It Takes Courage…
Life in South Africa is becoming increasingly volatile, and it requires courage to maintain a positive outlook in Mzansi. It takes courage to keep one’s head above water and survive in this ever-dynamic country, where there's never a dull…
Ethics positioning elevated to a strategic imperative
Elevating the institutionalisation of ethics to a strategic imperative, necessitates a concerted and integrated approach. It requires all stakeholders to be aware of their responsibilities and to ensure the ethical utilisation of…
Rules and Ethics: a complicated relationship
The introduction of rules will lead to more ethical and responsible behaviour. Correct? Maybe we should think again about what rules can do, what they cannot do, and if rules are always good. There was a recent incident at Stellenbosch…
Municipal Audit Outcomes: A consistent call for ethical leadership in municipalities
Opinion Piece Although they followed very different methodologies, the Auditor-General (AG) report on Municipal Audit Outcomes comes to very similar conclusions as the Local Government Ethical Leadership Initiative (LGELI) about the root…
Organisational risks: why should ethics feature prominently?
The majority of organisations in the modern era understand the importance of risk management and hence make some effort to manage it. The obvious dimensions of organisational risk are financial, legal, operational, information technology,…
Moral regeneration needed to rebuild ethical leadership
A man promised his children he would buy them new toys at the end of the month because he knew he would be receiving his performance bonus when payday arrives. He received his bonus on a Friday, but decided to celebrate with his friends…
The verdict is out: virtualisation may be very bad for ethics
Most of us have adopted a more virtual lifestyle since the COVID pandemic. Many organisations have now brought in more relaxed work-from-home policies with a much larger percentage of employees now doing some or most of their work through…
Cultivating Ethical Fortitude – the building better agenda.
Throughout the course of recorded history, the aftermath of major catastrophic events such as pandemics, wars, and famine have always played a pivotal role in interrogating the foundations of society, the sustainability of its material…
Are politicians helping us trust them?
“We need, as a nation, at this time more than any other, to reveal our true character. We need to work together and leave no one behind”. – (Pres Cyril Ramaphosa, SONA, Feb 2023) Integrity is consistency of character. Integrity is…
Can chatbots be ethical?
The recent release of ChatGPT was met with such enthusiasm that the system is regularly unable to cope with the massive user demand for its service. However, the system did not only introduce a useful tool that people enjoy, but it also…
Arresting Social and Ethical Erosion
We have become, to an alarming extent, used to social and ethical erosion in South Africa. Our lives have also been adapted accordingly. This is a trend that should be arrested and turned around. Trees and plants might just teach us how…
Eskom: Resuscitating the dead horse
In November 2021, André de Ruyter was asked why he does not resign as Eskom’s CEO, thereby assuming the primary accountability for the state-owned entity’s woes. He responded that you do not change the jockey on a dead horse. He thus…