Integrity and Ethical

Leadership Program

2021

1. Introducing the Integrity and Ethical Leadership Program

2. Senior Executive IELP

3. Manager IELP

4. Board IELP

5. More information

Contents

1.

1. Introducing the Integrity and Ethical Leadership ProgramIntegrity is a core tenet of the public purpose sector and underpins the community’s trust in the services we deliver. It is widely recognised that a culture of integrity does not just happen; it takes a deliberate and coordinated effort on the part of organisational leaders and is the responsibility of all.

The Integrity and Ethical Leadership Program (IELP) places integrity and ethical leadership as the first order of business in the public purpose sector. The IELP is designed for public purpose sector employees at all stages of their career to extend personal practice, build the confidence needed for ethical decision-making and embed a robust integrity culture in their organisations.

In this document you will find information about the IELP, the Senior Executive IELP, Manager IELP and the Board IELP.

Development and Framework

© Institute of Public Administration Australia (Victoria) Inc 2021. All rights reserved.No part of this material may be reproduced, stored or transmitted

by any means without the prior written permission of IPAA Victoria.

2.

Over two years, we worked closely with the public purpose sector, expert partners and our principal partner, EY, to co-design the IELP and create the Integrity and Ethical Leadership Framework.

The framework takes a comprehensive full -system view to ethical leadership in the public purpose sector, from the ‘self’ to how the system influences us and how we influence the system.

The IELP is designed with, and for, the public purpose sector in Victoria, across local, state and Commonwealth government.

The framework is the foundation of all programs in the IELP suite.

IELP suite

3.

Our ambition is to develop and deliver programs in the IELP suite covering the full public purpose career.

These will be designed for specific cohorts working in the public purpose sector and will be aligned with key public sector career progressions, such as managers and board directors (see the table on this page).

We currently deliver the flagship Senior Executive IELP three times a year in Victoria.

The Manager IELP is offered twice a year and can be offered more frequently to respond to demand.

The Board IELP is the newest program in the IELP suite. It is designed to help boards strengthening their confidence in setting a positive integrity culture and for robust ethical decision-making.

Program Segment Profile

Senior Executive IELP

Senior executives Work in complex ecosystems with a varying ability to influence ministers, councillors, etc. Their success hinges on their ability to navigate the public purpose political landscape. Executives

Manager IELP Managers

Tasked with translating the strategy into action, requiring them to think both strategically and operationally. Experiences being ‘in-between’, needing to manage up, down and sideways.

BoardIELP Board directors

Varied background, with varying degrees of experience and understand of public purpose expectations.

Distinction to be made between advisory and governance.

2. Senior Executive IELP

4.

The Senior Executive IELP is the leadership development program for the modern, public purpose sector leader.

The program equips leaders within the public purpose sector with the skil ls, knowledge and tools for ethical leadership and to help build positive integrity cultures. Over an immersive three ‘waves’, participants join an intimate peer cohort drawn from Victoria’s diverse public purpose sector.

Participants have opportunities to build trusted peer networks, work with expert facil itators, delve into thought-provoking case studies, explore an ethical dilemma they have faced, and grow their leadership awareness with one-one-one coaching, self-reflection and development diagnostics.

They hear ‘integrity moments’ from renowned ‘wise heads’. Previous wise heads have included Kerry Thompson, Cheryl Batagol PSM, Jon FaineAM , Gill Calister PSM, Chris Eccles AO and Andrew Metcalf AO.

The journey continues when participants join the growing IELP Alumni and continue to deepen and extend their integrity leadership practice through enjoy exclusive ‘under the hood’ events.

4.

ParticipantsThe Senior Executive IELP is for senior executives across all levels of government – Commonwealth, state and local.

The program appeals to experienced senior executives, e.g. deputy secretaries, CEOs, COOs, CFOs, executive directors, and executive and general managers.

We understand the diversity of senior executive experience across different areas, localities and institutions, and we curate each cohort to maximise the experience for each participant. We aim to build cohorts with a shared level of professional experience.

5.

Learning outcomes

1. Unlock your ethical leadership – understand your decision-making temptations and biases to enhance your leadership

2. Explore your ‘leadership ripple’ – gain awareness of the way you influence and the shadow you cast

3. Set the ‘tone from the top’ – develop the capabilities you need to create a positive integrity culture

4. See the ‘system’ – shine a l ight on how the system works on you and you on it

5. Optimate your personal resilience and wellbeing and develop the skil ls to foster psychological safety amongst those you lead.

Learning journey

4.

Welcome & Commencement Session

The program commences with a welcome session where you will

meet your fellow participants and peer groups, and be introduced to

the program team, the IELP team members and to the program’s key

concepts.

Wave 1: Culture, Governance and Systems

Participants will work with the Integrity and Ethical Leadership Framework, and consider ethics and integrity in the context and dynamic of the public sector. Observing the Chatham House Rule, ‘wise head’ speakers will discuss ethical challenges, including lived experiences of when things didn’t go according to plan.

The practice of ethical leadership will be examined from a systems thinking perspective, and will include discussions on the influence of the operating environment on individuals’ ethical decision-making, and the way in which individuals can deploy levers of change within their organisation.

Systems thinking will also be used to look at your individual systems, identifying key assumptions that are held, and how these may influence decision-making.

Participants go on an immersive three ‘wave’ journey. The program

journey also includes the My Ethical Leadership 360° Survey, self-directed journal reflection, readings and pre-work, peer group work and one-on-one coaching sessions between waves.

6.

4.

Wave 2: Philosophical Enquiries into Ethics in the public sector

Participants will examine ethical dilemmas through the works of historical philosophers. Through a process of philosophical enquiry, participants will be presented with complex ethical problems that provoke and challenge their own moral belief systems.

Participants will explore three main themes relevant to the public sector. The first is working with power, which discusses ‘work as a moral frontier’. This concept encourages participants to bring their own ethical compass into their professional environments, rather than separating themselves from their job role and using it as a means through which their need for personal accountability may be reduced.

The second theme explores the exercise of power, enquiring into the participant’s personal responsibility within their system, situated within a public sector context. Lastly, the program focuses on moral reasoning and moral blindness. Through these three themes, participants will explore how they can bring ‘their best possible moral health’ as a leader in the public sector.

Wave 3: My Leadership Ripple

Over the final days of the program - my leadership ripple, participants will be provided with practical knowledge and skil ls to create an ethical leadership ripple within their organisation. My leadership ripple is focused on enacting ethical leadership within the system, pulling together the participant’s journey through action planning to address their key ethical challenge(s). Participants will draw on the components of the program that resonated most for them and develop an action plan to transfer learnings and embed strengthened integrity practice within their workplaces.

Participants will develop practical knowledge, skil ls and methods on:• delegating and sharing responsibility in the context of promoting ethical behaviours • building trust and communication through enhanced psychological safety.

Finally, participants will build on a range of their leadership skills, including:• drawing on neuro-leadership to harness and optimise their well -being for effective decision-making• understanding decision dynamics and the influence of unconscious biases in ethical decision -making.

7.

8.

Senior Executive IELP delivery partnersIPAA Victoria works with a range of specialist organisations, including out principal partner EY, to deliver the Senior Executive IELP.

Ernst & YoungEY’s People Advisory Service is a global practice bringing together teams of highly skilled professionals from a breadth of industry backgrounds and specialisations. Based on a deep understanding of the public sector’s diverse needs, our team focusses specifically on building leadership and developing the skil ls to support the cultural transformations required to deliver improved public services. Our EY professionals ask better questions and work with clients to create holistic, innovative answers that deliver quality results. We are inspired by a deep commitment to build a better working world, and to help organisations and people meet their goals and enhance public value, for today and tomorrow.

9.

Testimonials

“Ethical leadership is critical to building trust, influence and respect with the communities we serve, stakeholders and importantly our own teams. The Senior Executive IELP really reinforced the importance of always doing the right thing even when no one is watching.”

— Gönül Serbest, Chief Executive Officer, Global Victoria, Department of Jobs, Precincts & Regions (VIC)

“Systems thinking has helped me consider the role I’m playing in any situation and better understand the systems in which I’m operating.”

— Nigel Cadywould, Director Customer Engagement, Cenitex

“I can highly recommend this program for leaders who want to extend themselves.”

— Rebecca McKenzie, Chief Executive Officer, Glen Eira City Council

“I am now more reflective rather than reactive when facing a dilemma.”

— Dr Geoff Allan, Chief Operating Officer, Austroads

The Senior Executive IELP that I participated in was well balanced, professionally run with thought provoking contents, various presentations reflecting diverse and unique perspectives. I personally benefitted enormously from the exposure and experience gathered as a participant.

— Vijaya Vaidyanath, Chief Executive Officer, Yarra City Council

The Manager IELP is a professional learning and development program designed for public purpose senior managers.

The program equips managers with the skil ls and knowledge to better understand public sector integrity, navigate ‘the grey’ and build their ethical leadership practice.

The Manager IELP builds on:• IPAA Victoria’s extensive research, in partnership with EY,

into public sector integrity and ethical leadership.• A co-design process with public purpose sector

practitioners to develop our Integrity & Ethical Leadership Framework.

• Our insights and experience gained from our highly regarded Senior Executive IELP.

• The VPS Public Sector Values.

3. Manager IELP

10.

ParticipantsEach Manager IELP cohort is capped at 30 participants.

Participants have the opportunity to build their peer networks, work with one another, and learn from each other’s perspectives and experience.

The Manager IELP participant is a people or program manager and/or budget manager of significant responsibility.

Participant profile

The Manager IELP participant is tasked with translating the strategy into action, requiring them to think both strategically and

operationally. They experience being ‘in-between’, needing to manage

up, down and sideways.

They manage people, have financial responsibilities and/or are

responsible for significant delivery. Aspects of their role are likely to

require an integrity focus – this could include managing staff and

performance, oversight of governance or conflicts of interest processes, exercising judgement over the allocation of resources or

use of sensitive information, dealing with external stakeholders or

responsibility for procurement or contract management.

11.

The Manager IELP takes a multi-faceted approach to maximise learning outcomes. Learning vehicles include task-based and case study learning, an action learning project, peer learning, coaching and drawing on peer experience.

The Manager IELP learning outcomes:

1. Enhance understanding of own values and purpose and alignment with organisation

2. Develop skil ls to improve own resilience and create enhanced team psychological safety

3. Enhance mindfulness of own decisions, including decision-making biases and impact

4. Improve ability to foster a positive integrity culture by empowering your team to make decisions ethically

5. Develop strategies to facil itate ethical decision making when dealing with a range of stakeholders with competing needs

6. Strengthen understanding of the system you operate in to optimize ethical decisions and actions

7. Gain awareness of how to activate public sector purpose, values, codes of conduct, governance and risk processes to enhance ethical practice across your team

Learning outcomes and vehicles

Ethical Decision Making Profile

Storytell ing and facil itated discussions

My Ethical Project

Peer learning and peer groups

‘Scavenger hunt’ learning tasks

Learning vehicles

12.

The Manager IELP targets three levels of awareness and application of integrity and ethical leadership in the public purpose sector. It aligns to leading research on adult development from Kegan and Lahey (2009).

Participants journey through a deep understanding of their own ethical orientation and their challenges in leadership, through to an appreciation of the way their system influences their judgements and behaviour, towards equipping each with the tools they will need to be confident leaders and ‘agents of change’ in the system.

Program impact

1. My ethical Leadership

2. Impact of the system on my ethical leadership

3. Influencing the system through my ethical leadership

Understanding the requirements and impact of the system on the individual.

This also involves understanding the complexity of the political environment, public scrutiny,

frameworks, governance, values and codes of

conduct.

Understanding yourself and improving skil ls to strengthen ethical decision-making.

For example, self-awareness and self-regulation for resil ience and well -being, and balanced

decision-making, values centred on ethics and

integrity.

Understanding the ways you can impact the system to augment integrity and ethical

leadership in practice. This includes the ways I can

influence the team, the organisation, the culture

and the broader public purpose sector.

13.

4. Board IELP

14.

Ethical decision making has never been more critical to effective and ethical governance and the

delivery of public value. Rising citizen expectations and stakeholder needs, and a shifting authorising

landscape create an ever changing public purpose environment.

IPAA Victoria’s Board IELP, the newest program, launched in 2020, in the Integrity and Ethical

Leadership Program (IELP) suite, will help boards navigate this environment by strengthening their

confidence in setting a positive integrity culture and for robust ethical decision-making.

4.

Participants

The Board IELP is designed for intact public sector

boards, local government councils and other public

purpose decision-making governance committees.

The Board IELP is delivered over four hours by

IELP leadership development experts. It can

either be delivered in-person or online. The

program can be delivered in a single session or in a

collective of modules.

15.

PARTICIPANT FEEDBACK

“The Board IELP was a fantastic way to build self

awareness and to question established norms and

dynamics that could lead to perverse outcomes.”

“It is a great opportunity to learn about your own

contribution to the board and to more deeply

understand the contributions of others, and why?”

“I will actively seek to move outside my default style

to expand my experiences and to add more value to

the board.”

The Board IELP comprises three core modules that explore the nature of

ethical perspective taking, challenging existing boardroom dynamics and

growing your board’s capacity to incorporate ethical frames into decision-

making. The components can be delivered individually or as an integrated,

four hour program.

Module 1, Ethical perspective tak ing, is designed to assist in enhancing

decision making by adopting the perspectives of key board stakeholders and

influencers.

Module 2, Setting ‘the right’ ethical tone, builds on module one by helping the

board to understand how to activate ‘the right’ ethical tone for their

organisation.

Module 3, Understand, activate and own ethical decision mak ing, is the final

module and helps participants to understand the role they play as individual

decision-makers in collective decision making.

In completing the program, the board will:

• Enhance their understanding of how group dynamics and individual

preferences shape boardroom decisions.

• Strengthen trust between board members.

• Enhance effectiveness in the ethical rigour of boardroom decision-

making.

• Build confidence in boardroom leadership to set a positive integrity

culture for their organisations, their community and beyond.

Learning outcomes

12.

4. More information

16.

References from our alumni are available on request by contacting our IELP team using the below details.

For further information, please visit www.vic.ipaa.org.au/ielp or reach out to the IELP team.

Boris Radickovic

General Manager Capability Development

integrity@vic.ipaa.org.au

“The Senior Executive IELP provided me with philosophical insights that grounded my antenna of the importance of leading with high standards of integrity and ethics.”— Terry Garwood PSM, Deputy Secretary, Department of Environment, Land, Water & Planning (VIC)

3 / 37 Little Bourke St, Melbourne VIC 3000 | (03) 9653 2000

integrity@vic.ipaa.org.au | www.vic.ipaa.org.au

© Institute of Public Administration Australia (Victoria) Inc 2020. All rights reserved.

No part of this material may be reproduced, stored or transmitted by any means without the prior written permission of IPAA Victoria.