Police officers, by virtue of their experience are very effective arbitrators. Early in their careers, police officers master the art of handling a dispute by hearing all sides of the story and then determining the best course of action for the parties to follow. While this tactic often works, it usually deals only with the current symptoms of the problem, and not the root causes. Mediation is different from arbitration in that it addresses all those root causes that have to be resolved before a lasting agreement can be reached. The rest are resolved through conciliation.
Conciliation consists of a wide variety of resolutions to the problem.
Often, the preferred resolution is to develop a list of options for the employee to consider. That way, the employee is able to solve the problem themselves. Sometimes the employee is referred to another source to resolve their problem. When these options fail, or are not viable, other forms of conciliation include intervention with a commanding officer, assistance in obtaining a change of assignment, or other types of support. The Ombuds Office does not intervene in on-going personnel complaint, grievance, or discrimination complaint investigations.