Welcome. My name is Nicola Hartfield. I am a dispute resolution consultant.
Disputes are hard to resolve. They may arise from unintentional misunderstandings, long standing frustrations or as a result of organisational change. Whatever the circumstance, they cause us high levels of stress and anxiety.
Rarely do I see a dispute resolve without some sort of intervention. If it was easy to resolve, you would have resolved it. Mediation provides you with a trusted objective professional that will guide you through your misunderstandings and hurt. We are trained to assist you to speak about what is important to you and explore solutions that work.
I began my professional life as a health based social worker, specialising in child health, elder care and palliative care. This led me into the world of family, community and workplace relationships, dispute resolution and reconciliation. After completing a Post Graduate Diploma in Dispute Resolution in 2006, I gained my Fellowships in mediation for both Resolution Institute and the Arbitrators’ & Mediators’ Institute of New Zealand (AMINZ). I am accredited with an Australian Mediation Accreditation (AMDRAS). I was awarded the Anne Edge memorial prize for excellence in the AMINZ Mediation Fellowship exams and was named in the top ten family mediators by the National Business Review. In 2022, I was acknowledged by AMINZ with a Distinguished Service Award. I completed 30 hours of Elder Care Training in 2025.
I have a passion for mediating disputes where on-going relationships matter to the parties. These include the early intervention of workplace disputes, elder care matters and care of children disputes.
Alongside this work I am the lead tutor on the Arbitrators’ & Mediators’ Institute of New Zealand (AMINZ) 5-day Mediator’s Skills Course and provide bespoke trainings and coaching/supervision, to individuals, organisations and workplaces.
I am known for being professional, creative, hard- working and a safe pair of hands. I shift the obstacles that get in the way of agreements being reached.
While I am based in Whanganui, Aotearoa New Zealand, I travel nationally and internationally and provide online services as required.
I am a founding member of World Mediators Alliance on Climate Change (WoMACC). This means that I try to conduct my practice as close to carbon neutral as possible without it diminishing my effectiveness as a mediator, coach and teacher of dispute resolution.
