The Ombuds Blog

December 01, 2006

Pomona Students Press Demand for Staff Ombuds

In a public meeting with the president of Pomona College, student members of the Advisory Committee on Diversity reiterated their request for an ombudsperson to address staff concerns about the workplace. (The Student Life.) The college has pledged to reach a decision on the issue by “the end of the academic year.”

1 comment:

Anonymous12/04/2006 6:45 AM
Tom, welcome to the World Directory of ADR Blogs. I have a couple of questions. In your role as an organizational Ombuds, what do you do that differs from a mediator, and how? Also, as indicated in your brochure, you are "responsible" to the University President. Given that, how can you maintain neutrality?

I ask because I'm interested in understanding how I can best provide services to my potential clients as a mediator. Thanks,

Steve
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Organizational Ombuds

Organizational Ombuds serve as a confidential, independent, neutral and informal dispute resolution resource for a specific entity. They are accessible to a defined population and can advocate for fairness. These unique characteristics distinguish Organizational Ombuds from Classical Ombuds, mediators, arbitrators, and other alternative dispute resolution professionals. The term "Ombuds" is shorthand for "Ombudsman," "Ombudsperson" and "Ombuds Officer," which also are used widely.

Some other variants include:

Austria -- Ombudsstelle

Brazil -- Ouvidor

Croatia -- pravobranitelji

France -- médiateur/defénseur

Germany -- Ombudspersonen

Italy -- difensore

Netherlands -- ombudspersoon

Norway -- ombudet

Poland -- Rzecznik

Portugal -- provedor

Russia -- омбудсмен

Spain -- ombudsman organizacional

Sweden -- studentombud

Switzerland -- ombudsmann

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