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…
ORGANISATIONAL ETHICAL INTERVENTIONS AGAINST GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE (GBV) IN WORKPLACES
Photo by Yan Krukov In the workplace, sexual harassment is the predominant form of GBV experienced. This occurs when a person in a position of authority asks for sexual favours from an employee in exchange for workplace benefits. Some…
THE UNSUCCESS OF SUCCESS – THE NEW ZEALAND ALL BLACKS
It is interesting to note that we often focus heavily on what organisations should be doing when they are in some type of trouble but forget about these important endeavours when things are going well. Usually, when organisations realise…
WHOSE PROBLEMS IS DEPLOYMENT SOLVING?
Lead article – Kris Dobie When you have a problem, the logical thing to do is to try to fix it. As Gwede Mantashe points out: in 1994, when the ANC came to power there was a definite problem in that most (if not all) senior managers in…
NOT SO INNOCENT UNTIL PROVEN GUILTY
Photo by Sora Shimazaki “I have done nothing wrong. No court has convicted me on any charges!” Does that sound familiar? Of course it does! That was roughly the parting message from former President Zuma when he was forced out of office on…
IN THE MODERN WORLD THERE IS NO ENEMY BUT WAR ITSELF
Photo by NASA on Unsplash By Dr Paul Vorster When Robert Oppenheimer observed the first nuclear detonation, he famously quoted the Bhagavad-Gita, stating: “Now I have become Death, the destroyer of worlds”. Oppenheimer realised that…
It’s Not All Doom And Gloom – There Is a Silver Lining To Our SOEs
Photo by Simone Viani on Unsplash By Lulama Qabaka Articles written about state-owned entities (SOEs) in the last decade and a half always depict a bleak and overwhelmingly gloomy reality for South Africans. There are, however, small…
Is Business the Last Stand Against Moral Chaos?
Photo by fauxels from Pexels By Professor Leon van Vuuren On 13 March 2022, Ed Stoddard – a team member of the Daily Maverick – commented on a recent World Bank report that listed South Africa as the most unequal country in the world. The…
Mr President, Why Should we Believe You?
Photo by Yan Krukov “Authentic leadership is revealed in the alignment of what you think, what you say, and what you do.” — Michael Holland The Nation eagerly (or maybe not) awaited President Cyril Ramaphosa’s State of the Nation…