Collaborative Action and Dispute Resolution

Collaborative Action and Dispute Resolution, or CADR is a confidential resource that provides a fair and impartial way to discuss your concerns and explore different options. It helps you anticipate and resolve conflicts and disputes, build stronger relationships, and achieve more effective and lasting results. The Department of the Interior manages the Office of Collaborative Action and Dispute Resolution manages the ADR program for all federal employees within Indian Affairs. The office is committed to developing conflict management skills and integrating public participation, collaborative problem-solving, and alternative dispute resolution processes in all work areas.

The program offers information and problem-solving assistance, among other items, including:

• Consultation
  • This is an informal one-on-one meeting or discussion with an impartial, neutral third party to help an employee or manager discuss and consider their options.
• Conflict Coaching
  • A one-on-one voluntary and confidential process that combines ADR and coaching principles. It helps a person develop skills and strategies to manage interpersonal conflicts effectively.
• Leadership Coaching
  • Leadership coaching offers personalized learning for busy executives and employees. It addresses immediate, tactical, and long-term strategic issues or opportunities while deepening their learning of themselves and their environment.
• Training and Team Building
  • We offer modules on conflict management, handling difficult conversations, communication skills, cultural competency, interest-based negotiations, basic and advanced mediation skills, and basic facilitation skills. Based on specific needs, additional training can be created or customized.
• Facilitated Conversation
  • This process uses an impartial third party to help with a difficult conversation. They assist in identifying tensions and issues, clearing up misunderstandings, and improving communication and working relationships. It is less formal than a mediation process.
• Mediation
  • This is a confidential process in which a neutral mediator, who doesn't make decisions, helps disputants reach an agreement that benefits both sides.
• Facilitation
  • Facilitation is when a neutral facilitator helps improve communication between parties or guides a group through a problem-solving process to reach group decisions, achieve goals, resolve issues, or improve a situation. Unlike in mediation, a facilitator is not involved in the specifics.
• Negotiated Rulemaking
  • Sometimes, rulemaking procedures may have the unintended effect of discouraging the affected parties from meeting and communicating with each other. This could cause parties with different interests to assume conflicting and antagonistic positions, resulting in expensive and time-consuming litigation over agency rules. Authorized by the Negotiated Rulemaking Act of 1996, the negotiated rulemaking process proactively brings parties together to collaboratively develop a draft rule.
• Situation or Conflict Assessment
  • A neutral third party conducts a situation or conflict assessment to identify stakeholders and key issues, evaluate whether a collaborative process is feasible -- including the likelihood of reaching an agreement -- and design a plan for moving forward.

For all ADR inquiries and requests, please contact the OEOCRP: (202) 208-5690 or BIA_BIE_EEO@BIA.GOV