Projects

Monitor was chosen as the Organizational Change/Management Consultant for US Fish & Wildlife Service, Branch of Fire Management. Monitor’s president, Mickey Anne Benson, PhD, worked with individual staff members and divisions as they dealt with small and large organizational change. Monitor also assisted in developing an internal communications system to foster organizational learning and create an entity capable of revitalizing itself in the face of organizational and fiscal uncertainty and change. This contract was an extension of successful work Monitor completed for the US Fish and Wildlife Service in the past.

Monitor was selected as the single contractor to provide instruction, assessment and executive coaching services for multiple presentations of the Leadership Assessment Program I (LAP I). Assessments were conducted at Office of Personnel Management’s (OPM) Eastern Management and Western Management Development Centers. Monitor Associates became the first firm with whom OPM contracted to provide all assessment center services. Prior to this contract, each presenter/coach/assessor had entered into a separate agreement with OPM.

Monitor was awarded a contract with the Veterans Health Administration (VHA), National Center for Organization Development (NCOD) to provide advice and counsel to the Executive Team responsible for implementing and managing change and reorganization activities. Monitor’s president, Mickey Anne Benson, PhD, served as the primary advisor to the team as the VA moved through a very difficult period in the agency’s history. Monitor Associates also developed a series of reports and papers on approaches to manage internal communications, methods of organizational intervention, and developing trends in change management in order to further support the VHA during its transformation. Monitor worked closely with NCOD staff who Monitor advised as these in-house professionals coached senior executive level VA leaders facing serious challenges while the VHA’s major transformation was rolled out across the national Veterans Integrated Service Network facilities, affecting over 1,800 VHA employees.

Monitor Associates was awarded the contract to develop and deliver the Defense Senior Leader Development Program (DSLDP). The DSLDP is the Department’s premier, multi-year program that is the blueprint for developing senior civilian leaders with the enterprise perspective needed to lead organizations, people and programs. Monitor’s multi-year contract with DOD tasks Monitor with designing, developing, and delivering three seminars over 2.5 years for each DSLDP cohort.  Seminars focus on the OPM Executive Core Qualifications and the 28 leadership competencies. Included in the sessions are modules on public service, integrity, emotional intelligence, developing trust, leading and managing change, leading people, creativity and innovation, developing productive relationships, political savvy, and leading in a complex environment. A unique aspect of this program delivery is Monitor Associates’s integration of both current and past members of the DoD and other agencies’ Senior Executive Service cadre and General Officer ranks that provide participants with real-world perspectives of leadership in action.

Monitor Associates was selected as the Organizational Change Management Consultant for the Multi-Agency Southern Area Coordination Center (SACC). Monitor assisted staff in dealing with leadership managerial issues in a multi-agency environment and developing methods to improve inter/intra organizational communication between the US Fish and Wildlife Service, Bureau of Indian Affairs, National Park Service and Southern States Fire Representative. Monitor provided executive coaching for the SACC manager and the Southern Area Coordinating Group (SACG), a consortium of managers. Monitor also provided recommendations aimed at improving individual competencies and developed a strategy to implement changes in workload management. Monitor’s team also created a functional organization within the SACG and improved working relationships and communication at SACC. Monitor’s team instituted a new conflict management process and improved leadership capacities among a rotating series of SACC managers who came from member agencies.

Monitor was tasked with establishing a consensus based, risk based, corrective action procedure for EPA in Indian Country. Primary issues included technical considerations (such as exposure pathways and allowable target levels), tribal capacity and impact on cultural/natural resources. Monitor implemented collaborative decision making and consensus building techniques, which allowed all parties to focus on issues and create a shared understanding of various perspectives. Monitor assisted in establishing a dialogue that exposed the expertise of each participant and the critical role that each played in reaching workable decisions. The result was that the EPA and all 27 Tribes from that region reached consensus on all issues associated with risk-based corrective actions, initiatives were outlined to increase tribal capacity, and a process was defined to resolve any future misunderstandings. The alliances built created trust between all parties and were the foundation for a new way of working together. The EPA Region, with Monitor’s input, began a Collaborative Decision Making initiative which involved representatives from each Tribe in a consultative partnership. During an 8-month period, Monitor worked with EPA and the Tribes as they learned how to work collaboratively, with mutual respect. Ultimately, EPA and the Tribes agreed on the design and implementation of corrective actions.

Monitor planned and facilitated a Health and Safety Streamlining Initiative for a US Department of Energy (DOE) Field Office to streamline its Health and Safety Training Program while meeting all regulations and mandates. Over 40 representatives from various agencies and labor unions participated in the discussions. Using Collaborative Decision Making, Monitor led the diverse group to develop a streamlined, yet comprehensive, Basic Health and Safety Training Course. Together, they identified worker risks and strategies in place to mitigate risks, developed a gap analysis of strategies to identify training needs, and developed a curriculum that included exercises and evaluation.

Monitor facilitated discussions and mediated complex negotiations to form a partnership and resolve issues. In response to the Clean Air Act, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) established regional planning organizations to address visibility impairment by reducing haze and fine particulate matter on a regional basis. The Central States Regional Air Planning Organization (CENRAP) includes 9 states with Class I Areas (National Parks) and 66 Tribes. CENRAP worked with the 9 states to draft a strategic plan and governing bylaws. The 66 Tribes were invited to review the draft bylaws and to participate in the partnership. Monitor Associates’ Mickey Anne Benson, PhD, facilitated discussions and mediated negotiations to resolve issues related to partnership formation. A pre-meeting caucus was held to increase Tribal awareness of the EPA Haze Program and to address Tribal issues. Subsequently, Monitor was invited to design and moderate a national forum to include all 5 of EPA’s Regional Planning Organizations, each state containing Class 1 areas, and over 100 Tribal representatives. Key EPA staff received a Team Excellence Award for their work on this initiative.

Monitor Associates planned and facilitated a Rocky Flats Summit for the DOE Assistant Secretary of Environmental Management. The purpose of the Summit was to focus on the future of the DOE Rocky Flats facility. Principal participants included EPA Administrators and Regional Director, Lt. Governor of Colorado, Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board representatives, Colorado Office of the Attorney General, Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, Rocky Flats Field Office Manager, and Kaiser-Hill Corporation executives. More than 100 Federal and state government representatives attended the summit. Mickey Anne Benson, PhD guided the principals to collaboratively identify, prioritize, and resolve – or develop a process to resolve – all conflictive issues that had been in unsuccessful negotiation for two years. The Final Cleanup Agreement was signed within a month.

Monitor led a stakeholder taskforce to arrive at unified consensus. The District of Columbia underwent a major redevelopment effort. Local realtors and developers believed that existing regulations governing underground storage tanks (UST) frustrated redevelopment efforts. Their lawyers proposed a set of new regulations, which were in conflict with EPA guidelines. Amid much controversy, the DC Control Board and Corporate Council instructed the DC Department of Health, Division of Underground Storage Tanks, to form a Stakeholder Task Force to streamline existing UST regulations, integrate a risk-based corrective action component, and address responsible party actions. The Control Board instructed that the initiative be completed in 6 months. The Task Force included Representatives from major energy companies, developers, environmental groups, federal agencies, banks, environmental contractors, attorneys, realtors and citizens. Monitor Associates led the Stakeholder Task Force to complete its work in just 5 months and to make a unified presentation to the Control Board and Corporate Council. The disparate Task Force surpassed expectations by joining together to present the new regulations at the required public meetings.

Monitor led the State of Nebraska, the Omaha Nation, and the EPA to reconcile complex issues and reach a joint agreement. Walthill, Nebraska, is an incorporated municipality located within the boundaries of the Omaha Reservation. Over the last decade, contamination from underground storage tanks was reported at 3 locations in Walthill. Site inspections had been halted as a result of difficult sovereignty and jurisdictional issues with the state and Tribe. Moreover, there were technical differences between state and EPA regulatory corrective action guidance, and the state’s site ranking system rated Walthill as a low priority. Using Collaborative Decision Making techniques, Mickey Anne Benson, PhD led the State of Nebraska, the Omaha Nation, and the EPA to focus on human health and the environment and reconciling the complex technical procedural issues. The partners focused on establishing their roles and responsibilities and interacting with the responsible parties and the Walthill community. Dr. Benson worked with the Partnership to issue jointly signed letters of direction to each of the responsible parties. The signing of the letters was not just a milestone for the Partnership; it was the first time a state, Tribe, and Federal agency reached a joint agreement represented by agency logos and signatures on a single public document. Equally significant, the signing took place in Omaha Tribal Chambers – tribute to the trust and respect generated by the Partnership through Dr. Benson’s Collaborative Decision Making approach.