Business Conflict Resolution

What if conflict is not the problem - but one of an organization's greatest untapped resources? Business Conflict Resolution: An Appreciative ADR Approach challenges the conventional view of conflict as something to be minimized or resolved. Instead, it frames conflict as a strategic resource that can foster learning, innovation, stronger relationships, better decisions, and sustainable organizational value. Building on the foundations of Appreciative Inquiry and extending beyond traditional Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR), the book introduces Appreciative ADR (AADR) - an original framework that transforms conflict through inquiry, collaboration, and value creation. Rather than emphasizing settlement alone, Appreciative ADR equips readers to view conflict as a catalyst for organizational growth and long-term success. By integrating theory and practice, the book examines negotiation, mediation, arbitration, conflict coaching, leadership, governance, multiparty collaboration, conflict system design, evaluation, litigation, and emerging challenges, including artificial intelligence. Richly supported by original figures, tables, case studies, Conflict Resolution Labs (CR Labs), skill drills, and reflective learning activities, it offers practical tools for both the classroom and the workplace. Written for students, managers, ADR practitioners, consultants, and organizational leaders, this book offers a bold new vision of conflict - one in which the highest purpose of conflict resolution is not merely to end disagreement but to create the conditions for people and organizations to learn, adapt, collaborate, and flourish.