Kevan Goff-Parker
Staff Writer
Conflict is commonly thought of negatively, but it can be a catalyst for creative problem-solving. It is when conflict goes unresolved that we see personal and organizational dysfunction. As employees become increasingly frustrated and disengaged, organizational productivity is impacted, which directly impacts readiness.
The 72nd Air Base Wing Alternative Dispute Resolution Office partnered with the Air Force General Counsel’s Office and the Air Force Negotiation Center to help Team Tinker counter the effects of unresolved workplace conflict.
On June 4-7, the team presented a series of courses designed to raise awareness of dispute resolution strategy and educate Team Tinker on negotiations and communication using the ADR process.
The 72nd Air Base Wing Alternative Dispute Resolution Office partnered with the Air Force General Counsel’s Office and the Air Force Negotiation Center to help Team Tinker counter the effects of unresolved workplace conflict. Here, Kimberly A. Mlinaz, director, ADR and associate general counsel for the U.S. Air Force, leads a discussion with a group of supervisors on June 6. They discussed the ADR’s strengths and weaknesses in the Keith Howards Conference Room in Bldg. 3001 at Tinker Air Force Base. (Courtesy photo by Kelli Anderson)
The Basic Mediator Training course was held in Del City, Oklahoma. An Attorney and Advisor Awareness Course was held on June 4 and an Airman Awareness Course was held June 5-6, both in the Keith Howards Conference Room in Bldg. 3001. Kimberly A. Mlinaz, director, ADR and Associate General Counsel for the U.S. Air Force, also led a discussion group on June 6 on the ADR’s strengths and weaknesses in the conference room.
Mlinaz said her focus was to listen and take ideas back to the Pentagon on how to improve the ADR process.
“I want to dispel the myth immediately that I’m here to ask you to settle more cases, because I’m not,” Mlinaz said. “I don’t think settling cases for the sake of settling cases and dispensing with litigation helps anybody. What we (the USAF) are doing on a large scale, not just at Tinker Air Force Base, is we’re trying to help folks come up with ways of solving the problems that are underlying these complaints and to help your organizations get back to productivity.
“We know that the Air Force is losing tens of millions of dollars annually in lost productivity because of unresolved workplace conflict. In fact, in 2017 we put together a package that went up to the Under Secretary of the Air Force (Matthew Donovan) highlighting this issue and asking for his support in making sure we can get the resources we need to do this right for you guys.”
Mlinaz said she and other Air Force leaders created a package that contained a letter from 72nd Air Base Wing Commander Col. Kenyon K. Bell. In the letter, he shared what he believes Tinker AFB needs from the ADR process. The Under Secretary then sent out a letter to all MAJCOMs just prior to Christmas 2017 asking commanders to engage with the ADR office in the field and with the Air Force Negotiation Center “to make sure we are getting you guys what you need to solve problems.”
She said her office recently published a new USAF Policy Directive with respect to conflict resolution because she believes by the time a USAF mediator is requested for a complaint pending before the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the U.S. Merit Systems Protection Board, or becomes a filed grievance; there are fewer ways to solve problems quickly.
“The new policy is focused on getting tools out to Airmen across the force to resolve conflict when it comes up,” she said. “In fact, the language now tells us that we need to work to make negotiations an enterprise-wide capability. We’re right now working with the Air Force Negotiation Center and Air Force Academy on how to standardize that education, but we’re also working on how to bring those tools to you.”
Mlinaz told the supervisors she needed their input because they are the ones who are dealing daily to resolve conflict when it occurs and asked what type of resources base supervisors need as follow-on resources.
“When we update the under secretary on the progress of this memo, we want to report actual information that’s real, that came from people living it, instead of some headquarters level guesses,” she said.
The supervisors discussed different challenges they’ve had with the ADR process and Mlinaz took notes.
“Effective leaders understand the importance of applying problem-solving through negotiation as a first response to mitigating the impact of unresolved conflict,” Mlinaz said.” Real solutions to the underlying problems allow us to restore trust with our teams and get back to delivering on the mission.”
USAF Capt. Ronaldo Colina, (interim) chief of the Equal Opportunity and Alternate Dispute Resolution Office, 72nd Air Base Wing, said the week-long training provided tools that Team Tinker needs to help solve workplace disputes at the lowest level.
“It emphasizes effective communication to help employees and management come to a resolution that they may not have been able to reach by themselves,” Colina said. “When we are able to successfully do this, we not only save the Air Force time and money, we help promote a safe and happy working environment that allows Tinker’s employees to focus on the mission at hand.”
A Revitalization of ADR Program was also held on June 7 in the conference room.
Terry Hirons, director of complaints, Inspector General’s Office, 72nd Air Base Wing, said the ADR training and discussions are helping Tinker AFB and other bases to prepare for the future.
“The supervisors’ training will help them to better understand the tools used in the ADR process,” Hirons said. “This is coming from the top (USAF) and we see value in resolving issues at the lowest possible level so they don’t boil up. We’d love to see conflict resolved earlier and we want to infuse ADR into the base populace.”