About

The Ombuds Concept

The origin of an ombuds program dates back to the 1700’s when King Charles XII of Sweden appointed a Chancellor of Justice to help maintain authority in the kingdom.  In the 1800’s, Sweden’s parliament renamed the position Justitieombudsman, whose purpose was to oversee the observance of laws and statutes.  The concept was brought to the United States in the 1960’s as universities attempted to address the eruption of protests and social unrest on campuses.

The Ombuds Role

Think of the Ombuds Office as a confidential help desk. The Ombuds Office is an independent unit charged with providing a service that is not biased towards any particular group, be it management or employee, supervisor or subordinate, student or faculty. The goal of the office is to help the LSU community manage conflict constructively and cooperatively, and to support positive change.

The Ombuds helps faculty, staff, administration, and students resolve barriers to productivity and increase the quality of their experience at LSU. The Ombuds encourages fairness and equity through:

Issue Resolution: Listening to concerns, identifying the core issue(s), creating and evaluating options for resolution

Communication & Outreach: Promoting awareness of the Ombuds Office and training (i.e. workplace civility, techniques on resolving disputes, having difficult conversations with supervisors or co-workers)

Systemic Change and Issue Prevention Identification: Listening, observing, contemplating, and adding information to identify trends or practices to senior management for systemic change or issue prevention

The Ombuds Process

  1. Listen to Concerns
  2. Gather Information
  3. Propose Solutions
  4. Follow Up

artwork: ombuds process of listening, gathering info, proposing solutions and follow up

Authority of the University Ombuds Office

The Ombuds has the authority to contact university personnel, to gather information in the course of looking into a problem, to informally mediate or negotiate dispute resolutions and to bring concerns to the attention of those in authority.

The Ombuds does not have the power to change University rules or policies, but can make recommendations for change to those with the authority to implement them. The Ombuds may also make recommendations based on perceived trends.