Services to Individual Visitors
If the option you choose is to work with an ombudsman or mediator, we may offer you the following services, depending on your specific situation.
CONFLICT COACHING
Maybe you feel unprepared to have a difficult conversation or need to explore new ways of communicating with colleagues to improve current and future professional relationships. Conflict coaching will empower you to handle and take control of your own issues. It could help address underlying concerns by allowing you to look at the same situation from various perspectives. It could also help you define better strategies to resolve issues before they escalate. You can practice these strategies safely by role playing with an ombudsman.
FACILITATED CONVERSATION
A facilitated conversation is appropriate when communications with a colleague become difficult or strained. These situations usually benefit from the presence of a neutral third-party facilitator, a role in which our conflict-resolution experts have a lot of experience.
Together, with the assistance of the facilitator, you and your colleague will look at ways to reach resolution, gain mutual understanding, and move forward. Parties will have an opportunity to share their experience of the situation in an informal setting.
The eventual resolution of a facilitated conversation may be a verbal commitment or a shared understanding; the discussions may not lead to the drafting of an official agreement, which takes place in a structured mediation.
MEDIATION
Mediation is a structured, collaborative process available to all United Nations Secretariat employees to manage and help to resolve workplace disputes, concerns and differences with the assistance of an impartial third party. It is most useful when parties are looking to resolve a specific, identified issue.
The parties can request mediation themselves; alternatively, the formal system can refer a matter for mediation. If you decide to use mediation, the mediator will guide you through the process by having you meet with the other party or parties to discuss the situation and negotiate a resolution acceptable to all.
Mediations, when successful, are concluded with the drafting of legally enforceable settlement agreement.