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Publications

Why Programs Are No Longer Enough: An Interview on Collaborating at the U.S. TSA  Alternatives to the High Cost of Litigation, CPR Institute for Conflict Prevention and Resolution May and June 2009. 

In an exclusive interview with Judith Cohen, Deborah A. Katz, the TSA’s Director of the Office of Collaborative Strategies, describes how the government agency is institutionalizing ADR principles and practices as an integral component of its approach to risk management and organizational effectiveness.  The lessons learned are transferable to any organization looking to build its capacity to consider differing views and constructively manage conflict in all its forms.   

Excerpt from the interview:  

JC: How would a corporate entity use performance expectations that include conflict competency in its risk management efforts?   

DK: In order for issues and concerns to be routinely raised and worked out, voicing contrary views has to be not only acceptable but encouraged.  Hiring the right people, and enforcing expectations that executives and managers create an environment that is respectful and open to new or unwelcome ideas, is critical to any organization’s risk management efforts.  Examine virtually any catastrophic organizational failure, and you will almost always find that at least one person in the organization had doubts or concerns that could have averted disaster.  

JC: It seems that transparency is a part of this as well:  sharing reasons for decisions with the people who are affected by them.   As we know from procedural justice studies, people who have a voice are more likely to accept outcomes they disagree with.  In the employment context, involving employees in making decisions that affect them and sharing the reasons for unpleasant decisions leads to a more engaged workforce.  Do you think this element of voice and transparency might be easier to achieve in a corporation than in a government bureaucracy?  How might it contribute to the success of an ICMS?   

See Deborah Katz’s answer to this and other questions!  The full article is available at: Alternatives to the High Cost of Litigation

Going Beyond ADR: A Federal Sector Mission- and Work Life-Centered Approach to Building Collaboration and Democratic Values on the Job
Alternatives to the High Cost of Litigation, CPR Institute for Conflict Prevention and Resolution, October 2005.


  Articles available online at Mediate.com: 

• Fulfilling Your Obligations on Mediation Capacity  Alternatives to the High Costs of Litigation, CPR Institute for Conflict Prevention and Resolution, June 2003.  This article is part of a collection on Mediation Capacity that is posted on the Mediate.com ADA Mediation Page.  

• Convening for Enhanced Self-Determination and Access to the Process The Texas Mediator, Summer 2003.  A publication of the Texas Association of Mediators.
   
• Reflective Practice: How Veterans Can Benefit from Rookie Training Originally published in Alternatives (March 2003), and now available on Mediate.com.
   
• ADA Mediation Guidelines:An Ongoing Endeavor ADA Mediation Page, March 2003
   
• ADA Mediation: Important Challenges Remain, ADA Mediation Page Editorial, October 2002
    
• Unique Issues in Mediating ADA Disputes, Pike & Fisher ADR Report, January 20, 1999
   
• Mediating Employment Disputes under the Disabilities Act, (co-author), Dispute Resolution Journal, American Arbitration Association, February 1998
   
• Making Dispute Resolution Sessions Accessible to People with Disabilities, SPIDR News, Spring 1997
   
• Sophisticated Awareness is Necessary for Effective Disabilities Act Mediation, Alternatives to the High Costs of Litigation, CPR Institute for Conflict Prevention and Resolution, April 1997

Other Publications:

• ADA Mediation Guidelines Raise the Ethics Bar, Dispute Resolution Magazine, American Bar Association, Winter 2004
   
• The ADA Mediation Guidelines: A Community Collaboration Moves the Field Forward, Cardozo Online Journal of Conflict Resolution, Vol. 2, Issue 2
   
• Highlights of the Interim ADA Mediation Standards, The Journal of Alternative Dispute Resolution in Employment, Fall 1999
   
• Practical Insights into Implementing the ADA Mediation Guidelines, The Journal of Alternative Dispute Resolution in Employment Summer, 2001
   
• Using Mediation to Resolve Disability-Related Disputes, New York Law Journal, May 10, 1999
   
• Disability Access for Employees and Volunteers, NAFCM News, National Association for Community Mediation, Summer 1997
   
• Arbitration and the Americans with Disabilities Act (co-author), ADR Currents, American Arbitration Association (AAA), Summer 1996
   
• Disability Etiquette: Interacting with People with Disabilities, available from United Spinal Association.  Over half a million copies in print!