THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

LEADING THE WAY TO AN ETHICAL FUTURE

At The Ethics Centre we are constantly developing new thinking into, and solutions for, the ethical challenges that lie ahead across areas of importance to society. Leveraging over 30 years of experience, The Ethics Centre carries out research into the most prominent ethical tensions we face – from business, through to new technological design and automation. Our reports and publications are a free resource to all, offering the tools and understanding to create meaningful change. 

 

 

ETHICS & THE ECONOMY

The Ethical Advantage: The Economic and Social Benefits of Ethics to Australia

The Ethical Advantage’s exclusive new economic modelling by Deloitte Access Economics shows that if our leaders, businesses, institutions and everyday Australians made more ethical decisions, our GDP, wages, corporate returns and mental health would improve.

For the first time, the report quantifies the benefits of ethics for individuals and for the nation. The report also identifies five interlinked areas for improvement for Australia and its approach to ethics, supported by 30 individual initiatives. 

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TECHNOLOGY & DESIGN

Ethical by Design: Principles for Good Technology

In a climate where misuse of data and ethical failures are increasingly common, this report offers a practical antidote to the common pitfalls in technological design. We break down some of the biggest challenges and give a new way of thinking for creating purpose-based design.

Learn the seven guiding principles designers need to consider when building new technology. Whether editing a genome, building a driverless car or writing a social media algorithm, this report offers the knowledge and tools to do so ethically.

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FINANCIAL ETHICS

Everyday Ethics for Financial Advisers 

Everyday Ethics for Financial Advisers is a new textbook that has been written to help Australian financial advisers comply with the FASEA Code of Ethics, get ahead of the curve in terms of their professional ethics, and embed ethics into their practice. It’s a practical guide that offers ethical decision making frameworks, and is supported by real-life case studies based on the five values and 12 standards of the Code.

The text is intended to be a long term companion as advisers develop their ethical muscle throughout their career, and is now on sale via all major online retailers.

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Woman reviewing data

AI-driven marketing in financial services

AI-driven marketing for financial services was written by The Banking and Finance Oath (BFO) 2021 Young Ambassadors.

Working with The Gradient Institute, the Young Ambassadors chose to explore the growing issue of the ethics of using AI in financial services. There is a growing awareness of AI ethics in the broader industry, and in some specific areas like credit scoring, however little attention has been given to issues around AI-driven marketing, and the related risks and opportunities. Developing comprehensive understanding of the ethics involved in business decisions around AI will assist financial services leaders to avoid real harm to customers and society, maintain trust and legitimacy, and prove AI can be a force for good.

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BUSINESS ETHICS

A Guide to Purpose, Values, Principles

Each day, countless decisions are made within organisations of all shapes and sizes. They are made by individuals with their own ideas of right and wrong, good and bad. That’s where an Ethics Framework comes in – it provides a roadmap to decision making offer a clear statement of what an organisation believes in and what standards it applies.

A Guide to Purpose, Values, Principles is a step by step process for small to medium businesses to identify and embed their own purpose, values and principles across every level of the organisation.

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AID & DEVELOPMENT

Ethical by Design: Evaluating Outcomes. Principles for Data and Development

New technologies open up a host of new possibilities and ethical considerations in the monitoring and evaluation of aid and development projects.

Gain important insight into the role of an Ethical Framework in decision making, unearth core considerations specific to the measurement and evaluation of development projects and access a practical decision making model to slow down your thinking.

This paper is a valuable resource for anyone working with or associated with aid work domestically or internationally, particularly those involved in innovation and measurement.

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ETHICAL OPERATIONS

Ethics in Procurement Report: The Ethics Alliance

Ethics in Procurement examines the tensions that arise in payment of suppliers, and provides a guide for ensuring fair transactions. An initiative of The Ethics Alliance, the report was developed after Alliance members called out the crippling impact late payments was having on small business.

Following a series of interviews and roundtable discussion, the report considers the common challenges including tender processes, supplier transparency, using trusted suppliers and acceptable payment periods, and provides a framework to make payment processes fair, practical and ethical.

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BOARD LEADERSHIP

Ethics in the Boardroom: A guide to decision-making

In partnership with The Ethics Centre, the Australian Institute of Company Directors presents a guide for making ethical decisions in the boardroom.

Directors face a myriad of ethical issues that impact on board decision-making. Their behaviour, and the way they lead is central to setting the right tone and values throughout an organisation. This guide supports directors in considering ethical issues as they discharge their duties, and invites them to view the decisions they come up against through four key lenses.

It’s a vital resource for directors as a general reference, should be utilised by boards to strengthen their capacity in ethics, and by individual directors and boards alike to inform conversations about the complex issues they encounter in their roles.

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CORPORATE TRUST

Trust, Legitimacy & the Ethical Foundations of the Market Economy

We are facing a large scale disintegration of trust in our institutions. In this report, we outline why legitimacy is now more important than trust to the success of Australian companies.

Get insights on the current issues of trust and loss of limited liability, and a framework to positively participate in the current market economy. Learn how four fundamental values and principles can help businesses minimise risk of corporate failure and potential for unlimited liability.

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WORKPLACE ETHICS

Ethics at Work: 2018 Survey of Employees

Learn what ethical dilemmas are most commonly faced by employees, whether they have witnessed misconduct, reported it, and if not, why not. Discover the different views of three generations of workers, and uncover how they experience ethical behaviour at work.

The national survey, delivered by IBE in partnership with The Ethics Centre, surveyed a cross section of Australian’s in the workforce to develop the first comprehensive look at the lived ethics in workplaces across the country.

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ETHICS OF POLITICS

The Cloven Giant: Reclaiming Intrinsic Dignity

How do we explain the profound loss of trust in liberal democratic institutions and the rise of potentially destructive forms of populism?

This essay traces the origins of the ethical failures that have undermined the ideals of the Enlightenment. Along the way, humankind has itself been diminished. Citizens have been reduced to the status of ‘customers’ and people have been led to believe that their value lies in their productive capacity. Have we all just become cogs in the machine?

This essay asks if we need to move from transactional politics in order to revive trust in our leadership and institutions.

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CORPORATE CULTURE

Managing Culture – A Good Practice Guide

This guide – a collaboration of the Institute of Internal Auditors Australia, The Ethics Centre, Chartered Accountants ANZ and the Governance Institute of Australia – explores the foundational elements of a sound risk culture.

Using a multi-disciplinary approach, it draws out best practice and informs pathways to creating positive cultural change. Explore good governance principles and learn the ways in which established systems of work can influence conduct and culture.

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