Barney was a human rights lawyer in South Africa who realised that the law only works for people who can afford to access it. This sparked his interest in negotiation, mediation and other consensus-seeking approaches.

He now focuses on negotiation, conflict leadership and resolving disputes that impact organisations. At Vlerick, he teaches on the MBA, Masters, open executive and company-specific programmes. And he's the Programme Director of our Masters in General Management programme. He is co-founder and chair of the Institute for Negotiation Innovation. He also provides negotiation and conflict coaching and helps organisations develop coherent corporate negotiation strategies.  

Before joining Vlerick, he held positions as Professor of Law and Professor of Negotiation at leading business schools in South Africa.
A senior mediator, Barney is certified by the International Mediation Institute, as well as by the ADR Group (UK), the Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution (CEDR, UK) and the Africa Centre for dispute Settlement (ACDS). Until June 2014, he was also consultant to the World Bank Group’s Office of Mediation Services. He has been listed annually in the International Who’s Who of Commercial Mediators since 2011.