MBA graduate awarded 'Workplace Mediator of the Year'

MBA graduate Marie Coombes awarded 'Workplace Mediator of the Year 2020' at the National Mediation Awards in her first year of business

Marie was nominated for 'Workplace Mediator of the Year' by one of her clients for her excellence in the field of mediation and in particular for her expertise in mental health and her rapid adaptation to online mediation in the face of the Covid19 pandemic.

In September 2019, Marie decided to set up her own business We Restore Calm - specialising in helping organisations improve employee wellbeing by the use of resolution-focused employee relations and effective conflict management. Marie conducts mediations for clients ranging from TSB to HSBC and Cadent Gas, as well as running a variety of inhouse and open training programmes, including the flagship National Certificate in Workplace Mediation.

“The pride I felt at being nominated for a National Mediation Award was, I felt, an amazing end to my first year in business. To be shortlisted was an honour; to win is beyond words. Gaining recognition for my vision, values and the work I do, not only from people I work directly with but from the wider industry, is something I only dreamed of and thought was years away from happening.”

Marie Coombes, Workplace Mediator of the Year 2020

Marie graduated in 2013 with a MBA, she became a full time mediator in 2014 progressing her 13 year career at Royal Mail to become Industrial Relations Mediator (out of 700 applications). During that time, she specialised in human resources, change management, industrial relations, employee engagement and conflict resolution.

Marie’s strong relationships with union officials, employees and management at all levels, has smoothed the way to successful outcomes in 95% of over 200 cases. Now, as well as offering 2-party and team mediation, she specialises in helping organisations improve employee wellbeing, absenteeism rates and engagement by the use of resolution-focused employee relations and effective conflict management. She also offers mediation supervision as well as coaching in mental wellbeing, conflict, personal and career progression.

Marie is a strong advocate of the need for organisations to reframe the way they manage conflict resolution, in particular shifting away from divisive formal policies towards more collaborative, constructive approaches such as mediation and facilitated conversations.

Marie runs her business from her home in South Yorkshire and is a Member of the Civil Mediation Council (CMC) and a Fellow of the Chartered Management Institute. She said; “Away from the mediation room, I’m a huge believer in self-care and managing your wellbeing, especially doing the work I do which can be draining on its best day. I go to the gym, but I’m not your typical “30 minutes on a treadmill.” I love lifting weights - the heavier the better - as I find building physical strength and stamina helps maintain my mental strength. Aside from that I love walking my dogs, Lilly & Gnasher, reading both for fun and industry related works, spending time with family and friends and, despite being from Yorkshire, watching Rugby Union.”