CFPB Ombudsman’s Office celebrates conflict resolution month
Each year, October is observed as conflict resolution month—a time to highlight the benefits of constructive, informal approaches for resolving conflict. Throughout the United States, governments at all levels, businesses, and educational institutions focus attention on how conflict resolution techniques can benefit individuals and organizations. These techniques typically involve the assistance of neutral, trained professionals, such as ombudsmen, mediators, and facilitators, who can assist in resolving issues but do not advocate for a particular outcome.
At the CFPB Ombudsman’s Office, we are an independent, impartial, and confidential resource that assists consumers, financial entities, and others resolve process issues arising from their CFPB interactions. In short, we advocate for a fair process in consumer financial protection. You can reach us anytime, but we ask that you first try the regular avenues the CFPB provides to resolve the issue unless you wish to reach us in confidence.
Some of the ways we assist are by:
- Facilitating discussions
- Brainstorming and evaluating options and resources
- Sharing independent analyses
- Offering an impartial perspective
- Engaging in shuttle diplomacy
- Providing feedback
- Making recommendations
We hope that your celebration of conflict resolution month will include visiting our webpage to learn more about the CFPB Ombudsman’s Office and how we may assist you. We look forward to hearing from you.
Wendy Kamenshine is the Ombudsman for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.