Journal of the International Ombudsman Association Shweta Dhiman Measuring the Impact of Organizational Con!ict SHWETA DHIMAN ABSTRACT KEY WORDS &RQüLFWLVDQLQHYLWDEOHSKHQRPHQRQLQ Measurement, accountability, participatory organizational affairs, often necessary governance, risk management, ombudsman for participatory governance. It can- not be eliminated; however its negative ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS impact can and should be contained. The author is deeply grateful to Helmut 0DQDJLQJWKHLPSDFWRIFRQüLFWUHTXLUHV Buss for his unbending support and en- a robust and holistic measurement couragement over the past year without mechanism that can identify and assess which it would not have been possible the impact, and monitor and evaluate its to carry out the study. The author thanks management. To this end, a study span- Mame Diagne, James Lee, Eskander Ras- ning several months was carried out at tegar, Judit Revesz, and Kojo Gyasi for their a public sector international organiza- input and help, several others in various WLRQ7KLVDUWLFOHGUDZVIURPLWVûQGLQJV units and departments of the international offering an insight into approaches to organization that was the subject of this framing the essence of organizational study, and Sim Segal for his special input FRQüLFWDQGXVLQJWKHDUWDQGVFLHQFHRI on risk management. risk management to capture its impact holistically. INTRODUCTION “Measure what is measurable, and make measurable what is not so” — Galileo Galilei &RQüLFWUHVROXWLRQSUDFWLWLRQHUVRIWHQJHWWRVHHERWKVLGHVRIVWRULHVWKDWNQRFNRQWKHLUGRRUV organizational ombudspersons especially poised to see more than two sides — bigger pictures LQFOXGLQJV\VWHPLFWUHQGVDQGSDWWHUQVLQZRUNSODFHFRQüLFWURRWFDXVHVDQGSODJXLQJFRQGL - WLRQVSHUSHWXDWLQJLWDQGWKHGHWULPHQWDOLPSDFWRIFRQüLFWRQYDULRXVFRQVWLWXHQFLHVLQFOXGLQJ its workforce, the organization, and its clients. This privilege comes straddled with the opportu- QLW\RIGULYLQJWUDQVIRUPDWLRQDOFKDQJHZLWKLQRUJDQL]DWLRQV¶FRQüLFWPDQDJHPHQWFXOWXUH² change which can be systematically measured, monitored, and evaluated. volume 5, number 2, 2012 56 Journal of the International Ombudsman Association Shweta Dhiman PURPOSE AND RELEVANCE — THE NEED TO MEASURE $SUHYLRXVVWXG\DERXWFRQWUROOLQJFRQüLFWFRVWV SXEOLVKHGLQWKH-RXUQDORIWKH,QWHUQDWLRQDO Ombudsman Association in 2011) indicated the need to develop robust measurement mecha- QLVPVDQGSRLQWHGRXWWKDWZLWKRXWPHDVXUHPHQWFRQüLFWPDQDJHPHQWLQRUJDQL]DWLRQVULVNV being limited to issue resolution and transactional changes to systemic problems. It does not H[WHQGWRDV\VWHPDWLFEDVLVXSRQZKLFKDQRUJDQL]DWLRQ¶VFRQüLFWUHVROXWLRQVWUDWHJ\FDQEH HYDOXDWHGQRULWVSHUIRUPDQFHRQFRQüLFWPDQDJHPHQWEHDSSUDLVHGIRULWVRYHUDOOLPSDFWRQ the organization. In addition to the what the study point outs, measurement offers a sound basis to gauge the ef- ûFDF\DQGDGHTXDF\RIH[LVWLQJFRQüLFWPDQDJHPHQWHVWDEOLVKPHQWVZLWKLQRUJDQL]DWLRQVVXFK DVDQ2PEXGVPDQ¶VRIûFHDEDVLVWRHQKDQFHWKHUROHRIWKH2PEXGVSHUVRQLQSDUWLFLSDWRU\ FRUSRUDWHJRYHUQDQFHDQGDEDVLVWRHYDOXDWHDQ\QHHGWRPDLQVWUHDPFRQüLFWPDQDJHPHQWE\ embedding it into operational processes. :LWKWKLVWKHPHDVWKHLPSHWXVDTXDOLWDWLYHUHVHDUFKVWXG\VSDQQLQJDSSUR[LPDWHO\VHYHQ months was conducted at an international organization in the public sector. The research meth- RGRORJ\ZDVDFDVHVWXG\RIFRQüLFWZLWKLQRQHDJHQF\RIWKHLQWHUQDWLRQDORUJDQL]DWLRQDQG LQYROYHGGRFXPHQWGHVNUHYLHZVVHPLVWUXFWXUHGLQWHUYLHZVDQGLQIRUPDOGLVFXVVLRQVDQGRQ VLWHREVHUYDWLRQV3XEOLFO\DFFHVVLEOHVRXUFHVLQWHUQDOVRXUFHVDQGSUR[\GDWD ZKHUHGDWDIRU WKHDJHQF\RUEURDGHURUJDQL]DWLRQZDVXQDYDLODEOHRUQRQH[LVWHQW ZDVXVHGIRUWKHSXUSRVH In order to better inform practice and build a rooted business case, rigorous inter disciplinary WKHRU\ZDVUHOLHGXSRQ2YHUDOOVXEVWDQWLYHVXSSRUWZDVH[WHQGHGE\WKH2PEXGVSHUVRQ¶V RIûFHZKLFKKDVLQWKHSDVWGULYHQHIIRUWVWRUDLVHDZDUHQHVVRIWKHFRVWVRIFRQüLFWDQGFRQWLQ - ues to do so. The idea behind this work was to step up those efforts and translate them into an DFWLRQDEOHDSSURDFKWRFRQüLFWFRVWPHDVXUHPHQW 7KHDLPRIWKHVWXG\ZDVDVIROORZV 1. Identify a holistic, scalable, and integrative approach that would measure the impact of inter- QDOFRQüLFWRQWKHRUJDQL]DWLRQ¶VVWUDWHJLFREMHFWLYHVLQRWKHUZRUGVWKHUHDOFRVWRIFRQüLFW 2. $VVHVVWKHHIIHFWLYHQHVVRIWKHRUJDQL]DWLRQ¶V&RQüLFW0DQDJHPHQW6\VWHP &06 1 in man- DJLQJWKHLPSDFWRIFRQüLFWDQGZKHUHUHOHYDQWWRUHFRPPHQGVWUDWHJLHVIRUWKH&06WR H[SDQGDQGHYROYH volume 5, number 2, 2012 57 Journal of the International Ombudsman Association Shweta Dhiman FRAMING ORGANIZATIONAL CONFLICT &KDOOHQJHGE\WKHVXEWOHGDQJHUVRIUHLûFDWLRQDGHOLEHUDWHFKRLFHZDVPDGHWRUHIUDLQIURP VWULFWO\GHûQLQJWKHWHUPµRUJDQL]DWLRQDOFRQüLFW¶RUGHOLPLWLQJLWVERXQGDULHV'XULQJWKHFRXUVH RIWKHVWXG\LWZDVIRXQGWKDWVRPXFKRIZKDWWKHWHUPµFRQüLFW¶GHQRWHVOLHVLQWKHH\HVRIWKH beholder, and this is stated based on several unstructured interviews conducted with people RXWVLGHWKHRPEXGVSHUVRQ¶VRIûFH²WRVRPHLWLVVLPSO\DGLVDJUHHPHQWDPRQJSHRSOHDQG QRPRUHWRRWKHUVWKHUHDOFRQüLFWLVQRWVRPXFKWKHPDQLIHVWHIIHFWVEXWXQGHUO\LQJVWUXFWXUDO causes and systemic failures which are sources of problems, and to others still, it is unregulated G\QDPLFVZLWKLQWKHVHOIFDXVLQJXQUHDVRQDEOHH[SHFWDWLRQVDQGFRQGXFW7RSUDFWLWLRQHUVLQ WKHûHOGRIFRQüLFWUHVROXWLRQLWLVSHUKDSVDOORIWKHDERYHDQGPRUH 2IVLJQLûFDQFHKHUHLVQRWVRPXFKZKDWWKHWHUPµFRQüLFW¶PHDQVWRSHRSOHLQDQRUJDQL]DWLRQDO FRQWH[WEXWKRZVXFKXQGHUVWDQGLQJFRORUVJHQHUDOSHUFHSWLRQRIWKHUROHRIWKH2PEXGVSHU - VRQLQLQWHUQDOFRQWURODQGRIWKHVHUYLFHVDQ2PEXGVSHUVRQ¶VRIûFHFDQSURYLGHLQSURPRWLQJ SULQFLSOHVRIJRRGJRYHUQDQFH7KLVLVHVSHFLDOO\WUXHLQRUJDQL]DWLRQVZKHUH2PEXGVSHUVRQ¶V channels are nascent and evolving, and demand for their services must sometimes be created in the midst of other actors in governance such as Ethics, Audit, and Investigations units. Mea- VXULQJWKHLPSDFWRIFRQüLFWDVDWRROIRUJRRGJRYHUQDQFHZRXOGEHVRPHZKDWOLNHDSSO\LQJD blue ocean strategy 2 (BOS) — creating an uncontested market space by offering a leap in value. ,QRUGHUWRGHYHORSDFOHDUXQGHUVWDQGLQJRIWKHSKHQRPHQRQZLWKRXWGHûQLQJLWWKHûUVW stage in the study involved constructing a theoretical framework as the basis to discover the characteristic features of the multi-dimensional phenomenon. Deconstructing the phenom- HQRQLQWREURDGHOHPHQWVLQFOXGLQJLVVXHVDQGWUHQGVLQYROYHGFDXVHVFRQGLWLRQVDQGFRQWH[W LPSDFWRIFRQüLFWRQYDULRXVFRQVWLWXHQFLHVDQGWKHUROHRIWKHH[LVWLQJFRQüLFWPDQDJHPHQW V\VWHPIXQGDPHQWDODVSHFWVZHUHSUREHGLQGHWDLO$VSHFWVVXFKDVWKHH[WHQWRIUHOLDQFHRQ YROXPHRIFDVHVDVDPHDVXUHRIVHYHULW\DQGSRWHQWLDOWKUHDWFRJQL]DQFHRIIDFWRUVLQKLELWLQJ FRQüLFWIURPVXUIDFLQJKLGGHQPDUNHWVFOXVWHUHGDURXQGFXOWXUHVRIVRUWVVSKHUHRIRXWUHDFK DQGLQüXHQFHRIWKH&06UHFRJQLWLRQRIPXOWLSOHURRWFDXVHVDQGFKURQLFFRQGLWLRQVDWWULEX - WLRQRIFDXVHVWRERWKDJHQF\DQGVWUXFWXUHWKHVRFLRSROLWLFDOFRQWH[WZLWKLQZKLFKWKHRUJDQL - ]DWLRQRSHUDWHVDQGWKHZLGHUDQJLQJLPSDFWRIFRQüLFWZHUHDQDO\]HG8VLQJSURSULHWDU\DQG SUR[\GDWDWKHFRQüLFWV\VWHPFRPSULVLQJWKHIRXUHOHPHQWV LVVXHVDQGWUHQGVFDXVHVFRQGL - WLRQVDQGFRQWH[WLPSDFWDQGFRVWVRIFRQüLFWWKH&06 ZDVYLHZHGLQLWVHQWLUHW\ A deep dive using the optic of social science theories helped cull out characteristic features of WKHFRQüLFWV\VWHPVXFKDVLQWHUFRQQHFWHGQHVVDQGLQWHUGHSHQGHQFHUHFLSURFDODQGELGLUHF - WLRQDOFDXVDOLW\QRQOLQHDULW\FRPSOH[LW\DQGXQSUHGLFWDELOLW\&RQüLFWZLWKLQWKHRUJDQL]DWLRQ H[DPLQHGZDVIRXQGWREHDG\QDPLFDOV\VWHPHQFRPSDVVLQJWKHLQWHUSOD\RIWKHHOHPHQWV LVVXHVFDXVHVLPSDFWDQG&06 PHQWLRQHGHDUOLHUZKLFKLQWHUDFWHGLQFRPSOH[DQGQRQOLQ - ear ways. According to Dynamical Systems Theory (DST) in social psychology, because of the volume 5, number 2, 2012 58 Journal of the International Ombudsman Association Shweta Dhiman FRPSOH[LW\RILQWHUDFWLRQVDPRQJYDULRXVHOHPHQWVLQDV\VWHPWKHV\VWHPDVDZKROHHYROYHV in seemingly unpredictable ways, and the activation of each element is determined by the total LQüXHQFHIURPRWKHUHOHPHQWVLQWKHV\VWHP'\QDPLFDOV\VWHPVDUHKHOGWRJHWKHUDQGNHSWLQ SODFHE\VWURQJDWWUDFWRUV$QH[DPSOHRIDQDWWUDFWRULQDQLQWHUSHUVRQDOFRQüLFWLVDVWURQJO\ held view of the other party, such that even contradictory information is interpreted so that it is LQOLQHZLWKWKHVWURQJO\KHOGYLHZWKXVNHHSLQJWKHFRQüLFWLQSODFH ,QWKHFRQWH[WRIWKHRUJDQL]DWLRQH[DPLQHGLQWKLVVWXG\DVWURQJDWWUDFWRUIRUWKHFRQüLFWV\V - WHPZDVWKHRUJDQL]DWLRQ¶VFXOWXUHRIDFFRXQWDELOLW\LQDOOLWVIDFHWV²IURPDVWUDWHJLFKLJKOHYHO DFFRXQWDELOLW\RIWKHRUJDQL]DWLRQDVDZKROHWRPHHWLWVREMHFWLYHVDQGVHUYHLWVFOLHQWVWRWKH DFFRXQWDELOLW\RIWKHRUJDQL]DWLRQ¶VVHQLRUPDQDJHPHQWWRLWVH[HFXWLYHERDUGIRUWKHHIûFLHQW stewardship of its resources, to the accountability of each member of its workforce to display ethical conduct, et al. 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