capabilities, as well as mediation and conflict resolution interventions across the business. Our specialists in organisational culture, wellbeing, inclusion and team dynamics partner with clients to ensure a tailored approach. We supply our coaching and mediation services in the UK and internationally through our extensive faculty based around around the world in all key locations.

THE TCM GROUP

t: +44 (0)20 7092 3186 e: david.liddle@thetcmgroup.com w: www.thetcmgroup.com

TCM are a leading provider of conflict management, mediation, HR and leadership training and consultancy. We deliver tangible benefits to our customers by transforming conflict and change from a threat into an opportunity. For more details, please Read Managing Conflict (Kogan Page/ CIPD) available from https://amzn.eu/d/4jRZ7mB written by TCM’s CEO David Liddle.

t: +44 (0)7305 062 578 e: askforhelp@werestorecalm.com w: www.werestorecalm.com

At We Restore Calm, we recognise the growing impact of mental health challenges and conflicts in the workplace. We specialise in comprehensive mental health training, including Mental Health First England certified courses. We also offer state-of-the-art conflict resolution solutions ranging from executive coaching, mediation, to team workshops and neutral evaluations. The goal? To empower organisations like yours to enhance employee engagement, reduce absenteeism, and, in turn, boost overall productivity. Think of us as the catalyst to not just elevate your workplace atmosphere but also positively impact your bottom line. Let’s foster a resilient, harmonious, and productive environment together.

WE RESTORE CALM