Pragmatism (UK) Ltd’s Post

Mediation Without Apologies: Finding Common Ground When 'Sorry' Seems Impossible I've lost count of how many times HR directors have started a conversation with me saying, "We're not sure mediation will work. The parties are adamant they won't apologize." It's a valid concern, and apologies can undoubtedly be powerful tools for healing or breaking an impasse. But what if an apology simply isn't on the table? Even without an apology, mediation can be a transformative experience. It's not about forcing forgiveness or extracting admissions of guilt. It's about creating a safe space for dialogue, where parties can: ✨Gain deeper insights: Truly understand the impact of their actions (or inactions) on the other person. ✨See through a different lens: Develop empathy by hearing the other person's perspective, free from judgment. ✨Shift the focus forward: Move beyond blame and resentment to create a workable plan for the future. Much of my job when I facilitate workplace mediations is helping the parties understand each other's needs and concerns. Doing so opens the door to a productive problem-solving process that allows us to find mutually beneficial solutions that both - or all - can agree to implement moving forward. The message that I share with people considering mediation is that a successful mediation is not about winning or losing - it's about finding a path forward, even when the road ahead seems uncertain, unlikely, or next to impossible. Is your team currently hampered by a subset of team members who won’t interact, can’t get along, or express deep resentment of one another. If so, mediation might be the tool that helps your team move forward. Curious as to whether or not mediation could be right for your situation? Book a free consultation with me today. I’d love to chat. https://lnkd.in/gkz-8nDE #mediation #workplaceconflict #HR #conflictresolution #newtableconsulting

Mediation Without Apologies: Finding Common Ground When 'Sorry' Seems Impossible I've lost count of how many times HR directors have started a conversation with me saying, "We're not sure mediation will work. The parties are adamant they won't apologize." It's a valid concern, and apologies can undoubtedly be powerful tools for healing or breaking an impasse. But what if an apology simply isn't on the table? Even without an apology, mediation can be a transformative experience. It's not about forcing forgiveness or extracting admissions of guilt. It's about creating a safe space for dialogue, where parties can: ✨Gain deeper insights: Truly understand the impact of their actions (or inactions) on the other person. ✨See through a different lens: Develop empathy by hearing the other person's perspective, free from judgment. ✨Shift the focus forward: Move beyond blame and resentment to create a workable plan for the future. Much of my job when I facilitate workplace mediations is helping the parties understand each other's needs and concerns. Doing so opens the door to a productive problem-solving process that allows us to find mutually beneficial solutions that both - or all - can agree to implement moving forward. The message that I share with people considering mediation is that a successful mediation is not about winning or losing - it's about finding a path forward, even when the road ahead seems uncertain, unlikely, or next to impossible. Is your team currently hampered by a subset of team members who won’t interact, can’t get along, or express deep resentment of one another. If so, mediation might be the tool that helps your team move forward. Curious as to whether or not mediation could be right for your situation? Book a free consultation with me today. I’d love to chat. https://buff.ly/3SXZhkh #mediation #workplaceconflict #HR #conflictresolution #newtableconsulting

As an Agency Representative, I often found myself in mediation. I distinctly remember one time where I had mediation for a different employee everyday for 14 days. Mediations were always held at a different location than the normal place of work to maintain the confidentiality of the case. Three things I learned in this role: 1) You cannot please everyone no matter how hard you try, it ain’t gone happen. 2) Mediation exists to decrease conflict, but it can be an expensive mess. 3) All parties are not there to mediate, rather they want one-on-one time with their supervisor or with someone in the chain of command. Oh, and here’s a bonus, sometimes the supervisors named in the allegation are not intrigued by the fact that they have not done their part in keeping a solid record of what has happened, actions they took and the results of those actions. So here’s my number one tip for this: **Carry a notepad and write it all down when it happens and you won’t forget it** This is the part of employee relations I dislike but I welcome it! ---- Hi, my name is Alisha Brown, Employee Relations Consultant and I help first time supervisors feel comfortable in their role to execute their responsibilities with confidence. Need assistance? Just visit www.alishadbrown.com and send a message to me. You can also email me at info@alishadbrown.com

My third tip for mediation awareness week is the reason my business is called Pragmatism - there is no policy, law or process which gives you the answer when it comes to people. Effective conversations and pragmatic leadership always get the best results! Mediation isn’t instead of alternatives such as investigations. Sometimes they’re held in parallel, but usually the other process is paused until mediation has taken place as it’s less stressful and hugely successful (in our case over 97%). Following mediation the employer and employees still have the right to do whatever they were going to do anyway but why would they when it’s all been sorted? Investigations take weeks, months and sometimes even years. Mediation takes hours - for complex cases that come to us, most take just one day. The amount of stress involved in investigations is incredible, and they only deal with the surface issues. Mediation deals with the root cause issues and implements sustained solutions. This is all about cultural change and is where HR can add enormous value. Spending loads of time investigating and concluding a ‘lack of evidence to prove’ just tends to make people even more frustrated. Equally, disciplinary warnings don’t change long term behaviours. To do this we need to change thinking, which comes from insights which will only come through proper talking and (most importantly) active listening to understand perspectives. That’s what mediation enables. The most common thing I hear from employees after sorting issues out in a mediation is “I wish we could have had this conversation months or years ago”. The really sad thing is they could (and in my view should) have - there was just nobody in the organisation who had the skills and confidence to help them. This is exactly why we professionally train internal mediators for organisations and their managers to have those ‘difficult’ conversations. We want them to not need our mediation services! It’s all about leadership, trust and relationships. If you ever want to learn these skills yourself, you have managers who avoid tough conversations, you’d like to attend any of our webinars, or you have a dispute which needs resolving you know where I am - just drop me a message. In the meantime, I hope you find today’s tip useful! #mediation #workplacemediation #hr #leadership

We are running a July Offer in Mediation Training for HR Professionals!! In today’s dynamic workplace, conflict is inevitable. However, how these conflicts are managed can significantly impact an organization’s culture, productivity, and overall employee satisfaction. This is where the role of Human Resources (HR) becomes pivotal. HR professionals, equipped with mediation training, can transform potential discord into opportunities for growth and collaboration. The Importance of Mediation Training 1. Promotes a Positive Work Environment: Mediation training helps HR professionals to create a harmonious workplace. It fosters a culture of open communication, understanding, and mutual respect. 2. Reduces Litigation Costs: By resolving conflicts internally through mediation, companies can avoid the high costs associated with litigation and arbitration. 3. Enhances Employee Relations: Trained mediators can address issues before they escalate, improving relationships and morale among employees. 4. Boosts Productivity: A peaceful and cooperative work environment leads to increased productivity and employee engagement. 5. Encourages Personal Growth: Mediation skills encourage HR professionals to develop better listening, empathy, and problem-solving abilities. What Mediation Training for HRs Involve: 1. Understanding Conflict 2. Communication Skills 3. Negotiation Techniques 4. Mediation Process 5. Role-Playing Exercises 6. Ethical Considerations Contact Transformative interaction solutions for mediation training for HRs and boost your company's productivity and conflict resolution. Mobile: +254799 607 069 Web: www.tismediation.org Email: info@tismediation.org #mediation #mediationtraining #mediationforHRs #Humanresourcemanagement #midyearoffer #Corporatetraining

UK Mediation Conference, 25th November 2024, Congress Centre London. Organised by Iconic Media Solutions with ACAS and The TCM Group. Workplace conflict costs UK employers £28.5 billion each year – an average of over £1,000 for every employee. And new research published by Acas shows that a major challenge in overcoming it is that both line management skills, and negotiation skills have declined in recent years. The evidence is clear – the sooner a workplace dispute can be resolved, the better the outcome for everybody involved. It leads to improved employee engagement, staff retention and productivity. Mediation is an effective and cost saving way of managing workplace disputes. A key question for organisations is how do they successfully implement a less formal approach to resolving workplace conflict? This industry-leading event will answer that question by examining the conflict journey, the evidence supporting the case for a less formal approach, including examples on what works (and what doesn’t) and practical mediation skills and techniques. Delegates will get the opportunity to network with leading academics, mediation providers and Acas experts to explore how we can make workplaces better, together. Full programme soon to be announced. Book your pass at https://lnkd.in/em5sdpBb

Mediation is a hugely beneficial tool to address workplace conflict issues that emerge throughout the employment relationship. It ensures that issues are addressed in a proactive manner and allows the parties themselves to determine what the mutually agreeable resolution will look like. Embedding mediation processes into the company's internal policies will ensure that companies are remaining compliant with the statutory guidance on responding to internal grievances, disciplinary issues and bullying and harassment allegations. Best Practice Mediation Approaches include: ⚓ Having an informal discussion with both parties prior to commencement of the process to share information on the different stages of the mediation process. ⚓ Hosting separate pre-mediation sessions with both parties to hear both perspectives and to gain an understanding into how the conflict issue is impacting them both. ⚓ Facilitating a joint meeting(s) where both parties are given an opportunity to respectfully and constructively communicate their point of view and where they are both given a chance to understand how the issue has impacted the other person. ⚓ Guiding and supporting parties to create solutions to their issues that are future focused and sustainable. ⚓ Finalising a mediation agreement that is determined by the parties, confidential and can be made legally binding.

Our third tip for mediation awareness week is the reason we are called Pragmatism - there is no policy, law or process which gives you the answer when it comes to people. Effective conversations and pragmatic leadership always get the best results! Mediation isn’t instead of alternatives such as investigations. Sometimes they’re held in parallel, but usually the other process is paused until mediation has taken place as it’s less stressful and hugely successful (in our case over 97%). Following mediation the employer and employees still have the right to do whatever they were going to do anyway but why would they when it’s all been sorted? Investigations take weeks, months and sometimes even years. Mediation takes hours - for complex cases that come to us, most take just one day. The amount of stress involved in investigations is incredible, and they only deal with the surface issues. Mediation deals with the root cause issues and implements sustained solutions. This is all about cultural change and is where HR can add enormous value. Spending loads of time investigating and concluding a ‘lack of evidence to prove’ just tends to make people even more frustrated. Equally, disciplinary warnings don’t change long term behaviours. To do this we need to change thinking, which comes from insights which will only come through proper talking and (most importantly) active listening to understand perspectives. That’s what mediation enables. The most common thing we hear from employees after sorting issues out in a mediation is “I wish we could have had this conversation months or years ago”. The really sad thing is they could (and in our view should) have - there was just nobody in the organisation who had the skills and confidence to help them. This is exactly why we professionally train internal mediators for organisations and their managers to have those ‘difficult’ conversations. We want them to not need our mediation services! It’s all about leadership, trust and relationships. If you ever want to learn these skills yourself, you have managers who avoid tough conversations, you’d like to attend any of our webinars, or you have a dispute which needs resolving you know where we are - just drop us a message. In the meantime, we hope you find today’s tip useful! #mediation #workplacemediation #hr #leadership

This is a great short read about the benefits of mediation to address workplace conflict and help to restore peace in the working environment. A pithy takeaway: "Incorporating mediation into the workplace offers a myriad of benefits that go beyond resolving conflicts. It promotes collaboration, enhances communication, and fosters a culture of understanding and respect." #WorkplaceDisputes #ADR #Mediation #Mediator #DisputeResoution

Have you ever considered workplace mediation? There are no hard and fast rules for when mediation is appropriate but it can be used: • for conflict involving colleagues of a similar job or grade, or between a line manager and their staff • at any stage in the conflict as long as any ongoing formal procedures are temporarily suspended, or where mediation is included as a stage in the procedures themselves • to rebuild relationships after a formal dispute has been resolved • to address a range of issues, including relationship breakdown, personality clashes, communication problems, bullying and harassment For more information on our mediation service, please contact us at support@mckinneyhr.co.uk and visit our website to read the blog about mediation in the workplace. #workplacemediation #conflict #communication