Shiv Martin's Blog

This symposium brings together Ombudsman, tribunal, commission and regulatory dispute resolution professionals to explore the real pressures, emerging challenges and practical opportunities in early resolution and conciliation practice. If your team works in statutory dispute resolution, this event is designed for your context.

Explore how to confidently choose between mediation, investigation, litigation, or informal action when managing workplace complaints. Learn what works, when, and why.

Conciliation training doesn’t just prepare you to facilitate disputes. It strengthens advocacy, negotiation, emotional intelligence and decision-making. In an era where AI can draft and research, human conciliation skills are becoming a lawyer’s most valuable asset.

Workplace conflict often isn’t about the issue, it’s about the principle. This article explores how values-based coaching questions and the SCARF framework help leaders and HR professionals reduce defensiveness, surface what’s really at stake, and resolve conflict more effectively.

“Agree to disagree” may reduce tension in the moment, but in workplace, business and regulatory disputes it often creates risk. This article explores why clarity, evidence and procedural fairness matter more than surface harmony, particularly in ombudsman and statutory environments.

Motivational interviewing is a powerful skill in mediation, complaints handling, and regulatory dispute resolution. Learn how it supports clarity, agency, and ethical outcomes in workplace conflict, Ombudsman processes, and high-emotion disputes.

Rigid, black-and-white thinking is one of the biggest barriers to resolving business, workplace and partnership disputes. Drawing on mediation practice, neuroscience and decision-making research, this article explains how flexible thinking reduces escalation, improves negotiation outcomes and supports sustainable conflict resolution in professional settings.

A small number of complaints often consume disproportionate time and emotional labour in dispute resolution systems. Drawing on research and practitioner insight, this article explores how misdirected and high-demand matters reveal gaps in system design, procedural clarity and practitioner support, and what conciliation frameworks need to remain fair, humane and sustainable.

Conciliation is a cornerstone of regulatory and Ombudsman dispute resolution, yet it is often misunderstood in practice. Drawing on training experience across statutory bodies, this article explores where conciliation is heading in 2026, including role clarity, ethical confidence, system pressures and the skills practitioners need to remain effective, fair and sustainable.

Complaints handling isn’t just about compliance, it’s about psychology. Small language choices can transform frustration into trust. Explore how the CURE framework, neuroscience, and practical strategies help complaints teams manage difficult conversations with clarity, empathy, and confidence.

Hybrid workplaces bring flexibility but also unique conflict challenges. From misinterpreted emails to Zoom fatigue, leaders need new approaches to old problems. Mediation skills; adapted for online and blended teams, help prevent disputes, strengthen trust, and create a healthier workplace culture.

Mediation is not a quick fix - it’s a reset. What happens after mediation determines whether agreements hold or old patterns return. This article explores why mediation aftercare, clear follow-up conversations, accountability, and emotional awareness are essential for sustainable workplace conflict resolution.