The TKI model, interest-based negotiation, mediation steps and the de-escalation language that defuses the moment — so disagreements turn into better decisions, not damaged trust.
Conflict at work doesn't usually start as conflict. It starts as a missed expectation, a hallway comment, a passive-aggressive Slack message. By the time it's named as "a conflict" it's already weeks old, the parties have rehearsed their positions, and the manager intervening is walking in 30 minutes too late.
This workshop is built on the Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Mode Instrument (TKI) — the framework used in almost every credible UK leadership programme — combined with the interest-based negotiation principles from Roger Fisher and William Ury's Getting to Yes (the Harvard Negotiation Project). It's the framework that scales from a Slack disagreement to a contract dispute.
The day is built around real conflicts your team are sitting on. Delegates bring a live case, map it against TKI, practise mediation between two colleagues, and leave with a 30-day repair plan — not a workbook.
Built on Thomas-Kilmann + Fisher & Ury (Harvard Negotiation Project)Every TESS workshop is designed backwards from the change you want to see in your team's behaviour. Here's what coaching graduates do differently on the Monday after.
TKI as a diagnostic — know whether the conflict needs accommodating, compromising, collaborating, avoiding or competing.
A repertoire of language that drops the temperature without ducking the substance.
A 6-step mediation script that gets two people from "you're wrong" to a written agreement.
Move past positions ("I want X / I want Y") to interests ("because…") — where most of the deals get done.
Address behaviour without breaking the relationship — the SBI model applied to a conflict context.
A 30-day repair plan — what to say, what to do, what to leave alone.
Full-day format shown. The half-day version focuses on the morning blocks with a condensed live round at the end.
Genuinely the first time I've left a coaching course able to do it on Monday. The live rounds with feedback made the difference. My 1:1s have completely changed shape.
Pricing depends on group size, delivery mode (live online vs in-person) and whether we tailor the curriculum to your sector. Closed cohorts start from a few hundred pounds per delegate for half-day workshops and scale from there. Book a 15-minute discovery call and we'll give you a concrete figure within 24 hours.
Half day works for teams who already know the TKI model and want the de-escalation language drilled. Full day is the right choice when this is the team's first formal conflict workshop — the afternoon's mediation practice with practitioner feedback is what people remember a year later.
We're flexible. Most cohorts run with 10–20 delegates, but we regularly deliver for smaller groups of 2–4, particularly for senior teams or specialised sectors. The live coaching rounds work better with even numbers, but we'll make any group work.
Live online is our default and works well for coaching — breakout rooms make the practice rounds work cleanly. We also deliver in-person at your site or a venue you choose, particularly when the cohort already work in the same room.
Typical lead time from a first call to delivery is 2–4 weeks. We can move faster if you need to — the limiting factor is usually your calendar, not ours.
Yes. The frameworks (GROW, TGROW, observable behaviours) stay the same; the examples, exercises and case studies are tailored to your sector, tools and your team's real work. We discuss this on the discovery call and rebrief the practitioner before delivery.
Yes. Every delegate receives a CPD-certified digital certificate on completion. The certificate references the hours of learning and the frameworks covered, so it can be added directly to a CPD record for any chartered or professional body.
We allocate a TESS coaching practitioner based on your sector. All practitioners are independently qualified coaches (ILM Level 5 or equivalent) with active corporate coaching practices. We'll send the named practitioner's bio after the discovery call.
Two ways in. Book a 30-minute discovery call below, or fill out the form and we'll reply within 24 hours with cohort options for your group.