This paper (updated February 2013) by David Liddle (CEO of the TCM Group) looks at mediation and its role in building employee engagement. The paper includes a series of tools and tips to help HR, managers and business leaders use mediation to develop a more engaged workforce.
In developing the concept ‘From Argument to Engagement’, David first looks at a number of factors including:
- unresolved conflict is a barrier to employee engagement
- change, competition and complexity drive conflicts
- the existing dispute resolution processes worsen and perpetuate conflict
- many organisations are rejecting traditional thinking about dispute resolution
The paper goes on to look at how mediation works, highlighting that it underpins employee engagement. It states that the benefits of using mediation to build an engaged workforce include:
- giving a voice to parties in a dispute
- encouraging openness and honesty
- building empathic, adult to adult connections
- parties focussing on their interests and needs rather than the strength of their relative positions
- parties crafting their own solutions, avoiding the need for solutions to be imposed
- encouraging creative and innovative thinking
- resolving issues to the mutual satisfaction for the parties
- underpinning economic growth and driving competitive advantage
It also includes ‘The Insight – Engage Model’ and a toolkit on how to embed mediation into your organisation.
A summary article of the paper is available here. The full paper can be accessed by clicking the ‘View and Download’ link below.
