Mediation is defined as a means of resolving disputes outside of the judicial system by voluntary participation in negotiations structured by agreement of the parties and usually conducted under the guidance and supervision of a trained intermediary.
I am such an intermediary having studied Conflict Resolution Studies at Trinity College Dublin, been certified by the Meditaton Institute of Ireland and with internationally recognised certification from the Centre Effective Dispute Resolution.
I believe in practising a facilitative model, that is to say I act as a communication channel between parties to assist them in reaching agreement, I do not take an evaluative approach, i.e. I do not express an opinion on the rights or wrongs of the dispute, my one and only goal being to help parties to reach an agreement that they all can live with.
Broadly speaking there are two facilitative approaches, which I think of as the single room or three room models.
In the single room models, parties come together with the mediator in order to discuss an issue and agree an approach forward. Typically this will take anything from 2 to 6 sessions, each session lasting for 1 to 2 hours, this can happen over a number of weeks. Personally I find that this approach works best in a situation where restoring the relationship is as if not more important than the immediate resolution of the issue.
In the three room model, parties sit in separate rooms, with the mediator physically moving between rooms to facilitate the communication and try to bring the parties towards agreement. The third room provides a space for the mediator to work, drafting an outline agreement between discussions. Typically this will happen in a single long session, starting in the morning and continuing until a resolution is reached. The parties may or may not ever come together during the process.
Mediation will generally bring about a more satisfactory resolution for most issues than any form of legal process can achieve. Legal processes inevitably end with a winner and a looser, any form of subsequent relationship between parties after a legal dispute is highly unlikely. The goal of mediation is to achieve a Win/Win resolution to problems.
If you work with a non profit, charitable or social enterprise and have an ongoing dispute that is impeding your ability to achieve your mission please do get in contact to discuss strategies to resolve the issue and move forward.