I am a member of the UCSF workplace mediation team trained by Marvin Schwartz.
Marvin trains us in a style of mediation that can be used by a single mediator or by comediators in situations where that would be effective. I was called upon to mediate a case involving two supervisors. Due to the circumstances and the anticipated difficulty of the case, the mediation office chose to call on Marvin to comediate, and we worked as a team.
The training that I took from Marvin a few years earlier was excellent, but working with him was an amazing experience. His ability to take a situation in which two supervisors were not speaking to each other and turn it into a conclusion that saw them all but hugging on the way out was extraordinary. Under his masterful guidance, the supervisors were able to get beyond their perceptions to the depths of what was really going on for them and convert their adversarial stance into a cooperative exploration of their different viewpoints and repair of the damage they had done to themselves and each other. He turned a dysfunctional relationship into a renewed sense of teamwork that saved us all time, effort and angst.
This is what should happen in all cases of workplace disagreements and misunderstandings that have gotten to the point where outside assistance is needed. UCSF got lucky choosing Marvin to provide this institution with such an internal ability.