Bayer Corp. Names New Ombuds

Yesterday, Bayer Corporation announced the appointment of Melissa Cameron as its new Ombudsman. Previously, Cameron served as a Senior Attorney and Director of Compliance for a Bayer medical subsidiary, MEDRAD. She earned her JD from Duquesne University School of Law and Bachelor of Arts from Allegheny College. Cameron is a Certified Compliance & Ethics Professional. As Bayer's Ombuds, she will report directly to President and CEO Greg Babe. She succeeds Kimberly Koerner, who held the position since 2004. (Bayer Press Release.)

Giving Better Praise

Ombuds often coach individuals to improve interpersonal relationships by increasing the amount of positive feedback they give. Author Gretchen Rubin has a great summary of how to give better praise:

1. Be specific
2. Find a way to praise sincerely
3. Never offer praise and ask for a favor in the same conversation
4. Don’t over-praise
5. Look for something less obvious to praise
6. Don’t hesitate to praise people who get a lot of praise already
7. Praise people behind their backs
8. Beware when a person asks for your honest opinion
9. Don’t damn with faint praise

Her blog is an excellent resource for mindful living. (The Happiness Blog.)

IOI Secretariat Relocating to Vienna

The International Ombudsman Institute has accept the application of the Austrian Ombudsman Board and will move its administrative offices from Edmonton, Canada, to Vienna, Austria, later this year. The latest IOI newsletter also recaps the activities of members worldwide. (IOI Newsletter, March 2009.)

Related post: IOI Newsletter Announces 2009 Conference in Sweden.

Job Posting: Food & Drug Administration

The US Dept. of Health and Human Services agency is hiring an Association Ombudsman for its office in Rockville, MD. The position serves as an Organizational Ombuds for FDA employees: a confidential and informal information resource, facilitator consultant and practitioner for dispute resolution. (This is not Center for Drug Evaluation and Research Ombuds position, which is an external Ombuds.) Applicants must have at least one year of ADR experience. The GS-14 position pays $102,721 to $133,543 per year. Applications are due Friday, July 17, 2009. (USAJobs, job ann. no. PH-FH-268667-(DEU/MP).)

Prior: Job Posting.

Staffing Arrangement at Federal Student Aid Ombuds Office Raises Conflict of Interest Concerns

An article in Inside Higher Ed reveals that Ombuds program at the student aid agency is staffed by Vangent, Inc., a company that also helps the department in collection efforts. In addition, several of Vangent's employees working in the Ombuds' office formerly worked on loan collections. Vangent provides staff to the Department of Education under a 10-year, $300 million contract that covers a range of services, including staff for the Ombudsman Office. This arrangement troubles financial aid experts like Mark Kantrowitz of Finaid.org, who questions the neutrality of the staff.

"The purpose of an ombudsman's office is to have a disinterested body looking at the problems that students are bringing to its attention, and try to negotiate with lenders to resolve problems," said Kantrowitz. "If you're a borrower, would you call the ombudsman if you knew people there worked for a company that does collection of debt?"

A spokesperson for Education Department said that an investigation into the matter concluded the concerns were overblown. (Inside Higher Ed.)

Whether or not there is a legitimate conflict of interest may be a moot point. The mere perception that the FSA Ombuds staff are biased could significantly undermine the work of the program. As conflict resolution professionals, the FSA Ombuds staff must be vigilant about protecting their reputation for neutrality and fairness. The Department of Education may need to do more to restore the image of the FSA Ombuds Office.

Legislation Would Create Education Ombuds for New York City

A pair of bills pending in the NY State Legislature would create an Ombuds program for the nation's largest public school system. A bill in the State Senate, S5739, aims to reform governance system for the NYC schools by strengthening parent representation in decision-making and providing enhanced mechanisms for accountability and transparency. The bill would establish an independent Office of the Ombudsperson, but does not provide specifics. (NY S5739 Summary.)

A separate bill in the State Assembly, A8705, creates parent participation boards in each community school district and requires each board to establish an Office of Education Ombudsperson. The Ombuds Offices would be charged with operating and supporting the parent participation boards. (NY A8705 Summary.)

Wilfred Laurier Ombuds Publishes Annual Report

Jennifer Laurie, the new Ombuds for the private university in Waterloo, ON, reported that 41 individuals were assisted by her office in the 2008-09 academic year. In four of the cases, some type of intervention beyond providing information or advice was required. These involved mediation or required an altered course of action by the University. (WLU Ombuds 2008-09 Report.)

Related post: Wilfrid Laurier University Hires Ombuds.

Amherst College Ombuds Office Closes

The website for the Ombuds Office at Amherst has been updated recently to state that, "the Ombudsperson position is currently vacant." The outgoing message on the voicemail confirms the closure, but says that, "a new Ombudsperson may be appointed soon." Callers are referred to Amherst's HR or Diversity and Inclusion Office for assistance. Ruth B. Thornton had served as the Ombuds. (Amherst Ombuds.)

UC San Francisco Ombuds Program Remains On Hold

A report on diversity efforts to top administrators at the University of California San Francisco reaffirmed the campus is committed to implementing an Ombuds program consistent with IOA standards. Recently published details from the UCSF Leadership Panel on Diversity, however, state that plans are on hold pending budget considerations. (UCSF Update on Improving Staff Diversity.)

Prior post: UC San Francisco Postpones Ombuds Office.

MD Anderson Ombuds Posts Annual Summary

The Ombuds Office at the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center has released its report for the 2008 fiscal year. A total of 458 visitors brought 297 cases to the office. Seventy percent of the visitors were staff, and 57% of the concerns involved strained workplace relationships, most commonly between supervisor and staff. (MD Anderson Ombuds, 2008 Report.)

Related post: New Websites Offer Resources for Ombuds.

University of North Carolina Ombuds: Employee Visits Up Fourfold

Wayne Blair, UNC's University Ombuds, said that issues employees have brought to his office have quadrupled since last summer. Speaking at a staff retreat, Blair said anxieties rose last fall when growing budget shortfalls made it clear that some layoffs in 2009 were inevitable. Now those layoffs are starting to take place, and Blair said the stress for both the employees affected and the managers who have to authorize the layoffs was real. (UNC Gazette.)

Baylor Defers Consideration of Staff Ombuds

The Staff Council at Baylor University, which has been considered creating an Ombuds for Staff since 2005, has put the project on hold pending the appointment of a new HR Director. According to recently published Staff Council minutes, the Ombuds Committee put the discussion on hold until a new HR structure is in place. In addition, it noted that the are still questions about the reporting structure for the proposed Ombuds position. Baylor has had a Faculty Ombuds since 2003. (Baylor Staff Council Minutes 2/14/06, 9/12/06, 4/14/09; Baylor Faculty Ombuds.)

Related post: Baylor Names Faculty Ombuds.

NY Senate Considering Ombuds to Oversee Federal Stimulus Money

A New York State Senator and Assemblymember have introduced legislation to create a dedicated federal Stimulus Ombudsman’s office. The position would be an independent watchdog charged with ensuring the expected $27 billion in federal stimulus money is spent properly in the Empire State. (NY S5879 bill Tracking; Senator Serano Announcement.)

New Ombuds at American Red Cross

Kevin Jessar has been appointed the new Corporate Ombudsman for the American Red Cross. He will head a four-person office that was created by federal statute in October 2007 as part of sweeping governance modernization reforms at the Red Cross. Jessar brings a wealth of Ombuds experience to the position. He is the immediate past president of IOA and was an Ombuds at the National Institutes of Health since 2000 and served as NIH Deputy Ombudsman from 2007-2009.

Prior posts: First Red Cross Ombuds Promises to Strengthen "Sacred Trust" With Public; Red Cross Ombuds Publishes Inaugural Report and Announces Cut-Backs; Is Red Cross Ombuds Stepping Down?; Red Cross Appoints Interim Director of Ombuds Office.

Job Posting: Kaiser Permanente San Francisco

Kaiser is accepting applications for a HealthCare Ombudsman/Mediator in San Francisco. This is a part-time position, 32 hours/week, day shift. Extensive clinical health care experience (10+ years) and Ombuds training or experience is required. No closing date or salary indicated. (KP Careers.)

ABA Dispute Resolution Conference Call for Proposals

The ABA Section on Dispute Resolution has issued a call for proposals for its annual meeting in April 2010 in San Francisco. The conference planners put a priority on proposals that introduce new and innovative concepts, demonstrate diversity of presenters’ backgrounds, include 2-4 presenters with demonstrated expertise, and provide significant depth of coverage of the subject matter. Proposals are due by August 24. The quality of presentations and number of attendees makes this the leading dispute resolution conference in the country. Unfortunately, it conflicts with the IOA conference. (ABA DR Conf Call for Proposals.)

Brown University Ombuds Office is Latest Closure

Recently published minutes from a Brown Faculty Executive Committee meeting reveals that the University's Faculty Ombuds Office "is temporarily closed effective July 1, 2009 and will reopen in the foreseeable future." The minutes also state that, "In the meantime, Valerie Wilson (new Director of Institutional Diversity effective July 1), Dean Vohra or the FEC can hear faculty’s concerns depending on the situations." A call to the the Office of the President confirmed that the Ombuds Office has closed and that Flora A. Keshgegian, who served as Faculty Ombudsperson since August 2006, was no longer with the University. The telephone number for her office has been disconnected. (Brown FEC Minutes, 4/28/09; Brown Ombuds Webpage.)

Related posts: Brown University Ombuds Issues Second Annual Report.

Other recent university Ombuds office closures: Pepperdine University; California Institute of Technology; Smith College; Pace University.

NPR's Ombuds Has the Loneliest Job in the Newsroom

As the neutral intermediary between public radio listeners and staffers, NPR’s Alicia Shepard says she has “the loneliest job in the newsroom.” This and other observations will sound familiar to Organizational Ombuds. For example, Shepard says it took the first six months of her two-year contract just to learn how NPR works.

It’s no doubt hard to justify spending money on an ombudsman when the newsroom budget is being slashed. And it’s easy to dismiss an ombudsman’s defense of his value as simply self-interest. But there’s a difference between having citizens point out errors and flaws, and having an independent observer inside a news organization with “a hall pass and a platform,” as New York Times executive editor Bill Keller describes an ombudsman.

Ombudsmen like [the Washington Post’s] Alexander and Shepard may never be beloved, but they do play an important role. Their presence is a clear signal that the news organization cares about the public’s concerns and will take steps to respond. And they can also serve as a deterrent. The knowledge that someone is watching, someone with the authority to draw public attention to errors and ethical missteps, may help keep them from happening in the first place.

(Advancing the Story.)

Related posts: More Thoughts on the Decline of News Ombuds; News Ombuds to Meet in Washington; News Ombuds Also Vulnerable to Budget Cuts.

OO Blogger: The "Due Care" Process

Clayton Gilman's latest post discusses a recent case involving a young Canadian couple who sought his intervention with the Ontario Ombudsman. Using a “due care” process, Gilman determined the validity of the complaint -- checking facts and gathering information from other sources. Ultimately he did not intervene, but served primarily as a sounding board for the couple. (Organizational Ombudsman Blog.)

Innovations in Collaboration and Conflict Resolution

The Center for Public Policy Dispute Resolution at the University of Texas at Austin offers several courses that may be of interest to Ombuds, including:

• Staying with Conflict: Working with Ongoing Disputes - Dr. Bernie Mayer, Professor at the Werner Institute at Creighton University;
• Creating Value Through Negotiation - Melissa Manwaring, Director of Curriculum Development at the Program on Negotiation at Harvard Law School; and
• The Public Policy Facilitator's Toolbox: Designing Processes for Multi-State Initiatives - Bill Potapchuk, President of Community Building Institute.

The two-day courses are offered as part of the Skills Enrichment Institute, July 29-31, 2009. (Innovations in Collaboration Info).