Interactions of humans and wildlife are a global phenomenon. Management plans can mitigate occurring conflicts and reduce impacts of these interactions. Thereby not only ecological factors have to be considered and financial and technical solutions have to be found. Crucial for a successful conflict management is also the process that leads to the development of a conflict management plan. Previous experience on the development of conflict management plans dealing with human-wildlife interactions demonstrated that certain elements contribute to a successful process. Successful in this context means that solutions are enabled which go beyond compromises and which are beneficial for all involved. The key elements of successful processes are: •an understanding of conflicts which reflects that conflicts mostly have many causes, that positions of conflicting parties are partially contrasting and partially overlapping, and that positions are dynamic with time; •an appropriate stakeholder involvement throughout all steps of the process (from objective setting to monitoring); •a transparent, appreciative, and quality communication between all stakeholders as well as externals; •the consideration of various modes and opportunities to take decisions in a group and that it is decisive for process outcomes of how decisions are made and who can decide; •co-development of (parts of) the evidence-base for taking decisions regarding the conflict management plan; •the choice of methods to produce knowledge as they entail different opportunities to promote transparency or trust; •professional facilitation of the process, especially if more than 15 persons are involved. Processes for dealing with human-wildlife interactions are moreover effective, if −they are fair and transparent; −they promote trust building between those involved; −they consider opportunities and not only problems related to the process; −they find links to existing networks; −they are adaptively managed. For the development of conflict management plans one can learn from other countries. We examined selected plans that address human-wildlife interactions in the marine realm. The analysis found that management plans of other countries mostly have a comprehensive approach, i.e. they address interactions of human activities and seals collectively and not exclusively fisheries-related aspects. They define research needs or contain statements on cooperation between actors and their communication, including measures for outreach and public engagement. The management plans of other countries and the interviews conducted in the context of this study demonstrate that each process proceeds differently. Consequently, this study should not be understood as a template. It is aimed at providing suggestions and orientation for processes dealing with human-wildlife interactions. To what extent and in which form the success elements are applied resides with those responsible for the process and the actors involved.