Workplace Mediation Skills

Gain confidence and competence in using mediation skills to resolve workplace disputes.

This course specifically addresses the need of groups who wish to train in workplace mediation, but who do not need to gain formal recognition as qualified mediators. The programme is especially popular with those wishing to incorporate structured mediation skills into their existing roles.

Workplace Mediation Skills aims to give your delegates the confidence and competence to incorporate these skills into their roles and, using the same step-by-step model as employed by mediators, teaches them to resolve all manner of workplace disputes. This includes personality clashes, miscommunications, grievance-type issues, and instances of bullying and harassment.

About the course

The aim of this two-day course is to get you to the point of being confident and competent to facilitate resolution conversations between colleague.

At the conclusion of the course, you will be able to:

Understand how mediation compares with other methods of resolution
What mediation skills can and can’t do, and the sorts of situations it would be beneficial for. Why confidentiality and impartiality are important.
Understand how workplace conflict starts and how it develops
The signs and symptoms of conflict and the importance of early intervention. Dealing with resistance and getting buy-in to the resolution process.
Use a stage-by-stage model for the resolution of workplace conflict
Exploring UK Mediation’s relational model, re:talk. Encouraging people in and then setting up and running a facilitated resolution process.
Set up and run a facilitated resolution meeting between colleagues
Getting people to meet and to have a productive conversation. Managing disruptive behaviour and keeping the discussion on-track.
Understand the skills required for effective conflict resolution
Learning some key mediation skills, including reframing and active listening. Having a go at one of our specially-chosen workplace case examples.
Build agreements between colleagues who are in conflict
Creating options for a mutually-beneficial resolution of conflict. Creating an environment that allows parties to come up with their own resolutions.

Workplace Mediation Skills covers everything you need to be able to facilitate resolution meetings between colleagues.

This includes:

Some key workplace mediation skills and principles
Applying mediation skills in a step-by-step process
Confidentiality and impartiality when working face-to-face or online
How to get a good resolution without directing or imposing
How to ensure that your facilitated conversations are safe and effective

Our trainers have a wealth of practical mediation experience and are able to adapt the course content to the make-up of the particular group.

All of our courses are live interactive events run by a practising mediator who is an expert in the field.

This course includes a combination of:

Custom-made video clips
Lecture and live discussion
Group exercises

Practice sessions with simulated case material
Real-life case studies

The course is delivered face-to-face at your location, or online via Zoom or Teams, where we can use custom-made video material, run small-group exercises, and take part in some case simulations.

What our learners say

"A massively useful course - I learned so much that will improve our conflict resolution moving forward and reduce the number of grievances. I particularly enjoyed the thorough walkthrough of each stage of the mediation process, as well as the handy take-away materials."

Daniel Poynter Ralph Lauren Retail

"Everything was clearly explained and presented. Very enjoyable!"

Mel Priestley BMW UK

"I have found the whole course interesting and useful, and I believe that these skills will support me in all aspects of my role and also in my personal life."

Karla Halliday BT

"I thoroughly enjoyed the course and found it extremely informative and beneficial for my role. There were several really good tips from the trainer on how to deal with conflict situations using techniques that I wouldn't have even considered."

Lisa McKiernan EDF Energy

"Thoroughly enjoyed the course. Great content and I'm now leaving with the knowledge and confidence to deal with situations. A very comfortable learning environment too. Thank you."

Kevin Hamilton B&M Stores

"The trainer encouraged us to get stuck in and I found the training really useful. They also took the time to understand our organisation and to get and use examples that were relevant to us."

Becky Haigh Girlguiding

"It was very informative and I now feel comfortable to use mediation skills in my role. The trainer had a wealth of experience and it was really useful to practice some of the skills and get some feedback."

Yolanda Chavi CityFibre

"A really useful introduction to mediation which was well received by everyone. It has given me a good starting point to begin introducing mediation into the organisation."

Louise Wakefield Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC)

"I enjoyed all aspects of the course. The feedback from our observed role plays was useful, the discussions helped understanding, and the mediation videos put everything into perspective."

Sharon Lock Swim England

"I have enjoyed the course immensely - I have enhanced existing skills and developed some brand new ones too."

Kyle Stewart East Midlands Railway

"Thoroughly enjoyed the training sessions and the trainer was great. We had plenty of time to practice the skills we learnt and to gain useful insight and feedback."

Annalie Pearce Science Museum Group

"The trainer was so knowledgeable, experienced, and engaging. I feel genuinely more confident due to the participatory-style exercises and real-time feedback. Thank you!"

Anna Sheppard Plan International

"This is a well-paced, informative course which covered a lot of ground in a logical and interesting way. It was easy to participate and I now look forward to using these skills."

Susan Bethel Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust

"I really enjoyed the course and thought the trainer's approach to delivery was very good. They were supportive and gave really good guidance and pointers for consideration."

Clare Vickers The Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust

"Thank you for a fantastic two days! The trainer was brilliant, had great knowledge of the subject, and engaged very well with the group. I felt very supported and gained a fantastic insight into how mediation works."

Sejal Modha Leicestershire Police

"A very practical session which really helped me to gain an insight into the mediation skills required to resolve conflict. I liked the open style of the discussions and felt that it covered lots of skills that will be useful in my role."

Jeannette Float Northamptonshire County Council

"I learned some useful skills to enhance my HR role. The roleplay scenarios and handbook were great too."

Jude Leeming East Durham College

"Thank you! It was a bit overwhelming just how much is involved in the process but each step was clearly explained. I now feel I have the basic skills to prepare and support mediation."

Sam Griffiths Vistry Group

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Course FAQs

We understand that you may have some queries about the course’s content or about how the training is delivered.

We’ve gathered together some of the most Frequently Asked Questions and have answered them below.

Who should attend this course?

This two-day course would be suitable for those who work in roles where they may have to deal with conflict between colleagues. This could include people managers, HR staff, team leaders, Employee Relations specialists, and frontline workers.

No previous experience with conflict resolution is required in order to attend.

Will I be a mediator after doing this course?

No, we are careful to distinguish our shorter courses from our accredited mediator programmes.

What we say is that this course will you how to facilitate resolution meetings with people in dispute, but you won’t be a Mediator. To gain full accreditation, you would need our Interpersonal Mediation Practitioner’s Certificate course.