Job Posting: Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

The U.S. Department of Energy National Laboratory in Richland, Washington is hiring an Employee Concerns Program Manager. The hourly, part-time, on-call position responds to employe concerns by prompt identification, reporting, and resolution of issues; independent and objective evaluation; supplementing existing processes for reporting concerns; and providing alternative dispute techniques.  

Ombuds at the 2013 ACR Conference

The Association for Conflict Resolution's Annual Conference on October 9-11, 2013 in Minneapolis, Minnesota will feature two presentations about Ombuds work.

IOA Offers Ombuds Training in Phoenix

The International Ombudsman Association presents several training sessions for new and experienced Ombuds in Phoenix, Arizona on July 8 through 12, 2013. The programs include "Foundations of Organizational Ombudsman Practice," "The Next Step for New or Growing Programs," and "Ethical Dilemmas Facing Organizational Ombuds."

Job Posting: Beacon Health Strategies

The managed behavioral health organization is hiring an Ombudsperson to provide confidential, neutral assistance to members in Woburn, MA. "The Ombudsperson advocates for fairness, serves as a source of information and support, acts as a liaison among stakeholders, and supports risk management for BHS." The duties are primarily those of an Organizational Ombuds, but also incorporate some duties that are similar to those of a Classical Healthcare Ombuds. 

Update on May Meeting of Arizona Ombuds

On Thursday, May 16, 2013, twenty-four Ombudsman throughout the State of Arizona gathered for a “brown bag” lunch meeting hosted by Apollo Group’s Office of Ombuds Services.  The meeting agenda included networking, IOA highlights, information about USOA’s upcoming Fall conference, an overview of Apollo Group’s Office of Ombuds Services, and brainstorming potential topics for discussion or presentations for the Arizona Ombuds’s summer conference.  

Job Posting: University of Colorado Boulder

Colorado's flagship public research university is hiring an Associate Ombuds. The position serves as a designated neutral dispute resolution practitioner for students, staff, faculty, and administrators. CU-Boulder employs four Ombuds and follows IOA best practices. The salary range for this position is $62,000-$76,0000, commensurate with skills and experience.

Job Posting: Jackson Community College

The 6,700-student community college in Jackson County, Michigan is hiring a Student Ombudsman. The full-time position is primarily responsible for "providing a consistent, centralized point of contact for questions, concerns and/or problems they may be experiencing at Jackson Community College."

IOA Radio to Interview Shell Oil Ombuds

The second episode of the International Ombudsman Association’s teleconference-based “talk show,” will feature Sean Banks, Director of Ombuds Services and Corporate Ombuds for the Shell Oil Company.

Corporate Counsel Magazine: "How an Ombuds Can Foster Collaboration and Reduce Risk"

The current issue of the leading periodical and website for in-house attorneys includes an article on Ombuds. The piece focuses on the benefit of Ombuds for "knowledge workers," who collaborate frequently and are largely autonomous.

Job Posting: Kaiser Permanente Vallejo CA

KP is hiring a full-time Health Care Ombuds/Mediator for its Northern California medical center in Vallejo. The Kaiser HCOM, "functions as a trained alternative dispute professional offering patients, family members, staff & providers a conflict management program to resolve patient/provider healthcare disputes early thereby improving patient safety & reducing the costs of health care dispute resolution."

Overview of Ombuds in Africa and the AOMA

A recent article in the Ethiopian Herald provides an excellent the history of Ombuds in Africa and their professional body, the African Ombudsman and Mediators Association. 

Here's a portion:

Sexual Assault Task Force at University of North Carolina will Include Ombuds

At UNC-Chapel Hill today, a task force will convene to review the university’s policies and procedures on sexual assault cases. The 21-member task force will meet weekly with a goal of a recommendations for a revised policy by the end of the summer. The group is comprised of administrators, faculty, staff and students, and includes University Ombuds and Professor of Public Law and Policy, Laurie Mesibov. (Raleigh, NC News & Observer.)

New Ombuds for American University in Cairo

Earlier this year, AUC appointed Lamia Eid as the University Ombuds, filling the role vacated by the founding Ombuds, Hana Sabea. Wafaa Abdelhamid, who had continued as the Director of the office in the interim, is now the Associate Ombuds. 

DePaul University Will Host 2013 Summer Meeting of Academic Ombuds

The eleventh annual Summer Meeting of College and University Ombudspersons is set for July 28-29, 2013 at DePaul University in Chicago. This annual event provides an opportunity for academic Ombuds to become better acquainted, to share concerns specific to their professional environments, and to support and learn from each other’s experiences.  

IOA Annual Report Reveals Plans for Organizational and Strategic Change

The International Ombudsman Association has published its 2012 Annual Report, which shows that the professional body is working on a number of internal changes.  Based on feedback received at its last conference, the IOA Board has identified three initiatives for the coming year.