Office of the Corporate Ombudsman

2018 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

Contact Information: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

FY18AnnualReportIOfficeoftheCorporateOmbudsman1

A Message from the Corporate Ombudsman

TheOfficeoftheOmbudsmanopeneditsdoorsinOctober2007inaccordancewiththeGovernanceModernizationActof2007.OurOfficewascreatedwiththeintentionandfocusofbeingasafeandconfidentialresourceforallpersonsimpactedbytheAmericanRedCross,itsworkplace,missionandservicestosharetheirconcerns.SinceOctober2007,wehaveprovidedresourcesandsupporttoover5200constituents;havereachedover16,200constituentsthroughconflictresolution,education,outreach,andfacilitation;andwehaveaddressedapproximately14,000issues.

IampleasedtopresenttheeleventhannualreportontheactivitiesandinitiativesoftheOfficeoftheCorporateOmbudsmanforfiscalyear2018—fromJuly1,2017toJune30,2018.ThisreportreflectsconcernsandinquiriesbroughttotheOmbudsmanOfficefrombothinternalandexternalconstituents.

InFY18,theOmbudsmanOfficeprovidedresourcesandsupported1,965issuesraisedby1108constituents.Throughoutreach,trainings,andgroupfacilitationswewereabletoreach1,234volunteers,employeesandleaderswhilesupportingourdonors,recipientsofourmission-relatedservices,andhelpinformtheorganizationoftrendsthatmayimpacttheorganization.

TheissuesraisedwiththeOmbudsmancompriseasmallsliceofdatafromself-selectinginternalandexternalconstituents.Moreover,theroleoftheOfficeoftheOmbudsmanistoprovideinformaldisputeresolutionandmediation,andtoprovideguidanceonhowbesttoraiseoraddressissueswithintheorganization.Whilewedonotinvestigateordeterminetheveracityoftheissuesraised,weadvocateforafairprocess.

TheofficeofInvestigations,ComplianceandEthics(ICE)investigatesallegationsofwrongdoinginadministrative,civilandcriminalmatters.TheofficeofInvestigations,ComplianceandEthicsprovidesoversightoftheWhistleblowerhotlinesandfullysupportsanyemployee,volunteerormemberofmanagementwhoreportsfraud,waste,abuse,RedCrosspolicyviolations,illegal, unsafeorunethicalconduct,oranyothermisconductwithintheorganization.

Overadecadeofprovidingresourcestoourconstituents,bothinternallyandexternally—withgrowingmomentum—ispositive.Lookingtothefuture,therewillbeincreasedoutreachensuringaccessibilityandawarenessoftheresourcesavailabletoallconstituentsandenhancedcollaborationwiththeformalpartsoftheorganizationregardingconflictresolutionprograms. Wewillcontinuetosupportthedisputeresolutionprocessasthedesignatedconfidential,neutral,informalandindependentofficeintheAmericanRedCross.

Sincerely,

JacquelineVillafañe,Psy.D.,CO-OP®

Corporate Ombudsman

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Constituent Profile

ItisimportanttonotethatanincreaseordropinthenumberofcontactswiththeOmbudsmanOfficedoesnotnecessarilyindicategrowingorreducedproblemsintheorganization.

InFY18,1,108constituentsreachedouttotheOmbudsmanOffice,andreceivedresourcesandsupporttoaddresstheirinquiriesandissueswhichwasanincreaseof312constituentsfromFY17.

Figure1illustratesthenumberandcompositionofinternalandexternalconstituentswhocontactedtheOmbudsmanOfficeinFY18excluding1,234recipientsofoutreach,groupfacilitationsandtraining.ThisfiscalyearweexperiencedanincreaseofGeneralPublicinquirieslargelyduetotheexceptionally active Hurricane season in the Fall of 2017.

Figure 1 . All Constituents (1,108 Total)

FY18AnnualReportIOfficeoftheCorporateOmbudsman3

InFY18,63percentofcontactsreceivingOmbudsmanresourcesandsupportwereinitiatedbyexternalstakeholders,while31percentwereinitiatedbyinternalstakeholders.Theremainingsixpercentofcontacts,identifiedas“anonymous”,represents63contactscomparedto29anonymouscontacts in FY17.

Externalconstituentcontactsarecategorizedasgovernment,currentexternalpartners,suppliers(prospective),blooddonors,financialdonors,andthegeneralpublic.Internalconstituentcontactsarecategorizedasemployees,volunteers,formeremployees,formervolunteers,currentcontractors,and retirees.

Figure2illustratestherelationshipofinternal,externalandanonymouscontactssincetheOmbudsmanOfficebeganitsreportinginFY08.

Figure 2. Internal and External Constituents by Fiscal Year

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External Constituents

InFY18,atotalof699externalconstituentscontactedtheOfficeoftheOmbudsmanwithconcernsorinquiriesandreceivedsupportandresources.Wedonotcollectdetailinformationonthosethatwishtoremainanonymous,andtheyarenotincludedinthispartofthereport.

DuringFY18,RedCrossdonorsaccountedfor12percentofallconstituentscontactingtheOmbudsmanOfficeand19percentofexternalconstituents.Ofthe130donorsreachingouttotheOfficeoftheOmbudsman,102wereblooddonorsand28werefinancialdonorswithvariousconcerns. It should be noted that the blood donor contacts are from a base of nearly 2.8 million volunteerdonorsnationwide.

Figure 3 illustrates the various types of external constituent contacts.

Figure 3 . External Constituents (699 Total)

*InFY18,therewere377constituentsrequestingresourcesrelatedtotheHurricaneHarveyImmediate Assistance program.

FY18AnnualReportIOfficeoftheCorporateOmbudsman5

Internal Constituents

InFY18,187currentemployeescontactedtheOmbudsmanOffice.Employeescomprised54percentofinternalconstituentsand21percentofallconstituentstotheOmbudsmanOfficeinFY18.Wedonotcollectdetailedinformationonthosethatwishtoremainanonymousandtheyarenot included in this part of the report.

Leadershipisdefinedassomeonewhosupervisesmultipleteamsorisinanexecutiverole.Amanagerisresponsibleforaprogram,supervisesworkgroupsorteamswithdeliverables.

Figure4reflectsinternalconstituentsbycategoryandrolewithintheRedCross.

Figure 4 . Internal Constituents (345 Total)

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Issues

Reasons for Contacting the Ombudsman Office

InFY18,atotalof1,965issueswerebroughttotheattentionoftheOmbudsmanOffice.Theissuesare represented according to the uniform reporting categories promulgated for the organizational ombudsmanfieldbytheInternationalOmbudsmanAssociation(IOA).ThereportingcategoriesaredesignedtoclassifythetypesofissuesforwhichpeopleuseOmbudsmanservicesandhelpidentifytrends for consistent reporting.

Itisimportanttonotethattheissuecountreflects:individualcontactstotheOfficeoftheOmbudsman raising multiple concerns; group facilitations to address organizational issues; and issuesraisedbyconstituentswhohavereachedouttotheOfficeoftheOmbudsman.

Figure 5. Issue Identification

All Issues Identified Under IOA Uniform Reporting Categories

(1,965 Total)

Itisimportanttonote,inFY18,therewere377constituentsrequestingsupportfromtheOmbudsmanOfficefortheHurricaneHarveyImmediateAssistanceprogram.UsingtheuniformreportingcategoriesissuedbyIOA,764issues werepredominantlycategorizedas:Organizatonal,Strategic,andMission-Related;Services/AdministrativeIssues; Legal,Regulatory,FinancialandCompliance;andValues,Ethics,andStandards.

FY18AnnualReportIOfficeoftheCorporateOmbudsman7

Figure6illustratestheissuesraisedacrossthepastthreefiscalyears(FY16-FY18)

Figure 6. Issues – Yearly Comparison

*ItisimportanttonotethatServices/AdministrativeIssuesinquiriesandconcernsincluderequestsfromexternalconstitutents during the active hurricane season in the Fall of 2017.

8

Issues Per Organizational Unit

Figure7reflectsthenumberandpercentageofissuesraisedinFY18pertainingtoRedCrossorganizationalunits.InFY18,HumanitarianServicesincludes:InternationalServices,DisasterCycleServices,ServicetotheArmedForces,andtheOfficeofVolunteerServices.BiomedicalServicesincludesinquiriesandconcernsrelatedtoBiomedicalRegions,NationalTestingLabsandBiomedicalServicesHeadquartersoperations.IssuesandconcernsrelatedtospecificcorporatedepartmentshavebeendesignatedtoNationalHeadquarters(NHQ).Allissuespresentedbyaconstituenthavebeenattributedtotheidentifiedprimaryunitofconcern.

InFY18,generalquestionsareassociatedwiththeorganizationalunit.Therewere26questionsfromthegeneralpublicinquiringaboutRedCrossservicesthatwerenotmissionrelatedorrelatedtoacorporatedepartmentspecificallyandhavenotbeenassignedtoanorganizationalunit.

Figure 7 . Issues Per Organizational Unit

(1,965 Total)

NotethatinFY18,therewerenineissuesbroughttotheOfficeoftheOmbudsmananonymouslywithoutaspecificorganizationalunitdesignated.ThesewerecapturedaspartofNationalHeadquarters.

*TheincreaseinissuesinHumanitarianServicesfromprioryearsisduetooutreachfromconstituentsrequestingresourcesrelatedto the Hurricane Harvey Immediate Assistance Program.

FY18AnnualReportIOfficeoftheCorporateOmbudsman9

Figure 8 illustrates issues in relation to the Red Cross organizational lines of service from FY16 through FY18.

Figure 8. Issues Per Unit – Yearly Comparison

*InFY18,generalquestionswereassociatedwiththeorganizationalunitregardingtheinquiry,anoteddifferenceinhistoricaldatacapture.Therewereninecontactswithissuesnonattributabletounit,althoughtheissuesweresignificanttotheorganizationandareattachedtotheNationalHeadquartersunit.

**TheincreaseinissuesinHumanitarianServicesfromprioryearsisduetooutreachfromconstituentsrequestingresources related to the Hurricane Harvey Immediate Assistance Program.

10

Ombudsman Office Actions

TheOmbudsmanOfficeprovidesanindependent,neutral,informalandoff-the-record,confidentialandalternatechannelofcommunicationforallconstituentstobringforwardandresolveworkplaceissuesandconcernswithoutfearofretributionatanylevel.InFY18,theOmbudsmanOfficeengagedin39activitiesrelatedtooutreach,trainingandgroupfacilitation,reachingapproximately1,234individualsacrosstheRedCross.

TheOmbudsmanOfficeidentifiestrendsandemergingissueswithintheorganization.Whilemaintainingconfidentialityofindividualcommunications,theOmbudsmanOfficeprovides“upwardfeedback”toleadershiptoproactivelyaddressworkplaceandservicedeliveryissues.Thisensuresthe Red Cross values and its mission are not compromised.

OmbudsmanOfficecasesaremetwithdiverseapproachesandactionssuchasconfidentialcoaching,tohelppeoplethinkstrategicallythroughdifficultsituations.TheOmbudsmanOfficealso,asappropriate,usesshuttlediplomacy,inwhichwereachouttoindividualsinvolvedinconflictordisagreementindependentofeachothertohelpmovethemtowardamutuallysatisfactoryresolution.Wecanalsobringdisputingpartiestogethertomediateanin-personresolution.

Inourmatrixorganization,wherereportingstructuresdonotalwaysfollowatypicalhierarchy,wefacilitateprocesseswithinateam,orbetweenteams.Groupfacilitationenhancesworkingrelationships,intra-teamfunctioning,inter-teamcoordinationandcollaboration.TeamsandtheirleaderslooktotheOmbudsmanOfficeinitsneutralroleassubjectmatterexpertsinprocessconsultation,groupdynamicsandfacilitationofeventsinvolvingorganizationalchangeandreinforcingconflictresolutionstrategies.

Ombudsmantrainingincludestopicsrelatingto:engagingindifficultconversations,givingeffectivefeedback,communicatingwithtrust,identifyingwhateffectiveteamsneedtoperform,managingeffectivegroupmeetingsanddecision-making,andfacilitativeleadershipskills.

Asanenhancementtootherpartsoftheorganization,andwhenappropriate,theOmbudsmanOfficerefersconstituentstootherdepartmentsforformalresolution.InFY18,wehelpedfacilitate285referralstoformalpartsoftheorganizationsuchasConcernConnectionLine,HumanResources,OfficeofGeneralCounselandconnected73constituentstovariousdepartmentsintheRedCross.Wecoached,consulted,andhelpedconstituentswiththeirconcernsanddeterminingthebestoptionstowardsresolution.

TheOmbudsmanOfficeprovideddirectsupportandguidancethroughouttheorganizationinrelationtothe2017hurricaneseason,ourFundamentalPrincipleofNeutrality,andDiversity&Inclusionissuesrelatedtorace,age,gender,religionandsexuality.Wesupportedvariousorganizationalinitiativessuchas:employeeengagementsurveysandfeedbacksessions,disasterresponseoperationstrendingissuesandconcerns,andreinforcingtheRedCrossvaluesandguidingbehaviorsintrainings,groupfacilitations,andwhenhelpingconstituentsevaluate resolutions.

Aswecelebrateoureleventhyear,theOfficeoftheOmbudsmanremainscommittedtoserving theAmericanRedCross,itsemployees,volunteers,donors,partners,government,suppliers,andthe general public.

Contact Information:

Mainnumber:(202)303-5399|Tollfree:(866)667-9331Email:ombudsman@redcross.org|Fax:(202)639-9825

redcross.org/Ombudsman

2007 – 2018Eleven Years of Service

Another 16,200 reached through Outreach,Training,andFacilitation

5,200 Constituents

14,000 Issues

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