2020 ANNUAL REPORT Office of the Corporate Ombudsman

Office of the Corporate Ombudsman

2020 ANNUAL REPORT

Table of Contents

A Message from the Corporate Ombudsman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Constituent Profile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Figure 1. All Constituents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Figure 2. Internal and External Constituents by Fiscal Year . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

External Constituents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Figure 3. External Constituents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Internal Constituents. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Figure 4. Internal Constituents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

ReasonsforContactingtheOmbudsmanOffice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Figure5.IssueIdentification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Figure 6. Issues – Yearly Comparison . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Issues Per Organizational Unit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Figure 7. Issues Per Organizational Unit. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Figure 8. Issues Per Unit – Yearly Comparison . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Ombudsman Office Actions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Figure 9. Ombudsman Actions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Supporting the Mission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Contact Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Back Cover

FY20AnnualReportIOfficeoftheCorporateOmbudsman1

A Message from the Corporate Ombudsman

TheOfficeoftheOmbudsmanwaslaunchedinOctober2007inaccordancewiththeGovernanceModernizationActof2007.OurOfficewascreatedwiththeintentionandfocusofbeingasafeandconfidentialresourceforallpersonsimpactedbytheAmericanRedCross,itsworkplace,missionandservicestosharetheirconcerns.SinceOctober2007,wehaveprovidedresourcesandsupporttonearly6,900constituents;reachedover18,900constituentsthroughconflictresolution,education,outreach,andfacilitation;andaddressedapproximately17,350issues.

IampleasedtopresentthethirteenthannualreportontheactivitiesandinitiativesoftheOfficeoftheCorporateOmbudsmanforfiscalyear2020—fromJuly1,2019toJune30,2020.ThisreportreflectsconcernsandinquiriesbroughttotheOmbudsmanOfficefrombothinternalandexternalconstituents.

InFY20,theOmbudsmanOfficeprovidedresourcesandsupported1,458issuesraisedby721constituents.Throughoutreach,trainings,andgroupfacilitationswewereabletoreachanadditional1,536volunteers,employeesandpartnerswhilesupportingourdonors,andrecipientsofourmission-relatedservices.TheOmbudsmanOfficehelpsidentifytrendsandemergingissueswithintheorganizationtoinform leadership about matters that may impact the organization.

TheissuesraisedwiththeOmbudsmancompriseasmallsliceofdatafromself-selectinginternalandexternalconstituents.Moreover,theroleoftheOfficeoftheOmbudsmanistoprovideinformaldisputeresolutionandinformalmediation,andtoprovideguidanceonhowbesttoraiseoraddressissueswithintheorganization.Whilewedonotinvestigateordeterminetheveracityoftheissuesraised,weadvocatefor a fair process.

TheOfficeofInvestigations,ComplianceandEthicsinvestigatesallegationsofwrongdoinginadministrative,civilandcriminalmatters.TheOfficeofInvestigations,ComplianceandEthicsprovidesoversightoftheWhistleblowerhotlinesandfullysupportsanyemployee,volunteerormemberofmanagementwhoreportsfraud,waste,abuse,RedCrosspolicyviolations,illegal,unsafeorunethicalconduct,oranyothermisconductwithintheorganization.

AfewadditionalenhancementswemadethisyearincludevirtualOmbudsmanOffice,leveragingtechnologyandhostingtwovirtualOmbudsDayeventsforemployeesandvolunteers.WeconnectedstaffandmanagerstotheHumanResourcesSharePointsiteforissuesrelatedtotheCOVID-19pandemic,providedtrendstotheBiomedicalServicesteamfromdonorsandstaffregardingpandemicrelatedquestions,supportedtheworkforceindiscoveringwaysinwhichtosurvivetheir“newnormal”andnavigatearemoteworkenvironment.TheOmbudsmanOfficealsoprovidedsupporttoindividualsandteamsconfrontingissuesofracialjusticeandinequalitybyhostingsessions,providingleaderswithfacilitationresources to help them create a safe space to engage their teams in a dialogue around issues of race and inequality.

Lookingforward,wewillcontinuetosupportthedisputeresolutionprocessasaconfidential,neutral,informalandindependentofficeintheAmericanRedCrossandenhancecollaborationwiththeformalpartsoftheorganizationaswenavigatedanewworkenvironmentpredicatedbyworldevents.

Sincerely,

JacquelineVillafañe,Psy.D.,CO-OP®

Corporate Ombudsman


Constituent Profile

ItisimportanttonotethatanincreaseordropinthenumberofcontactswiththeOmbudsmanOfficedoesnotnecessarilyindicategrowingorreducedproblemsintheorganization.

InFY20,719constituentsreachedouttotheOmbudsmanOffice,andreceivedresourcesandsupport to address their inquiries and issues compared to 994 constituents in FY19. The decrease inconstituentcontactsinthelatterpartofthefiscalyearwasprimarilyduetoadecreaseinoutreacheventsandtheimpactofCOVID-19pandemicshiftstowardsavirtualworkenvironment.

Figure1illustratesthenumberandcompositionofinternalandexternalconstituentswhocontactedtheOmbudsmanOfficeinFY20excluding1,536recipientsfromoutreach,groupfacilitationsandtrainingandanadditional105contactswhoeitherdidnotleaveamessage,wereunabletoscheduletime,orwhosereasonforreachingtheOmbudsmanOfficewasnotwithinthescopeoftheRedCrossortheOfficeoftheOmbudsman.

Figure 1 . All Constituents (719 Total)

Donor99(14%)

Employee237(33%)

GeneralPublic206(29%)

Government3(0%)

Partner12(2%)

Supplier17(2%)

Volunteer104(14%)

Anonymous41(6%)


InFY20,46percentofcontactsreceivingOmbudsmanresourcesandsupportwereinitiatedbyexternalstakeholders,while48percentwereinitiatedbyinternalstakeholders.Theremaining6percentofcontactsidentifiedas“anonymous”represents41contactscomparedto64anonymous contacts in FY19.

Externalconstituentcontactsarecategorizedasgovernment,currentpartners,suppliers(prospective),blooddonors,financialdonors,servicemembersandthegeneralpublic.Internalconstituentcontactsarecategorizedasemployees,volunteers,formeremployees,formervolunteers,currentcontractors,andretirees.

Figure2illustratestherelationshipofinternal,externalandanonymouscontactssincetheOmbudsmanOfficebeganitsreportinginFY08.

Figure 2. Internal and External Constituents by Fiscal Year

External Internal Anonymous

800

700

600

500

400

300

200

100

00

100

200

300

400

500

600

700

800

External Internal Anonymous

FY08 FY09 FY10 FY11 FY12 FY13 FY14 FY15 FY16 FY17 FY18 FY19 FY20

0

122

232

0

184

371

0

300

447

0

352

398

0

365

486

0

410

567

15

385

636

13

397

576

11

289

407

29

245

522

63

346

699

64

427

503

41

341

337


External Constituents

InFY20,atotalof337externalconstituentscontactedtheOfficeoftheOmbudsmanwithconcernsorinquiriesandreceivedsupportandresources.Wedonotreportdetailedinformationonthosethatwishtoremainanonymous,andtheyarenotincludedinthispartofthereport.

DuringFY20,RedCrossdonorsaccountedfor14percentofallconstituentscontactingtheOmbudsmanOfficeand30percentofexternalconstituents.Ofthe99donorsreachingouttotheOfficeoftheOmbudsman,93wereblooddonorsand6werefinancialdonorswithvariousconcerns. It should be noted that the blood donor contacts are from a base of nearly 2.54 million volunteerdonorsnationwide.

Figure3illustratesthevarioustypesofexternalconstituentcontacts.

Figure 3 . External Constituents (337 Total)

*InFY18,therewere377constituentsrequestingresourcesrelatedtotheHurricaneHarveyImmediate Assistance program.

BloodDonor93(28%)

FinancialDonor6(2%)

GeneralPublic109(32%)

DisasterClient58(17%)

TrainingServicesStudent33(10%)

ServiceMember6(2%)

Government3(1%)

Partner12(3%)

Supplier17(5%)


Internal Constituents

InFY20,202currentemployeescontactedtheOmbudsmanOffice.Employeescomprised69percentofinternalconstituentsand33percentofallconstituentstotheOmbudsmanOfficeinFY20.Wedonotcollectdetailedinformationonthosethatwishtoremainanonymousandtheyarenot included in this part of the report.

Leaderisdefinedassomeonewhosupervisesmultipleteamsorisinanexecutiverole.Amanagerisresponsibleforaprogram,supervisesworkgroupsorteamswithdeliverables.Acontractemployeeisgenerallyhiredforaspecificjob,foradefinedperiodoftime,ataspecificrateofpay.AmeriCorpsparticipants,temporarydisasteremployeesoranemployeecontractedthroughathird-partyagencyhavebeencategorizedascontractemployeesfordatapurposes.

Figure4reflectsinternalconstituentsbycategoryandrolewithintheRedCross.

Figure 4 . Internal Constituents (341 Total)

ContractEmployee3(1%)

FormerEmployee27(8%)

Leader28(8%)

Manager60(18%)

Retiree8(2%)

Staff:Non-Supervisor111(33%)

CurrentVolunteer56(16%)

FormerVolunteer48(14%)


Issues

Reasons for Contacting the Ombudsman Office

InFY20,atotalof1,458issueswerebroughttotheattentionoftheOmbudsmanOffice.Theissuesare represented according to the uniform reporting categories promulgated for the organizational ombudsmanfieldbytheInternationalOmbudsmanAssociation(IOA).ThereportingcategoriesaredesignedtoclassifythetypesofissuesforwhichpeopleuseOmbudsmanservicesandhelpidentifytrends for consistent reporting.

Thetopissuesandsub-issuesin:

•Services/AdministrativeIssuesare:(1)qualityofservicesprovidedand (2)responsiveness/timelines.

•EvaluativeRelationshipsare:(1)departmentclimate,and(2)requestsforhelpindealingwithissuesbetweentwoormoreindividualstheysupervise,oraconsultationonhowtoworkwithsituationsinanevaluativerelationship.

•Organizational,Strategic&Mission-Relatedare:(1)technologysystems(2)principles,decisionsandactionsrelatedtowhereandhowtheorganizationismoving,includingrecordsmanagement,and(3)communicationcontent,style,timing,effectsandamountoforganizationalandleader’scommunication,andqualityofcommunicationaboutstrategicissues.

Figure 5. Issue Identification All Issues Identified Under IOA Uniform Reporting Categories

(1,458 Total)

ItisimportanttonotethattheissuecountreflectsindividualcontactstotheOfficeoftheOmbudsmanraisingmultipleconcerns;trainingsandgroupfacilitationstoaddressorganizationalissues;andissuesraisedbyconstituentswhohavereachedouttotheOfficeoftheOmbudsman.

Values,EthicsandStandards

Org.,StrategicandMission-Related

Services/AdminIssues

Safety,Health,andPhysicalEnvironment

Legal,Regul.FinandCompliance

CareerProgression&Development

Peer&ColleagueRelationships

EvaluativeRelationships

Compensation&Benefits

33

228

386

73

108

126

188

274

42

4000 50 100 150 200 250 300 350


Figure6illustratestheissuesraisedacrossthepastthreefiscalyears(FY18-FY20).

Figure 6. Issues – Yearly Comparison

*ThespikeinissuesintheServices/AdministrativeIssuescategoryinFY18isreflectiveofconstituentinquiriesrelated totheHurricaneHarveyImmediateAssistanceprogram.

**NotethatServices/AdministrativeIssuesinquiriesandconcernsincluderequestsfromexternalconstituentsseekinginformationonserviceswhichareoutofthescopeoftheRedCrossmission,questionsregardinghowtheAmericanRedCrossissupportingtheCOVID-19pandemic,andothergeneralinquiriesincludingprospectivevendorinquiries.

42

274

188

126

108

73

386

228

33

49

379

100

151

198

55

532

341

63

43

269

56

98

244

17

724

417

97

0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800

1. Compensation & Benefits

2. Evaluative Relationships

3. Peer & Colleague Relationships

4. Career Progression & Development

5. Legal, Regul. Fin and Compliance

6. Safety, Health, and Physical Environment

7. Services/Admin Issues

8. Org., Strategic, and Mission-Related

9. Values, Eth ics, and Standards

FY18 FY19 FY20

FY18 FY19 FY20

Values,EthicsandStandards

Org.,Strategicand Mission-Related

Services/AdminIssues

Safety,Healthand PhysicalEnvironment

Legal,Regul.Fin and Compliance

Career Progression &Development

Peer&ColleagueRelationships

EvaluativeRelationships

Compensation&Benefits

8000 100 200 300 400 500 600 700

244

98

56

269

43

97

17

417

724

198

151

100

379

49

63

55

341

532

108

126

188

274

42

33

73

228

386


Issues Per Organizational Unit

Figure7reflectsthenumberandpercentageofissuesraisedinFY20pertainingtoRedCrossorganizationalunits.Therewere206inquiriesfromthegeneralpublicofwhich26inquiredaboutRedCrossservicesthatwerenotmissionrelatedorrelatedtoacorporatedepartmentspecificallyandhavenotbeenassignedtoanorganizationalunit.

HumanitarianServicesincludes:InternationalServices,DisasterCycleServices,ServicetotheArmedForces,theOfficeofVolunteerServicesandthechapternetworksinthefield.BiomedicalServicesincludesinquiriesandconcernsrelatedtoallRedCrossoperationsfocusedonbloodproductrecruitment,collections,manufacturing,testinganddistribution.IssuesandconcernsrelatedtospecificcorporatedepartmentshavebeendesignatedtoNationalHeadquarters(NHQ).Allissuespresentedbyaconstituenthavebeenattributedtotheidentifiedprimaryunitofconcern.

Figure 7 . Issues Per Organizational Unit (1,458 Total)

HumanitarianServices796(55%)

NationalHeadquarters216(15%)

BiomedicalServices285(19%)

GeneralARCQuestions56(4%)

TrainingServices105(7%)


Figure8illustratesissuesinrelationtotheRedCrossorganizationallinesofservicefromFY18through FY20.

Figure 8. Issues Per Unit – Yearly Comparison

*ThetopthreeissuesforHumanitarianServicesare:(1)EvaluativeRelationships,(2)PeerandColleagueRelationships,and(3)Organizational,StrategicandMission-RelatedIssues.

Non Attributable Unit

TrainingServices

GeneralARCQuestions

BiomedicalServices

National Headquarters

HumanitarianServices796

216

285

56

105

1051

313

327

50

127

1382

279

193

26

76

9

0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1400 1600

Humanitarian Services

National Headquarters

Biomedical Services

General ARC Questions

Training Serv ices

Non Attributable Unit

FIG 8 ISSUES PER UNIT: YEARLY

FY18 FY19 FY20

FY18 FY19 FY20

0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1400

1382

279

193

26

76

9

1051

313

327

50

127

796

216

285

56

105


Ombudsman Office Actions

InFY20,theOmbudsmanOfficeengagedin27activitiesrelatedtooutreach,trainingandgroupfacilitation,reachingapproximately1,536employees,volunteersandpartners,andprovidedsupporttoSpanishspeakingconstituents.

Asanenhancementtootherpartsoftheorganization,andwhenappropriate,theOmbudsmanOfficerefersconstituentstoappropriatedepartmentsforformalresolution.InFY20,we:

•made166referralstoformalpartsoftheorganizationsuchasConcernConnectionLine,HumanResources,ortheOfficeofGeneralCounsel,

• connected147constituentstovariousdepartmentsintheRedCross,

• coached,providedprocessandtrainingconsultationto243constituents,and

• researchedpolicyandprovidedinformationto302constituents.

Inaddition,theOmbudsmanhelped163constituentsfacilitateconversationstohelpresolveconflictintheworkplace,informalmediationwasprovidedtotwoconstituentgroups,andvirtualshuttlediplomacywasdeliveredto75constituentgroupswhereresolutionswerediscoveredandembraced,preventingaformalgrievanceandcomplaintfrombeingmadeagainsttheorganization.

Figure9demonstratestheactionstakenbytheOmbudsmantobringcasestowardsresolutionandexcludesactionstakenfromgroupfacilitationsandtrainingsfor672volunteersandemployees.

Figure 9. Ombudsman Actions

*DropOffcontactsarecategorizedasquestions,inquiriesorconcernsthatcometotheOmbudsmanOfficeandthecontactsarevoluntarily“dropped”withoutresolution.

Coached211(17%)

ConnecttoSpecificARCPerson147(12%)

DropOff91(7%)

Process&TrainingConsulting32(3%)

ProvidedGeneralInformation220(17%)

ProvidedUpwardFeedbacktoLeadership313(25%)

Referral166(13%)

ResearchedPolicy&ProvidedInfo82(6%)

Supporting the Mission

TheOmbudsmanOfficeprovidesanindependent,neutral,informalandoff-the-record,confidentialandalternatechannelofcommunicationforallconstituentstobringforwardandresolveworkplaceissuesandconcernswithoutfearofretributionatanylevel.

OneoftherolesoftheOmbudsmanOfficeistoprovide“upwardfeedback”toleadershiptoproactivelyaddressworkplaceandservicedeliveryquestions,concernsandissueswhilemaintainingtheconfidentialityofindividualcommunications.Inthisway,theOmbudsmancanserveasavaluableearlywarningsystemfortheRedCrosstoidentifytrendsandsystemicmatterstohelpRedCrossleadershipsuccessfullymanageriskandensureRedCrossvaluesanditsmissionarenot compromised.

OmbudsmanOfficecasesarehandledinavarietyofwaystohelpmeettheneedsofvariousconstituents.Theseincludeconfidentialcoaching,tohelppeoplethinkstrategicallythroughdifficultsituations,shuttlediplomacy,wherewereachouttoindividualsinvolvedinconflictsordisagreementsindependentofeachothertohelpmovethemtowardamutuallysatisfactoryresolution,andotherdisputeresolutionandmediationtechniques.Asaneutralandindependentoffice,wecanalsoprovideprocessconsultationstoassistindividuals,teams,andleaderstoidentifythebestinterventiontoaddressconcerns,notlimitedto:introducingtechniquestoincreasecollaboration,communicationandhelpingconstituentscreateoptionsforresolvingconflicts.

Leaders,managersandsupervisorshavereachedouttotheOmbudsmanOfficeinitsneutralandinformalroleasfacilitatortoaddressteamandgroupeffectivenessandtogatherclimatesurveydata.Throughgroupfacilitationthefollowingissueshavebeenaddressed:facilitationofraceandinequalityissues,teamandgroupdynamicsasitrelatestochangemanagementandrestructuring,interpersonalissuesimpactingteamwork,andapplyingconflictresolutiontechniques,supportedbytheHumanResourcestrainingcurriculum,torealissues.

Ombudsman training addressed topics such as promoting a culture of trust and increased engagement,improvingteamwork,designingstrategiesfordifficultconversations,helpingconstituentsidentifyandappreciatecommunicationdifferences,increasingaccountabilityandempowerment,skillbuildingforfacilitationofdifficultconversationsandsupportofthefacilitativeleadershipcourseofferedthroughDisasterCycleServices.

Towardtheendofthefiscalyear,theOmbudsmanOfficeprovidedsupporttoleadersandteamsintheareaofDiversity&Inclusionwhenissuesrelatedtorace,managinganinclusiveworkenvironment,andpreventingworkplaceharassment.Whenrequestedtodoso,wefacilitatedteamdiscussionsandhelpedleaderscreatepsychologicalsafetyfortheirteams,astheyintroducedopportunitiestoshareexperiencesandemotionallyunpackmuchofwhathastranspiredinourcountry from the pandemic to race and inequality.

Aswecelebrateourthirteenthyear,theOfficeoftheOmbudsmanremainscommittedtoserving theAmericanRedCrossanditsstakeholdersinacapacitythatreflectstheOfficeoftheOmbudsman Charter.

Contact Information:

Mainnumber:(202)303-5399|Tollfree:(866)667-9331|Fax:(202)639-9825

Email:[email protected]

redcross.org/Ombudsman

22630-0312/20

2007-2020

6,900Constituents

17,350Issues

Another18,900ReachedThroughOutreach,Training

and Facilitation

Documents

2020 ANNUAL REPORT Office of the Corporate Ombudsman