By Sanjana Ramachandran, APS Academy
Navigating ethical grey areas at work can be challenging. What happens when your integrity conflicts with established processes or advice? These grey areas can make it difficult to distinguish right from wrong and can lead to poor judgement.
The Integrity and Complexity in the APS MasterCraft Series panel explored perspectives on navigating ethical conflicts to build positive stakeholder relationships without compromising public trust.
The panel featured speakers with a breadth of experiences in the APS and academia: Professor Susan Dodds, Deputy Chair of the Australian Research Council Board; Tricia Stroud, Registrar of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Corporation; and Ron Brent, Former Commonwealth Ombudsman.
The facilitator, Clare McLean, Director - Integrity and Ethics at the Australian Public Service Commission (APSC), engaged the panel on the topics of organisational integrity, cultural factors that contribute to integrity failures and advice for APS staff navigating the complexities of integrity.
Key insights the panel shared include:
1. Integrity is not solely defined by the legality/ethicality of behaviours and processes.
Other questions to consider:
- Are processes consistent, fair and reliable?
- Is our conduct independent and impartial?
- Are we treating people with respect and dignity?
2. Positive leadership is the cornerstone of organisational integrity.
- Poor behaviours (bullying, not addressing inappropriate behaviours etc.) at the leadership level is a key contributor to workplace integrity failures.
- Leaders must be open to feedback at all levels. Multiple feedback pathways (managers, HR, Ombudsman etc.) can provide a comprehensive picture of what is happening across an organisation.
3. Individuals and organisations must hold themselves accountable for ‘integrity creep’.
- Poor decision or actions should not pass based on the perception that it is ‘not too bad’. A failure to address small issues can lead to instances of integrity creep as they may escalate into bigger issues over time.
- It is important to remember that every action and decision has an impact on the public.
4. It is possible to balance personal and organisational integrity.
- It would be a disservice to the public service if employees have to compromise their APS integrity values to support an organisational decision or process.
- When difficult decisions are made, treating affected individuals with honesty and integrity can make it easier for them to accept and mitigate the decision.
Watch the recording to dive deeper and hear some real-work place examples or learn more about your APS integrity obligations.