An Organizational Ombuds is a person who acts as a trusted intermediary between an organization and its stakeholders. The Ombuds serves as an advocate not for one person but as an advocate for fairness, facilitating resolution of conflicts and complaints in a neutral, impartial, independent, and confidential manner. The Ombuds may act as a source of information or an advisor, and the Ombuds may provide feedback to the organization from which informed change can be made to prevent similar problems from recurring.
The USDBF Office of the Ombuds is a confidential, independent, impartial, and informal problem-solving and conflict management resource serving the USDBF community. The Office of the Ombuds is not an office of notice and cannot receive formal complaints. The Ombuds can assist members by listening to concerns, clarifying issues, connecting or identifying resources, and providing coaching and communication strategy support. Any member of the paddling community may contact the USDBF Ombuds by sending a confidential email to Ombuds@usdbf.org