Robert A. Sedlák
Founder and CEO transformis Consulting SE | Guest Professor ECNU Shanghai | Certified Business Mediator (German Mediation Act) | Head of the Family Businesses competence team
Succession in transformation
Conflict Resolution and Family Mediation
Resolving blocking conflicts in the business family and shareholder group in a structured way and regaining the ability to decide.
Differing interests, values and goals are part of every business family. It becomes critical when conflicts between the logic of family, shareholders and company paralyse decisions and working together in the family, shareholder or management circle hardly seems possible any more. Structured conflict resolution and, where necessary, family mediation can then help.
What you come away with
- A shared understanding of the issues and interests in conflict
- Options for action and a jointly supported decision
- Agreements on implementation and on handling conflict in future
How we work
- 01
Clarify the concern
Determine the parties, the issues in conflict and the appropriate format.
- 02
Hear the perspectives
Take in the views, feelings and needs of everyone involved.
- 03
Develop options
Work out options for action and assess them together.
- 04
Agree and implement
Record a jointly supported decision and accompany its implementation.
Understanding the conflict
We begin by clarifying what is really at stake and who is involved. Many conflicts in family businesses arise from the different logics of family, ownership and company. What seems fair from the family's point of view need not match the shareholders' interests or the company's requirements. We distinguish between conflicts that can be resolved through clarification and agreement and structural tensions that have to be managed over the long term.
Restoring the ability to decide
Conflict resolution follows a clear sequence. Perspectives are gathered, feelings are taken into account and needs are clarified. The parties then work out options for action, reach a jointly supported decision and put it into practice. The aim is a solution that allows decisions to be both familial and professional.
Mediation does not seek compromise at any price, but a solution that everyone involved can support.
Mediation when positions have hardened
If positions are so entrenched that the parties can no longer find a solution on their own, mediation may be the right step. It is a confidential and structured procedure in which the parties seek an amicable solution voluntarily and on their own responsibility. At transformis, Frédéric Sedlák is responsible for family mediation; like Robert A. Sedlák, he is a certified business mediator under the German Mediation Act.
Book an initial callWhat characterises mediation
Mediation assumes that the parties to a conflict are best placed to find a suitable solution themselves. A conflict can, however, change how people deal with each other to the point where they talk more about the problem than about a solution. Mediation provides a safe structure, stabilises communication and opens up an understanding of the other side's perspective.
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It follows fixed principles: voluntary participation, confidentiality, transparency, personal responsibility of the parties, knowledge of all facts relevant to the decision, openness as to outcome, commitment and the mediator's impartiality towards all parties. The focus is less on working through the past than on forward-looking solutions that all sides can accept.
Placing conflicts in the family business in context
Family businesses repeatedly confront those involved with dilemmas, because attachment, ownership and economic decisions meet. Succession conflicts can place a particularly heavy strain on family and company. Before a mediation begins, we therefore examine which format is appropriate: a facilitated clarification meeting, conflict resolution within the family or shareholder group, or mediation in the narrower sense.
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What happens after an agreement is just as important. Agreements are recorded in such a way that they can be implemented in the family and the company. Where recurring conflicts stem from missing rules, family governance with a set of rules for dealing with conflict can be the next step.
Deliverables: A shared understanding of the issues and interests in conflict; Options for action and a jointly supported decision; Agreements on implementation and on handling conflict in future.
Mediation requires voluntary participation and replaces neither legal advice nor court proceedings. The parties clarify legal questions about their agreements with their own lawyers. Whether the same people can both advise and mediate is clarified in advance, because mediation requires impartiality towards all parties.
Frequently asked questions
When is conflict resolution enough, and when is mediation needed?
Conflict resolution is often enough when the parties are still talking to each other and what is mainly missing is a structure for decisions. Mediation may be appropriate when positions have hardened to the point where further cooperation hardly seems possible without a solution. We clarify which format fits in a preliminary conversation.
Who conducts the family mediation?
Frédéric Sedlák is responsible for family mediation. Robert A. Sedlák and Frédéric Sedlák completed their training at the Mediationsakademie Berlin in 2021 and are certified business mediators under the German Mediation Act.
How long does conflict resolution take?
For restoring the ability to decide, our service portfolio describes a period of two to four weeks. The actual duration depends on the number of people involved and the depth of the conflict and is agreed in the mandate.
Prefer to talk directly?
What decision are you facing? Together, we clarify your situation, the people involved and the right next step.
Your initial call
Let’s talk about your situation and what you want to develop in your organisation.
- Your situation
- What brings you to us
- Possible next steps