At the beautiful Pepperdine University campus in Malibu, California, the NASBA Center for the Public Trust will co-sponsor this conference with the Straus Institute of Dispute Resolution.
This conference will present leaders of outstanding companies and engage participants in an interactive dialogue intended to advance the understanding of how conflict can be converted from crisis to opportunity. This high-level strategic conversation will focus on industries and the professionals who serve them, while bringing leading resources together to illustrate, examine and practice the power of collaboration.
Accountants, attorneys, physicians, architects, compliance officers, mediators and executives in every industry will want to attend and participate in this one of a kind conference.
The credibility of American institutions appears to be at an all time low. Media accounts of financial improprieties, self-dealing and cover-ups abound. No organizational entity is immune from the taint of a distrusting public. Businesses, both for profit and nonprofit, charities and religious organizations all have been in the spotlight for ethical lapses. Industries from healthcare to energy, from unions to government, from civilian to military are in search of a revitalized pubic trust.
Many ethical business lapses occur when individuals and the companies they work for are unprepared for conflict and through avoidance methods are left to deal with the costly consequences of unresolved disputes.
There are companies and business leaders who deal proactively with conflict through culture, systems and training. These companies exhibit some of the leading business models in our economy. They are recognized for their best practices and their economic success. Rather than stifle complaints from employees, customers and patients, these organizations encourage dissent and reward it with prompt and effective dispute resolution mechanisms. Organizations that systematize and train their people in dispute resolution and conflict management techniques are less likely to suffer legal challenges and organizational disruptions resulting from unethical business practices.