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Description

Constructive Communication: Listening, Expressing Needs and Defusing Tension

Move beyond conversations that go nowhere by regaining control of listening and wording

  • 2 days — 14 h
  • In-person or virtual
  • Foundation
  • Up to 6 participants

Within a team, most tensions do not stem from disagreement itself but from the way it is expressed. Criticism hardens, each person defends their position, and the same topics resurface meeting after meeting without ever being resolved.

Over two days, this programme establishes a way of interacting grounded in facts, active listening and the clear expression of needs. You work on the working relationships that cost you the most and leave with wording that has been tested and refined with the group.

Learning objectives

  • Distinguish facts from interpretation in a tense exchange
  • Practise listening that checks understanding of the message
  • Express a need without putting the other person at fault
  • Reframe criticism as a workable request
  • Close a difficult conversation with an agreed way of working

What makes this programme different

Situations are brought by participants themselves and then replayed with the group
Dedicated time on written exchanges that escalate over email
A preparation template for difficult conversations to take away after the two days

Programme

1Observing Without Judging

Facts, Interpretation and Emotions

  • Separating the observed fact from the interpretation attached to it
  • Identifying the words that trigger defensiveness in others
  • Naming the emotion felt without making the other person responsible for it
  • Describing a tense situation in factual terms

2Listening For Real

Questioning and Reformulation

  • Allowing the other person to finish their point
  • Questioning to understand rather than to reply
  • Reformulating to check what has been understood
  • Identifying the need behind the complaint

3Stating Your Position

Needs and Requests

  • Expressing your need in the first person
  • Turning criticism into a workable request
  • Setting a boundary without making it a threat
  • Accepting a no and proposing a way forward

4Handling Tense Situations

Recurring Conflicts and Written Exchanges

  • Conducting a discussion on an issue that keeps coming back
  • Defusing rising tension in a meeting
  • Recovering a written exchange that has escalated
  • Formalising an agreed way of working

Who is it for

Team members, managers and cross-functional roles dealing with strained working relationships.

Prerequisites

No prerequisites

Dates & locations

36 scheduled dates between November 2026 and December 2027. Seats are confirmed in the order enquiries are received.

November 2026

December 2026

January 2027

February 2027

March 2027

April 2027

May 2027

June 2027

September 2027

October 2027

November 2027

December 2027

None of these dates suit you? We open additional sessions on request, and any programme can be run privately for your team.

Practical details

Before the programme
Online positioning questionnaire. Your development objectives are shared with the trainer, who tailors the practical case studies to your context.
Teaching methods
Theoretical input, workshops and practical case studies. Digital course materials and method sheets provided.
Assessment
Multiple-choice tests and role-play exercises. Assessment of learning at the start and end of the programme, with immediate and 60-day follow-up evaluations.
After the programme
One year of access to the e-learning platform. Self-assessment of the skills acquired and a 30-day follow-up session with your trainer.
How to register
Registration online or on the basis of a quotation.
Lead time
11 working days after confirmation of registration.
Accessibility
Accessible to people of determination. Contact our accessibility coordinator to design a suitable solution: contact@mpf-academy.ae
Start dates
Rolling intake: in addition to the scheduled sessions, this programme can start on request.