BRIAN GANSON
Cape Town, South Africa ▪ +27 21 813 6364 ▪ Mobile +27 79 429 0703 ▪ Brian@Ganson.org ▪ www.ganson.org
Résumé of Experience
B RIAN G ANSON C ONSULTING ▪ C APE T OWN , S OUTH A FRICA & B OSTON , M ASSACHUSETTS
Consultant to senior public and private sector leaders on socio-political risk, conflict prevention and negotiation.
Support analysis, strategy development and operational planning for particularly complex environments.
Monitoring & Evaluation Expert for programs in post-conflict and volatile societies. 1998 to present.
T HE A FRICA C ENTRE FOR D ISPUTE S ETTLEMENT ▪ U NIVERSITY OF S TELLENBOSCH B USINESS S CHOOL
Senior Researcher and consultant on conflict prevention and risk mitigation strategies for conflict-prone and
complex environments, including individual skills, organizational systems and processes, inter-organisational
mechanisms, and the role of neutrals. Lecturer in negotiation and conflict resolution. 2010 to present.
T HE F LETCHER S CHOOL OF L AW AND D IPLOMACY ▪ T UFTS U NIVERSITY
Senior Fellow, Center for Emerging Market Enterprises. Launched the initiative on Strategy, Operations and
Leadership for Emerging and Frontier Economies. Adjunct Assistant Professor teaching international negotiation
and law & development. Senior Researcher, Center for Human Rights & Conflict Resolution. 2000 to present.
C ENTRE ON C ONFLICT , D EVELOPMENT AND P EACEBUILDING ▪ T HE G RADUATE I NSTITUTE , G ENEVA
Research Associate and facilitator through the Geneva Peacebuilding Platform of research-supported multi-sectoral
dialogue on the roles of economic, development, peacebuilding, government and civil society actors in conflict
prevention in the context of large-scale business investment in fragile environments. 2012 to present.
C ONFLICT M ANAGEMENT G ROUP ▪ C AMBRIDGE , M ASSACHUSETTS
Director with the NGO founded by Professor Roger Fisher, applying innovations of the Harvard Negotiation Project
to achieve practical progress in intense and protracted conflicts around the globe. 1998 to 2000.
M ITCHELL M ADISON G ROUP ▪ N EW Y ORK , N EW Y ORK
Manager and co-founder of the Organisation Practice of a global strategy consulting firm. Advised Fortune 100
companies on organisational design and organisational performance. 1996 to 1998.
US D EPARTMENT OF E DUCATION , O FFICE FOR C IVIL R IGHTS ▪ W ASHINGTON , DC
Chief of Staff to the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights. Primary responsibilities included budget, strategic planning,
information technology and organizational performance. The Vice President three times awarded OCR the Heroes
of Reinvention ("Hammer") Award for its innovative approaches to civil rights enforcement. 1993 to 1996.
H ARVARD N EGOTIATION P ROJECT ▪ P ROGRAM ON N EGOTIATION AT H ARVARD L AW S CHOOL
Instructor. Developed context-specific capabilities in negotiation, mediation, conflict analysis and conflict
management for diplomats, government officials, business executives, and civil society leaders from around the
globe. 1989 to 1996.
T EXAS R URAL L EGAL A ID , I NC . ▪ B ROWNSVILLE , T EXAS
Attorney focusing on minority rights. Combined litigation and advocacy to achieve systemic higher education
reform. Led the creation of a community-based mediation program. Court Appointed Mediator in Federal District
Court cases. 1989 to 1993.
Education
H ARVARD L AW S CHOOL
Juris Doctorate awarded cum laude 1989. Ferguson Fellow in Human Rights and Development with the Legal
Resources Foundation of Zimbabwe. Associate Editor of the H ARVARD I NTERNATIONAL L AW J OURNAL . Research
Assistant to Professor Detlev Vagts for private and public international law topics.
T HE F LETCHER S CHOOL OF L AW AND D IPLOMACY ▪ T UFTS U NIVERSITY
Master of Arts in Law and Diplomacy awarded 1989. Concentrations in Public International Law, International
Trade and International Conflict Management. Teaching Assistant for Tufts College course in International Law.
U NIVERSITY OF M ICHIGAN
Bachelor of Arts awarded magna cum laude 1985. Included one year of study at the Institut d'Etudes Politiques in
Aix-en-Provence, France. Family Mediator with Ozone House, a runaway shelter and crisis counselling centre.
L ANGUAGES : fluent in English and French; proficient in German and Spanish
BRIAN GANSON
Cape Town, South Africa ▪ +27 21 813 6364 ▪ Mobile +27 79 429 0703 ▪ Brian@Ganson.org ▪ www.ganson.org
Professional Profile
Brian Ganson advises senior leaders of multi-national corporations, inter-governmental organizations,
development agencies, and non-governmental organisations on conflict prevention and risk mitigation. He
helps improve strategy, governance, performance management, stakeholder engagement and operational
capabilities to better manage risk and enable success across a full range of goals – technical, financial, legal,
reputation and social – in emerging markets, conflict-prone countries, and other particularly challenging
environments. He integrates academic and field perspectives to provide practice- and policy-relevant insight,
whether in consulting engagements, reports and publications, or academic courses and workshops.
Substantive Expertise

Conflict prevention: including risk mitigation strategies, conflict management and negotiation,
peacebuilding, conflict-sensitive programming, mediation, and dispute systems design

Organisational effectiveness: including performance monitoring and evaluation, capabilities for complex
environments, cross-sectoral partnerships, governance, strategic planning, and organisational design

Human rights: including minority rights, business and human rights, regulation and enforcement of
human rights standards and practices, and inclusion and diversity

International law: including law and development, public and private international law, and international
human rights and humanitarian law
Senior Management Responsibility
Has strong track record managing significant budgets, staff, and project deliverables across sectors. Examples
include the following:

As a US Government official, led strategic planning and oversight of a $60 million annual operating budget
encompassing over 600 staff in 11 locations.

As a consulting firm manager, developed and led teams across organizations and geographies, managed
senior client interfaces, and guaranteed project budgets and deliverables.

As an NGO Director, maintained accountability to international sponsors for program funds and
deliverables across multiple partners in multi-country initiatives.
Contexts and Countries of Work Experience
Works independently and with other leading consultancies. Engages stakeholders from the grassroots
(village or shop floor) to senior leadership levels (CEOs or State Ministers) across contexts and cultures:

Has worked with the UN system (e.g., UNHCR, UNDP, UNMIS), global corporations (special emphasis on
extractive industries and pharmaceuticals), international development and peacebuilding organisations
(e.g., MercyCorps, Conciliation Resources, CDA / Collaborative Learning Projects), and with national and
local governments, NGOs, development agencies, academic institutions, and foundations.

Has project experience in Africa (Botswana, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, South Africa,
Uganda, Sudan, and Zimbabwe), Central and South America (Belize, Brazil, Colombia, and Suriname), Asia
(Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, People’s Republic of China, and Republic of China), the Near East (Israel and
Turkey), Eastern Europe (Bosnia & Herzegovina, Georgia / Abkhazia, Romania, Serbia / Kosovo, and
Slovakia), Western Europe (Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Spain, Sweden,
and United Kingdom / Northern Ireland), and North America (Canada, Mexico, and United States).
CURRICULUM VITAE OF BRIAN GANSON ▪ PAGE 2 OF 6
Expert Engagement
Frequently called on as an expert and thought leader in conflict prevention, peacebuilding, and operations in
conflict-prone environments. Examples include:

Member, Global Agenda Council on Fragile States & Conflict, World Economic Forum (current)

Member of the steering committee for ACCESS, an NGO that helps companies, communities and
governments implement rights-compatible, interest-based approaches to working together (current)

Senior researcher for an industry-funded initiative to develop the capacities of company leaders to
manage in conflict-prone and other complex environments (current)

Rapporteur and senior researcher for an on-going multi-stakeholder conference of the Geneva
Peacebuilding Platform on conflict prevention in the context of business investment (current)

Peer reviewer for the California Management Review for academic articles on strategy and operations in
emerging markets (current)

Expert Advisor to the United National Develop Program on its respective extractive sector strategies in
Africa (2013)

Member of the Expert Reference Panel for the Sub-Commission on Nation-Building of the National
Planning Commission, Presidency of the Republic of South Africa (2011-2012)

Steering committee member for the Group of Madrid funded “Walking Together” initiative in South Africa
to improve dialogue and civic engagement for economic, social, and political transformation (2011-2012)

Convener and facilitator for a Collaborative Learning Projects / Reflecting on Peace Practice reflection in
Southern Africa on the “adding up” of peacebuilding efforts for cumulative impact (2011)
Publications
Has demonstrated capacity to integrate academic and field perspectives to provide practice- and policyrelevant insight. Examples include:
Books & Chapters

Editor and lead author of MANAGING IN COMPLEX ENVIRONMENTS: QUESTIONS FOR LEADERS (Stockholm:
International Council of Swedish Industry 2013)

Co-author with Achim Wennmann of CONFRONTING RISK, MOBILIZING ACTION: A FRAMEWORK FOR CONFLICT
PREVENTION IN THE CONTEXT OF LARGE-SCALE BUSINESS INVESTMENTS (International Institute for Strategic Studies,
forthcoming)

Co-author with Diana Chigas of Grand Visions and Small Projects: Notes from the Field in South Eastern
Europe, in IMAGINE COEXISTENCE: RESTORING HUMANITY AFTER VIOLENT CONFLICT (Jossey Bass 2003, Antonia
Chayes & Martha Minow, editors)

Co-author with Roger Fisher et al. of COPING WITH INTERNATIONAL CONFLICT: A SYSTEMATIC APPROACH TO
INFLUENCE IN INTERNATIONAL NEGOTIATION (Prentice Hall 1997)

Editor of Roger Fisher et al., BEYOND MACHIAVELLI: TOOLS FOR COPING WITH CONFLICT (Harvard University
Press 1994)
Articles & Papers

Author of Business in Fragile Environments: Capabilities for Conflict Prevention. Negotiation and Conflict
Management Research Journal 7(2) 2014

Co-author with Achim Wennmann of Confronting Risk, Mobilizing Action: A Framework for Conflict
Prevention in the Context of Large-scale Business Investments (FES International Policy Analysis 2012)
CURRICULUM VITAE OF BRIAN GANSON ▪ PAGE 3 OF 6

Co-author with Achim Wennmann of Operationalising Conflict Prevention as Strong, Resilient Systems:
Approaches, Evidence, Action Points (Geneva Peacebuilding Platform 2012)

Author of Business and Conflict Prevention: Towards a Framework for Action (Geneva Peacebuilding
Platform 2011)
Published Reports

Co-author with Nicklas Svensson of An Evaluation of Conciliation Resources: Decennial Review,
2000 - 2010 (2010)

Co-author with Mary B. Anderson of the Report of the Fifth CDA/CEP Visit to the Yadana Pipeline in
Myanmar / Burma (2008)

Co-author with Eileen Babbitt et al. of Assessing Refugee Reintegration Efforts In Divided Communities,
submitted to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (2002)
Editorials & Press

Working together requires dialogue, Business Insight, April 2012

Collaborating for peace, Focus on Faculty, BizED, March / April 2012

Collaborations only work when properly managed, Leader.co.za, 1 December 2011

Bridging differences requires skill, Leader.co.za, 30 June 2011

Lessons for conflict and collaboration in the Karoo, Cape Business News, 1 May 2011
Monitoring and Evaluation
Has led or co-led any number of substantial evaluations at the intersection of peace building and
development, using mixed methods combining attitudinal research, key informant interviews, and data
analysis, applying OECD DAC criteria and UNEG norms to theory-based evaluations. Examples include:

Team Leader for the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affair’s five-year review of its peace mediation
strategies and programmes (2011). The evaluation focused on strategies for engagement, influence and
impact with internal and external stakeholders.

Led management section of the Independent Review of the UNMIS / UNDP DDR program in Sudan (2010).
The review focused on program relevance, efficiency and effectiveness in light of the evolving sociopolitical context, with special reference to program governance, management and leadership.

Team Leader for the Decennial Review of Conciliation Resources (2010). With a particular focus on Sierra
Leone and Georgia / Abkhazia, the review addressed cumulative peace building impact, including the
respective roles of donor and recipient organizations in defining, pursuing, and demonstrate value.

Co-led with Mary B. Anderson a periodic review of the operations of the Yadana Pipeline in Myanmar /
Burma during a period of intense political upheaval (2008). This study assessed the interrelationships
among corporate operations and social conflict at the local and national levels.

Co-led with Diana Chigas a meta-study evaluating coexistence projects spanning inter-communal activities
and dialogue, community reconstruction, and economic development, highlighting the challenges of
small-scale interventions to achieve impact in the face of on-going socio-political conflict (2003).

Led the Balkans team for a multi-year study monitoring programs to reduce inter-communal violence and
increase social acceptance of UNHCR refugee reintegration efforts in divided communities in Rwanda and
Bosnia & Herzegovina (2002).
CURRICULUM VITAE OF BRIAN GANSON ▪ PAGE 4 OF 6
Conflict Prevention and Conflict Management
Advises decision-makers on complex conflict dynamics. Facilitates development of conflict prevention and
conflict management strategies. Improves organizational systems and processes, often helping “hard”
functions (scientific, engineering, etc.) develop “soft” (conflict prevention, stakeholder management, dispute
resolution, etc.) capabilities. Examples include:

Developed strategies for building broader-based consensus on a comprehensive extractive industries
policy for a Latin American country, conducting a 360° stakeholder analysis across government, industry
and civil society stakeholders reporting highly polarized ethnic politics, mistrust, and political deadlock.

Aided the privatization board of an African national government to diagnose drivers of conflict and
develop stakeholder engagement strategies in the context of widespread labour and civil society
dissatisfaction with the privatization process.

Provided conflict analysis and strategic advice to an international bank facing escalating regulatory
pressure and threaten nationalization to keep a particularly contentious dispute from further damaging
its broader relationship with a Latin American government.

Advised the development agency tasked with the revitalization of the agricultural cooperative sector in
Kosovo on approaches for managing and ameliorating social conflict as it engaged in infrastructure,
agriculture, and business development projects in an environment of on-going inter-communal violence.

Collaborated with a local NGO in Belfast after the Good Friday Accord to develop tools, frameworks, and
approaches to jump-start civic engagement across communal boundaries, allowing citizens to solve local
problems without reverting to old patterns of mistrust or division along sectarian lines.

Advised the President of a major European technology corporation on the contentious breakup of a joint
venture with a client with whom the company had an on-going business relationship. Claims and
counterclaims amounted to more than € 100 million.

Advised a consortium of non-governmental organizations in Slovakia on the design of a stakeholder
engagement process to address exclusion of, and discrimination towards, Roma populations by public and
private institutions.

Worked with a global pharmaceutical company’s European organization to improve its quality of strategic
interaction with government stakeholders, allowing for more collaborative approaches to public health
issues of common concern.

Developed tools, processes and training to build capacity among senior technical experts of a global
company to engage with business leaders within their own organisation, leading to more collaborative
strategic planning and better integration of the function into the business.
Mediation, Multi-Stakeholder Processes and Dispute Systems Design
Has experience in formal mediation as both a practitioner and a trainer. Has developed dispute resolution
systems and multi-stakeholder processes at the local, national and international levels. Examples include:

Steering committee member for the international Company-Community Dialogue Facilitators Forum, a
project of the CSR Initiative at Harvard Kennedy School to develop more constructive and conflict-free
relationships between companies and the communities their activities affect.

Designed and co-led a multi-year consensus-building process to coordinate multiple stakeholder interests
in a contentious public policy dispute, facilitating the development of a higher education development
plan for the border region of Texas.

Advised a global pharmaceutical company on the design and implementation of governance structures
and processes to manage internal product benefit / risk decision-making and external communication.
CURRICULUM VITAE OF BRIAN GANSON ▪ PAGE 5 OF 6

Led efforts within the U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights to allow in appropriate cases for
more collaborative approaches to complaint resolution among students and parents, teachers, school
officials, and national authorities, resulting in improved efficiency, outcomes and stakeholder satisfaction.

Advised UNDP on the development of a facility for the mediation of public policy disputes in the
Carpathian Basin region with the goal of increasing regional cooperation in the post-communist period.

Facilitated the process among a global pharmaceutical company and its academic medical centre partners
across emerging markets to diagnose drivers of dysfunctional interaction and sub-optimal outcomes.

Designed and launched an independent housing advocacy project to provide training, information and
advocacy for low-income tenants, landlords, and magistrates, promoting problem-solving approaches and
diverting inappropriate cases from the courts.

Faculty supervisor with the Harvard Mediation Program in conjunction with the design and launch of a
Brownsville, Texas community dispute resolution program, including the training of the inaugural class of
community mediators.

Mediated settlement of civil rights lawsuits by appointment of the United States District Court, Eastern
District of Texas, as well as neighbour-to-neighbour and local business disputes in small claims court.

Certified mediator in Massachusetts, trained by the Harvard Mediation Program.

Trained and practiced in family mediation with a crisis counselling centre focused on runaway youth and
their families.
Teaching, Training and Course Development
Designs context-appropriate courses and engage students across different environments, contexts, and
demographic groups, whether in academic teaching or other workshops and seminars. Examples include:

University of Stellenbosch Business School. Faculty director for the negotiation component of the School’s
post-graduate diploma in conflict resolution. (2010-present)

Executive Education. Designs and delivers context-adapted workshops on negotiation and stakeholder
management in the U.S., Europe, Africa and Latin America. (ongoing)

Fletcher School of Law & Diplomacy, Tufts University. Adjunct Assistant Professor teaching international
negotiation and law & development to graduate students of international affairs. Nominated for the
James L. Paddock Teaching Award. (2001-2010)

Institute of International Relations, Suriname. Designed and delivered the institution’s first-ever postgraduate seminar in international negotiations. (2009)

Workers Education Association, Belfast. Collaborated to develop a curriculum and train trainers of leaders
of divided communities in Northern Ireland. (2002-2003)

Universidad Iberoamericana. Co-designed and delivered (in Spanish) an intensive negotiation workshop to
help that institution develop its new conflict resolution program. (1998)

Herndon, Virginia Public Schools. Helped design and pilot a conflict resolution curriculum for middle
school students mainstreamed into English, math, and other courses. (1995)

Harvard Law School Program of Instruction for Lawyers. Helped design and deliver intensive training for
diplomats, business executives, and attorneys. (1989-1994)

Texas Southmost College. While a legal aid attorney, designed and delivered the first-ever course in
Brownsville, Texas to train community mediators. (1992)

Texas Bar Association. Designed and delivered intensive continuing education workshops in negotiation
for legal aid attorneys. (1990-1991)

Harvard College. Teaching Fellow for an undergraduate course on international conflict and negotiation.
Received the Danforth Award for excellence in teaching. (1989)
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