About

LAUREN SOWERS

I was a licensed private investigator for over a decade and played a pivotal role in countless conflicts.

An expert in OSINT (open-source intelligence), I spent years devoted to arming up one side or another, providing evidence or background information that places people into submission. I was a highly rated educator for conferences, seminars, and investigator continuing education on issues relating to the tools and ethics of online intelligence gathering. I managed multi-jurisdictional U.S. and global teams for digital and boots-on-the-ground investigations and served as Editor for the Council of International Investigators.

It was always satisfying when our due diligence helped clients win litigation or avoid bad deals. But some conflicts seemed destined to take over people’s lives.

I wanted to learn better ways for clients to solve problems while retaining control of their time, budget, and peace of mind.

That’s why, in 2019, I started a career shift toward communications, completing training and testing to become a Superior Court Mediator.

But that was just the start of my journey to improving lives through communications work.

While mediating and advising corporate and nonprofit clients on strategic communications, I pursued an M.S. in Conflict Resolution and Peacebuilding from The Carter School (GMU), with a concentration in Media, Narrative, and Public Discourse. My interdisciplinary and PR-focused communications degree covered psychology, rhetoric, storytelling, ecology, policy writing, and international relations.

As a SHRM-SCP, most of my work comes from businesses and nonprofits that want in-house solutions for their most demanding communication challenges. My favorite projects tell an organization’s story in an authentic and compelling way, improve employee experience, enhance conflict resolution, and build effective workflows.

My Favorite Projects Usually Include:

  • Writing and Design: My work shines in crafting visually compelling and strategically aligned communications assets. This includes publications, brand narratives, executive communications, and detailed internal or external guides. I support and enhance brand identity and internal cohesion through a range of assets, including executive speeches and style guides.

  • Strategic Communications: The strategic process is at the core of my work, beginning with meticulous requirements gathering and audience research. Clients bring me a muddled mass of ideas and documents, and I transform them into clear, impactful messages that solve complex challenges and play perfectly into broader strategies.

  • Data-Driven Insights: As a former OSINT investigator, I excel in harnessing data to inform and guide communication strategies. Through targeted interviews, surveys, and engaging in thorough research, I provide meaningful interpretations of in-house data, human knowledge base, and documentation. My analytical approach ensures that every communication strategy is grounded in concrete insights.

My family and I live in the beautiful mountains of Asheville, Western North Carolina. I enjoy gardening, biking, and playing music in my free time.

In recent years, my favorite books have been Ways of Being by James Bridle, The Overstory by Richard Powers, Wild Mind, Wild Earth by David Hinton, A Long Petal of the Sea by Isabel Allende, and every single book written by Lauren Groff, Marilynne Robinson, and Jhumpa Lahiri.

My Portfolio:

You can view a portfolio of my academic and professional work here.

My Credentials:

M.S., The Carter School, George Mason University; Conflict Analysis and Resolution: Media, Narrative, and Public Discourse

SHRM-SCP

NCDRC - North Carolina Dispute Resolution Commission Certified as a Mediator in Superior Court

SOLUTIONS FOR:

  • Compelling communications:
    Every company has a great story to tell. With a unique narrative and storytelling toolkit, I’ll map out your story in connection to your values and goals, tailoring it for audiences and multi-channel impact.

  • Collaboration between teams and business leadership guided by an SHRM-SCP:
    We can improve team morale and results by evaluating, designing, and implementing best practices for internal communications.

  • Superior Court cases: 
    I am certified by the NCDRC to conduct mediations for cases that land in Superior Court in the state of North Carolina.

  • Organizations pre/post-litigation: 
    I help resolve disputes for businesses and organizations before or after they reach litigation.

  • Businesses in-house: 
    I can reform conflict management structures and retrain for effective communications.

  • Community-driven change:

    Offering skilled conflict transformation for community groups and board relations, especially those in the public interest.

  • Families
    Custody, asset distribution, future cost-sharing plans, and agreements to optimize co-parenting and family reorganization. CoPs Certified.

MEMBERSHIPS + PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS

SOCIAL

As a licensed private investigator for over a decade specializing in OSINT (open source intelligence investigations), it was best for me not to develop a digital footprint. These days, I’m dabbling in a bit of content around conflict transformation.

What nobody tells you about neutrality…. A core tenet of mediation is that a neutral third party, someone without any stake in the conflict, can help facilitate a resolution. But how do you know if the neutral party is truly neutral? 🤔 Thi
In high conflict conversations, never start a sentence with the word YOU. “I” statements communicate to the listener that you’re owning your perspective, and seeing your perspective as of many potential versions of reality. We know
The thing I say the most in mediation to struggling co-parents or workplace adversaries? It’s this: “The best critique of the bad is the practice of the better.” - Richard Rohr prac·tice /ˈpraktəs/: perform (an activity) or
Be willing to begin again. One thing investigation and conflict resolution have in common: the element of surprise! Twists and turns are commonplace- inevitable, even. And if you haven’t found one in an investigation or a mediation, you can
It’s so tempting to avoid conflict. And it sometimes it even works… until it doesn’t! 🙈🙉🙊 Many of our reasons for avoiding conflict come from a kind, cooperative place. Sometimes, due to time constraints or needing more time t
Forget what you’ve heard about #bodylanguage and #truthtelling. There’s a lot of really bad information out there! One common misconception is that averting your eyes indicates deception. Back in 2022, I attended a training with Dawn Sw
Martin Luther King Jr. was educating us on more than one level here. Peace as a “presence” means that peace can be cultivated and brought forth. A “negative peace” is the simple form of peace- it is the absence of violence,
Check in on your stories. 🧐 When we’re in conflict, we’re also usually writing our own stories of the conflict in our minds. We often rationalize and organize our stories (and tell them to ourselves again and again) in anticipation of t
I love this quote because it encapsulates how very ✨active✨ peace-making is! We often think of peace as stillness or tranquility. And that can be true, depending on the subject at hand. For instance, a peaceful lake has a still surface. But when th
who knew that in-person mediation would still look like this in 2022? #mediation #conflictresolution