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The basic idea was
originally to provide a 'Socrates' on every public service manager's
desk … because no amount of Code writing can help managers
if they do not recognise an ethics or corruption problem when they
see it... and know what to do about it.
So we aimed to assist people with public management responsibilities to develop skills in ethical decision-making where values compete. The goal is to resolve professional ethics dilemmas in a disciplined and reliable way, where there are a number of possible choices and the issue is not a simple matter of deciding what is Right or Wrong. We are seeking what is reasonable, lawful, ethically competent, and defensible, from a range of points of view - the Government's, the organisation's, the profession's, the community's and the individual's...
We are here talking about developing competence in 'professional ethics for bureaucrats', not personal morality - although the rational decision-making model provided in the resources does encourage the exercise of conscience and professional judgement about such matters as 'the public interest'.
Soon after the launch of the series in Australia it was shown and acclaimed at international conferences and symposia in South Africa, the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Morocco. Since then it has been bought for use in a wide range of countries and cultural settings. Private sector organisations and consultancy firms have also found the Series a useful guide to dealing with governments, public service agencies or corporatised public enterprises.
The package puts an enormous range of Public Sector Ethics materials instantly at the disposal of the reader, or the trainer, or the manager.... and this makes it suitable for training (personal or group), policy comparison, management decision-making support, and reference.
An additional major initiative has been the invention of two animated characters - 'Parentheses' and 'the Voice of Reason' - who interact with the viewer, at the viewer's option. Parentheses and the Voice of Reason provide commentary on the case study plot-lines. They also review the viewer's understanding of key terms and concepts, and their ethical reasoning, by carefully structured open-ended 'Socratic’ questions.
The Public Sector Ethics Resource Series consists of a set of five CD-ROMs, each with a different 12-minute 'trigger' video case-study presenting, in a realistic office-based scenario, a cluster of ethics and management themes as public sector management dilemmas requiring a resolution (although the 'E-word' is not used...anywhere!).
Parentheses provides an optional set of questions related to each case-study scenario, provoking thought and discussion.
'Professionalism', lawfulness, integrity, the interface with elected officials, 'the public interest', responsibility, accountability, conflict of interests, official corruption, self-dealing, whistleblowing, and so on... about 50 major ethics issues are treated by the five case-study scenarios.
In addition, each disk in the Series contains a searchable database which carries the innovative ethical decision-making model - The Big 'E'; some 35 background readings by eminent scholars and practitioners; two training packages, and other ethics training materials; an anti-corruption resource kit; the ethics legislation and Codes of Conduct for all the participating State and Federal public service jurisdictions in Australia and New Zealand; additional reference material from Canada, the USA and Europe (over 2000 html pages of text); the unique 'Key Concept' index, cross-referencing all database materials; the on-board 'Browser' which cross-links all disk materials, and links direct to a wide range of specialist Public Sector Ethics websites and Government homepages...
Because the materials are all located in a 'Windows'-style environment, multiple materials can be displayed simultaneously - for example, it is possible to run the case study video while at the same time displaying the relevant discussion question on the screen, along with the mnemonic for the decision-making model. Most of the document materials are printable direct from the disks.
This means that the Resource Series can be used for professional ethics training, even where there is no specialist ethics trainer available, and for general management training if the ethics focus is not needed.
Our model was initially an excellent series of video case-studies produced by the Australian Department of Defence - which focused on the major concerns of the late 1980s - fraud and corruption, outside employment, gifts and allowances.
Fifteen years later the Public Service world has changed. In many countries ethics dilemmas for public servants are more likely to come from changing approaches to 'the business of government', especially from more entrepreneurial ways of doing things, less use of rules and 'black letter law', and more emphasis on client service.
Increased discretion and flexibility, increased accountability and 'professionalism', and reduced reliance on rules, regulations, and strict precedent, all mean that deciding on 'the right thing to do' can bring fresh challenges.
The Ethics Resource Series is designed for managers and individuals at every level, whether their need is (for example) to check on the relevant legislation relating to gifts, or current departmental policy on outside employment, to run a training workshop on 'conflicts of interest', or to use a decision-making model to work through a complex ethics problem in the workplace - almost all users will find something of value in the package.
The Series has become noted internationally for its adaptability, 'down-to-earth', realistic, and engaging style. It does not preach, and it puts both sides of most questions carefully to ensure that users from many backgrounds will develop skills in ethical reasoning, values clarification, and justification.
