Mediation as we know it will be dead by 2034!

Do I really believe this? I am not sure. But I do wonder, how we as conflict resolution professionals are going to best meet the needs of the new generations? What will AI bring to enhance our mahi? How can we best share our conflict know how skills? Surely these are some of the most important skills people can ever learn.

Last week, I pondered on this at the end of a mediation. Over the four hours, everyone did their best to create and maintain conversation. We shared tea and food, and the parties left agreeing on how to move forward and provide the best for their son. Job well done. Happy all-round.

However, how did this process look different to a mediation from 2014, or even 2004, when I first sat in a mediation. The process probably wasn’t that different to what it would have looked like thirty, forty or even fifty years ago. Four people sitting in a room doing their best to create and maintain conversation. Doing their best to avoid argument and debate, attack and defend, avoidance or shutdown. The same technology. It works well, we know this.

But can we really expect that it will look the same in ten years’ time? And if it does, have we missed an opportunity?

In the last ten years there have been changes. Far more mediations are happening using video conferencing. Preparation for mediation (PFM) has become a cornerstone in FDR mediation and Fair way resolution are utilising this mediation coaching with success in commercial mediations too. These changes are making mediation more accessible and helping parties get the most out of it.

I recently discovered an eBook a colleague has written for her parties to help them feel more empowered in the mediation process. What else can we do? How do we get conflict know-how skills to people earlier in their journey? A client once said to me: “It’s a shame we had to split up to get access to mediation.”

How can we best help people transform their conflicts and their lives?

Recently, I launched two new online services for separated parents:

Stop the Nonsense with Your Ex, is a MasterClass that supports separated parents to create positive change and transformation, even if their ex is never going to change.

For over three decades I have been fascinated by the gateways to transformation. What creates the first spark that leads to the ‘aha’ moments? The spark that triggers the internal shifts that then lead to lasting change, new behaviours, new ways, new realities. We have all experienced this in our work. What if we could bottle it!

Over the years I have found five of these pathways. I share them all in this MasterClass. All my clients that have experienced transformation in their conflicts have done so by travelling on at least one of these pathways. “That’s just changed my life.” “I have been doing this all wrong.” “This changes everything.”

If your work is with family disputes and separated parents, please watch this MasterClass. And for your clients, it is an opportunity to create positive change and get on with their lives. Check out MasterClass – Stop the Nonsense with Your Ex

CommunicateEX enables people to upload email, text or message threads with their ex-partner and within 48 hours they will receive a personal coaching video from me. Check out CommunicateEX

I am excited for both these innovations and the help they will provide separated parents and their children.

Do you want to be a guest on the show?

In early 2025, I will be starting a podcast on conflict. I want to have conversations with mediators and dispute resolvers and share the lessons learned. Do you want to be a guest on the show? Reach out and let me know. simon@simondadleymoore.com

Let’s embrace technology and the future. We have a responsibility to find ways to share our conflict resolution skills with the generations to come.