MEET IRVINE
Dr. Irvine Nugent, CSP
Workplace Conflict Keynote Speaker
A WORKPLACE CONFLICT SPEAKER WHO HAS LIVED THE QUESTIONS
Conflict Has Never Been an Abstract Subject
For Dr. Irvine Nugent, growing up during Northern Ireland’s Troubles meant that even a trip to the shops came with reminders of danger: security searches, bomb scares and sudden evacuations. The anxiety stayed with him long after he returned home.
Growing up around conflict didn’t make him comfortable with it. He learned to fear what it could do. For years, he avoided difficult conversations and hoped tension would resolve itself—a history that still leads him to describe himself as a “recovering conflict coward.”
Later, in senior leadership roles, keeping the peace often felt like the right thing to do. But he began to recognize the cost of conversations left unspoken and problems left unaddressed.
The circumstances were different, but he recognized his own impulse to avoid tension. Understanding that response became deeply personal—and central to his work with leaders.
Those experiences sparked a lasting question: What happens to us when tension rises—and what helps us stay grounded enough to choose what we do next?
That question has shaped Irvine’s research, professional work and approach to the stage.
ON STAGE
Serious Insight. Deeply Human Delivery.
Workplace conflict is a serious subject, but exploring it does not have to feel heavy.
Dr. Irvine Nugent combines compelling personal stories, thoughtful humor, behavioral insight and practical application to help audiences recognize themselves in the situations he describes.
Irvine helps people notice what pressure changes in them—and practice ways to pause, get curious and choose a more constructive response when a conversation gets difficult.
Audiences are invited to laugh, reflect and reconsider the assumptions shaping how they approach tension and difficult conversations.
What Irvine brings to every keynote:
Compelling storytelling
Thoughtful, natural humor
Research-informed insight
Practical ideas audiences can apply
CREDENTIALS & EXPERIENCE
Depth Behind the Delivery
Irvine’s perspective is informed by academic research, senior leadership experience and years of working directly with leaders navigating workplace conflict and pressure.
His credentials and experience include:
PhD in Management
Research examining leadership behavior in high-pressure environments
Professional Certified Coach (PCC)
Advanced Credential awarded by the International Coaching Federation
Facial Action Coding System Certified
Trained to observe the subtle facial movements involved in human interaction
Co-Founder of Conflict EQ
Co-developer of the Conflict-to-Connection Approach and Conflict EQ Compass
Certified Speaking Professional (CSP)
One of only 700 worldwide to hold this speaking distinction.
Certified Workplace Mediator
Trained to help people navigate difficult workplace conflict
Senior Leadership Experience
Firsthand experience leading people, organizations and change
Author
Author of Leadership Lessons From the Pub, exploring emotional intelligence, leadership and conflict.
TRUSTED EXPERIENCE
Proven in Rooms Where Pressure Is Real
Irvine has delivered keynotes and leadership programs for government agencies, corporations, healthcare organizations, nonprofits and professional associations.
“Irvine had us at hello. Through masterful storytelling and sharp humor, he reframed how our senior leadership team thinks about conflict. His approach was immediately practical, deeply human and exactly what our teams needed.”
PAM COFFEY, VP LEARNING, FHFA
CONFLICT EQ
The Work Behind the Keynotes
Irvine’s keynotes are grounded in Conflict EQ™, a research-informed body of work focused on what conflict does to people under pressure—and what helps them remain grounded, clear and constructive when tension rises.
Developed through the work of co-founders Dr. Irvine Nugent and Trista Schoonmaker, Conflict EQ includes the Conflict-to-Connection Approach and the Conflict EQ Compass—practical models for understanding conflict, engaging constructively and sustaining connection.
For organizations seeking support beyond the keynote, Conflict EQ offers workplace conflict training, coaching, mediation, team conflict support and research-informed resources.
BRING IRVINE TO YOUR EVENT
Looking for a Workplace Conflict Speaker Who Brings Depth—and Humanity?
Dr. Irvine Nugent combines lived experience, research-informed insight, compelling stories and thoughtful humor to help audiences see workplace conflict differently.
If your leaders are navigating tension, difficult conversations or the pressure of leading people, let’s talk about your audience and what would make the experience matter.