For training, facilitation, and conflict resolution consulting, or more information on the Conversations for Change series, please request submit a query at the site “contact” link, or reach out via email or the LinkedIn link below.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/donna-douglass-williams-22981b12
With over twenty years professional, experience as an attorney, mediator, facilitator, trainer, and ombudsperson, Donna has parlayed her skills and experience into a career as a successful consultant, conflict strategist, and resolution artist, advising clients on developing collaborative, creative strategies to address organizational and team dynamics. In her consulting practice, Donna helps groups identify and address issues related to respect and treatment, interpersonal interactions, communication, conflict, trust, behaviorial integrity, psychological safety, diversity and inclusion, and other dynamics that impact work climate, productivity, and the overall functioning of the organization. Participants are led through interactive exercises for skill building in engaged listening, demonstrating empathy, managing emotions, framing constructive conversations and other skills crucial to improved collaboration and teamwork, and more positive work and learning experiences. Dialogue and training sessions facilitated on topics including compassionate communication, psychological safety, personality/work styles, conflict competence, conversational intelligence, respectful workplace, and social and emotional intelligence. Donna’s clients have included colleges and universities, government agencies, non-profit organizations, and corporate groups.
Donna Douglass Williams has over twenty years professional experience as an organizational ombudsperson. In 2019, she was appointed as Ombudsperson at UConn Health, the University of Connecticut’s integrated academic medical center in Farmington, CT. In this role, she provides Ombuds services to faculty and staff, as well as University of Connecticut medical, dental and graduate students. Donna also serves as consultant ombudsperson for the United Nations Funds and Programmes, responsible for case work, training and outreach to global staff members in agencies including UNICEF, UNDP, UN Women, UNFPA, and UNOPS. Donna served as the inaugural Ombudsperson for the Green Climate Fund (GCF), the organizational funding mechanism for the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, headquartered in Songdo, South Korea. Formerly, Donna was Director of the Ombuds Program at University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, where she led Ombuds services including conflict coaching, mediation, and training to M.D. Anderson’s 20,000+ faculty, staff, trainees and students. Donna also previously held the position of Ombudsperson for the World Health Organization (WHO) in Geneva, Switzerland serving WHO and UNAIDS staff in various duty stations worldwide. Her professional experience includes work a corporate attorney for Equifax, Ombudsperson at Georgia State University (GSU), and systemwide mediator and mediator coach with the Consortium on Negotiation and Conflict Resolution in the GSU College of Law. While at Georgia State University, she was the recipient of the Marian Wright Edelman African American Heritage Award for outstanding administrator. Donna’s experience as an ombudsperson, attorney, mediator, trainer, facilitator, and presenter includes work in North America, Europe, Asia and Africa. She is a member of the International Ombudsman Association, Network of Ombudsmen of the United Nations and Related International Organizations (UNARIO), the Association for Conflict Resolution (ACR), the American Bar Association (ABA), and is a Certified Organizational Ombudsman Practitioner. Donna holds a bachelor’s degree in Accounting from Purdue University, and a law degree from the University of California, at Davis King Hall School of Law. A competitive tennis player for over 40 years, Donna also enjoys yoga, travel, theatre, and genealogical research.
Human Resolutions 