Category: New In Leadership

Australian salaries aren’t going anywhere fast. In its latest figures, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) says the nation’s wages grew by just 2.2 per cent in 2015, the lowest rate of growth since it started publishing these numbers in 1998. The IML 2016 National Salary Survey confirms that people’s pay packets haven’t put on […]

Despite my nerves, the day went well and I returned home rather pleased with myself. The workshop had made a positive impact – of that I was sure. Indeed, the feedback forms were filled with praise. I was positive they’d use my services again. Then I didn’t hear anything from them – for years. Perhaps, […]

When ambitious young leader David Bartlett , then aged 40, became Tasmanian premier in May 2008, he had a clear vision in mind for Australia’s island state. More than that, he’d planned in clear time increments what would happen in his first three hours (specifically, a media conference where he’d announce his intention to build a “clever, […]

The fallout from corporate ethical breaches can be distressing. Just ask Ian Shepherd, chief executive of international engineering/architecture/construction company GHD. In 2013, despite an otherwise exemplary 90-year history, the private company received a 12-month ban from tendering for World Bank aid projects after a senior staff member in GHD’s Indonesian office defrauded a fund that […]

Today a worker who returns a positive drug and alcohol test faces the risk of losing his or her job. This is not a new phenomenon; over the centuries the law has allowed employers to penalise workers for out-of-hours behaviour they don’t approve of. A 1777 English court case upheld a master’s right to dismiss a […]

Who says nice guys always finish last? As the reach of ethical investing grows, figures from the 2015 Responsible Investment Australia Benchmark Report reveal that core responsible investment funds surged 24 per cent in 2014 to $31.6 billion. A broader definition in the report, factoring in managers who integrate ESG principles (environmental, social, governance) into their […]

If the study of ethics is as old as Socrates, business ethics is still in its infancy. Ethics in business was only generally considered during the Cold War era, although some robber barons saw this development as the antithesis of an entrepreneurial mindset. Ethics was added to business degree syllabi in the 1970s and 1980s. And […]

Whistleblowing is a precarious business. Exposing wrongdoing within an organisation can throw a whistleblower’s career into disarray, however some go onto bigger and better things. Here are four cases of famous whistleblowers in Australia.

Whistleblowing has always been a dangerous business for those brave and principled enough to expose illegal or unethical activities within an organisation. The process can lead to isolation, harassment, lost work opportunities and forced job transfers. In more serious cases, a worker may be derailed by dismissal, legal action, and even physical assault. But sidestepping some of […]