Tom Melançon

Mediator ● Facilitator ● Trainer ● Ombuds
Seattle, WA | 206-498-2897 | tommelancon@me.com
https://www.linkedin.com/in/tommelancon/

Senior Mediator & ADR Program Leader with 20+ years’ experience in collective bargaining, EEO mediation, facilitation, and training. Proven track record launching virtual ADR systems, leading multi-site labor-management interventions, and delivering high-resolution outcomes for federal and local stakeholders. 

WORK EXPERIENCE 

Consulting & Freelance Work | July 2025 to Present 

  • Conducted a complex multi-party mediation for a well-known Security Company to mitigate a potentially volatile situation with a disgruntled constituent. 

National Projects Mediator, Federal Mediation & Conciliation Service (FMCS)
October 2019 to September 2025 

  • Co-led national labor-management relationship initiative for a major water utility and affiliated unions across 12+ sites; coordinated cross-country FMCS mediator teams and improved labor-management engagement.

  • Developed a national strategy for FMCS to pro-actively engage with a well-known Food Service Company and its union-organizing Employees; coordinated an agency-wide effort to contact both sides and offer training on effective collective bargaining negotiation and best practices in labor-management relations.

  • Designed and implemented emergency virtual mediation program within 3 weeks at pandemic onset; developed training, sandboxes, and job aids and trained 30–40 field mediators to support agency-wide remote operations (including use of Ring Central Meetings, Zoom, and MS Teams Video).

  • Achieved a high settlement rate mediating complex collective bargaining and EEO disputes, resolving dozens of high-profile cases.

  • Developed and delivered ADR trainings and workshops for Harvard Kennedy School, MIT, University of Washington Evans School of Public Affairs, the Association of Labor Relations Agencies (ALRA), Northwest and National Labor and Employment Relations (LERA) conferences, and national FMCS events; trained hundreds of participants and produced reusable curricula and materials.

  • Piloted an AI-assisted group facilitation platform with MIT and Cortico; evaluated system capabilities and made recommendations for FMCS adoption and implementation

Field Mediator, Northwest Region, Federal Mediation & Conciliation Service (FMCS)
June 2016 to October 201

  • Mediated complex disputes for parties negotiating collective bargaining agreements in the public and private sectors with a 70-80% settlement rate.

  • Adeptly settled time-sensitive disputes to avoid costly strikes and/or lockouts in healthcare, non-profit, manufacturing, service, and other industries in Washington, Montana, and Alaska.

  • Masterfully led training groups in such topics as Collective Bargaining Contract Administration, Resolving Grievances at the Lowest Level, Negotiation Techniques for Success, Implicit Bias, and Constructive Conflict Management.  

Program Manager, Seattle Federal Executive Board (SFEB) Dispute Resolution Program
June 2009 to June 2016 

  • Recruited, hired, trained, coached, and evaluated 50-75 volunteer mediators who successfully resolved hundreds of cases over a 7-year period.

  • Saved Federal Agencies and taxpayers $1-3M annually as estimated by an Air Force study of the costs for formal and informal EEO cases that went to court.

  • Co-created a 2-Day Conflict Management for Supervisors and a 1-Day Collaborative Conflict Resolution for Employees training program, used to successfully upskill hundreds of Federal Supervisors and Employees from over 20 agencies across five states.

  • Conducted collective bargaining, grievance mediation, and interest-based bargaining sessions for Federal clients; coached leaders and union reps in negotiation techniques; and facilitated multi-party problem solving.

  • Served as internal ombuds and conflict coach, reducing repeat disputes and improving workplace relations

EDUCATION  

M.A. in Educational Psychology
University of Nevada-Reno

B.A. in Business Administration
University of Nevada-Reno

Certifications

Advanced Mediation Practices                                                     
Straus Institute, Pepperdine U.
Certificate in Songwriting             
U. of Washington and the Experience Music Project (EMP)