Within a federal agency, the legislative affairs office had two challenges. One was with Congress: defending agency actions in Congressional hearings and obtaining adequate funding for the agency. The second was internal: satisfying the highly educated scientists within the agency that their needs and programs were being effectively represented and protected. With the legislative affairs office, I designed and conducted negotiation and conflict resolution training that enhanced their skills in working with building relationships with Congressional staffers, achieving the agency’s financial goals as well as addressing the concerns of the scientists.
