IMI is a non-profit Foundation and registered charity established in 2007 as a global public service initiative to drive transparency and high competency standards into mediation practice across all fields, worldwide. IMI is Internet-based and operates worldwide but has its main office in The Hague, The Netherlands.
Founders: American Arbitration Association, Netherlands Mediation Institute, Singapore Mediation Centre and Singapore International Arbitration Centre.
Board: Patrick Deane (Nestlé) (2010 Chair); Michael McIlwrath (GE) (2009 Chair);
Wolf von Kumberg (Northrop Grumman) (2008 Chair); Ute Joas Quinn (Shell);
Michael Leathes (ex Pfizer, IDV, BAT and first IMI Executive Director); Nominees of the Founder Institutions.
Executive Director: Irena Vanenkova. Operations Manager: Emma Ewart.
Independent Standards Commission: Chaired by Professor Ambassador Tommy Koh, the Independent Standards Commission comprises 60 thought leaders in the mediation field worldwide. It establishes the standards and criteria, supervises mediator ethics and comprises the grievance and disciplinary council.
Mission: To develop mediation into a free-standing profession over all fields worldwide based on high competency and ethical standards and to ensure transparency via Profiles including mandatory information and a summary of feedback by prior users. The Mission includes promoting and explaining mediation, providing objective materials for users and encouraging high standards of training.
Market Position: IMI does not provide any services in the market and has no income-generating activities. IMI is not a membership organization, does not act as a referral body, and does not compete with any other body. The organization is unique.
Progress: IMI has established Criteria for Qualifying Assessment Programs (QAPs) to enable suitable bodies to qualify mediators as IMI Certified [link to Criteria]. All QAPs are approved by the ISC. The IMI web portal provides an open search engine of IMI Certified Mediators to enable users to find the most suitable, competent mediators worldwide. Currently over 300 mediators have qualified for IMI Certification (400+ are in the process of qualifying). The IMI portal carries a Decision Tree to help users to find the right mediator and Conflict Evaluation tool as well as Leadership and Learnership sections to explain mediation’s many aspects and to inspire progress in the field.
Funding: Initial set-up costs covered by Founding Institutions. IMI is funded entirely by donations from Patrons and Sponsors, including IMI Certified Mediators who are invited to make Listing Contributions to cover the costs of the search engine development.
IMI is registered at the Chamber of Commerce in The Hague under number 27298864
Rabobank Den Haag en omgeving
Schoolstraat 65, Voorschoten
2502 AR Den Haag
The Netherlands
Account number: 1178.81.554
IBAN/BIC: NL96RABO0117881554
SWIFT: RABONL2U
VAT number IMI 81.77.76.709.B01
Any occupation wishing to exercise authority must find a technical basis for it, assert an exclusive jurisdiction, link both skill and jurisdiction to standards of training, and convince the public that its services are uniquely trustworthy and tied to a set of professional norms.
IMI has undertaken a task of immense importance, not merely in developing uniform standards of practice for conflict resolution, but in creating the foundation for an enormous increase in international conflict resolution capacity. If we are to solve global problems we will require not only global solutions, but global processes, methods and techniques. This will necessitate the development of a collaborative approach to diversity and uniformity in conflict resolution practices, and the creation of a global forum where our differences can be discussed, analyzed, learned from, and synergistically combined. IMI has taken the first step in bringing conflict resolution into the 21st century, by inviting us and the cultures and nations we represent to come together and learn from each other. Only in this way can we hope to overcome the obstacles we have created through conflict.
Mediation has come a long way, but still has much further to go. The field now needs to evolve quickly into a true profession. High minimum practice and ethical standards need to be set, made transparent and achieved internationally; users – customers – of mediation need to see these standards operating effectively. More and better information must be made available by individual mediators about their skills, capabilities and personalities. Quality and Transparency together will enable mediation to grow.
