Feature By internationally renowned mediator and conflict specialist, Jane Gunn (Global Leader – Who’s Who Mediation & Legal 500 Hall of Fame 2025) According to https://weforum.org reports 2026, uncertainty is the defining theme of the global risks outlook in 2026, both in the short and long term, with 50% of respondents anticipating either a turbulent or stormy outlook over the next two years, rising to 57% over the next 10 years. Globally, economic pressures, resource scarcity, and political instability are increasing tensions, geopolitical jitters, and conflict, which are also being mirrored at the leadership and team levels within the workplace. At an organisational level, during times of national or global insecurity and volatility, production can stall, costs can spike, and profits may dip, meaning budgets are squeezed, growth plans are frozen, and recruitment may falter, all of which can contribute to tension and disputes. Yet in Deloitte’s 2026 Global Human Capital Trends survey, seven of 10 business leaders say their primary strategy over the next three years is to be fast and nimble. This tests business resilience and means priorities change, and we have to be at our best. Individually, many of us fear rising prices and a lack of job security, which affects engagement, and our desire to change jobs is often “put on hold”. According to the British Safety Council, one in three (35 per cent) workers said they’re not comfortable letting their line manager or senior leader know they’re experiencing high or extreme levels of pressure and stress at work. Adrenaline and cortisol are high, and they inevitably affect our physiology and how we think and behave. We can become stuck, and when under stress, we experience things in a much more heightened way, and tension rises. So how is global tension being mirrored by leaders in the workplace? Leaders don’t truly understand how to de-escalate. Many global and business leaders handle escalating tensions poorly because they don’t accurately anticipate the consequences and haven’t actively listened. Both types of leaders leave it too late, allowing conflict to escalate when negotiation and mediation could have been an effective early intervention. Global, and often business, leaders are not trained in conflict and responsibility and lack the skill sets. Who is calling the shots? Global leaders often fear losing face and are even prepared to take us to the edge of the abyss to save their face. They continue to blunder on, often lacking courage, morality and empathy. Some are playing to the gallery, posturing and trying to impress those watching. If we see global leaders behaving without empathy, we may well model it. Many of us are afraid to stand up to people who have high levels of charisma or power, which encourages further poor behaviour and a toxic culture. In the workplace, we are also seeing ringleaders motivated by their own gains and use tools to censor, cancel, eliminate, coerce, control and exclude. Conflict Specialist Reveals Surprising Overlap Between War and Work Tension Do we rarely care about our people’s needs and interests? Many leaders are divorced from their population’s or workers’ needs. On a global level, what does that country need, and what are its interests? Secure borders, rights to minerals, or simply survival and the protection of families and livelihoods? In the workplace, do employers know or care about what their employees might need, from flexibility, to training, feeling valued and engaged in their work? Conflict Solutions in The Workplace (and perhaps Globally) Don’t exploit when there is a power imbalance Rather than a desperate all-encompassing need to win, it takes real coverage to step back from the brink. Once you declare you are right, it’s harder. When you recognise you have power over people step back to see what they are experiencing, and how it might affect them and their lives, and understand their triggers. Don’t ask for compliance and seek differing opinions. Soft skills make for effective dialogue. Whilst more empathy and compassion are needed, they are often considered soft skills, yet in many situations seem incredibly hard to implement. Diplomacy and negotiation, conflictresolution innovations, and finding structured ways to reduce tension before it implodes are achieved through cooperation and understanding, and a proactive, collaborative mindset. Winning is rarely the most important factor in reality. That’s just ego. In times of conflict, leaders need to ensure deep listening, compassion and empathy for those affected by their decisions, and the parties in conflict need to move away from the drive to win a showdown. Take time and space to reflect, especially when tensions are escalating. Early recognition that all is not well, and the use of a well-thought-out blueprint, are much more effective than ploughing on whilst things get worse.
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