2.1 Behaving ethically
If you are employed under the Australian Public Service Act or other enabling legislation you have a responsibility to behave ethically. This extends to procurement activities including contract management.
Contracted staff involved in contract management will usually have clauses built into their employment contract ensuring they comply with Commonwealth laws and policies, declare conflicts of interest and not act fraudulently.
The contracted staff member may be in breach of their contract if they do no uphold these obligations.
Ethical behaviour:
• ensures transparency and accountability in a procurement process
• gives suppliers confidence in their dealings with the government
• can reduce the cost of managing risks associated with fraud, theft, corruption and other improper behaviour
• supports confidence in public administration.
Ethical considerations to keep in mind when undertaking contract management might include:
• the need to uphold the APS Values and Code of Conduct
• the need to achieve the contract outcomes
• the need to maintain a positive working relationship with the supplier
• whether an actual or potential conflict of interest exists
• whether you need to put in place reasonable and cost-effective mitigation arrangements to address actual or potential conflicts of interest.
As a contract manager, you should ensure all individuals materially involved with the management of a contract make a conflict of interest declaration and update it on a regular basis, particularly for longer term contracts. Ensure you get an update to the conflict of interest declaration if their circumstances change or as required by your Entity's Accountable Authority Instructions or other obligations.
There may be clauses in your contract that require supplier personnel to identify, disclose and appropriately manage any conflicts of interest.
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| Types of Conflict of Interest A conflict of interest occurs where there is a direct conflict between the current official duties of an employee and their existing private interests. A real conflict of interest occurs where there is a conflict between the public duty and personal interests of an employee that improperly influences the employee in the performance of his or her duties. An apparent conflict of interest occurs where it appears or could be perceived that private interests are improperly influencing the performance of official duties, but this is not in fact the case. A potential conflict of interest occurs when there is potential for the private interests of an employee to influence the performance of their official duties in the future, although there is no current conflict. Some definitions from: The Australian Public Service Commission website - conflicts of interest https://www.apsc.gov.au/conflicts-interest |
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| Conflict of Interest A conflict of interest exists when it appears likely that an employee could be influenced, or where it could be perceived that they are influenced, by a personal interest in carrying out their official duties. Common conflicts of interest Some of the most common conflicts of interest that can arise during contract management are: • Accepting an offer of gifts, hospitality or other benefits: If your supplier offers to take you out for a meal, offers you a bottle of wine or a corporate gift or invites you to attend a sporting event as their guest, this may be a conflict of interest. Your entity will have a policy about acceptance of gifts, hospitality and benefits and you must be sure to comply with this policy. Generally, you should avoid accepting gifts, hospitality or other benefits from a supplier whose contract you manage, have managed in the recent past or will be managing in the immediate future. If you are uncertain about accepting a gift, hospitality or other benefit, you should check with your manager. • Accepting an offer of employment: If you are offered or accept employment from the supplier whilst you are managing their contract you should let you manager know, even if you don't intend to accept the offer. • Relationship with the supplier: you may have a conflict of interest if you, a member of your family or a close friend is employed by or has a substantial interest in the supplier. This could include: - a financial interest in the company such as shares, dividends, investments, loans or other payments or debts - through direct employment, being a director, sitting on a board, or being a sub-contractor - through a friendship If this occurs, you should notify your manager. • Relationship with a direct competitor within the same industry: If you, a family member or close friend has a financial relationship, friendship or is employed by a direct competitor in the same industry it may appear to others that you are biased against the supplier. If this occurs, you should notify your manager. Implications of conflicts of interests If a conflict of interest occurs, it may: - pre-dispose you to act favourably towards a supplier, including overlooking supplier underperformance, or reacting more favourably to requests for contract variations - make it difficult for you to manage underperformance with a supplier - be seen by other potential suppliers as a sign of an inappropriately close relationship - be seen to undermine the integrity, fairness and impartiality of the contract management process. Conflicts of interest are common and do not imply misconduct. However, if you don't declare a conflict of interest or don't manage it appropriately, it may be viewed as wrongdoing. |
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| Want to know more about behaving ethically? You can read more about the APS Values, Code of Conduct and conflict of interest: • on the APSC web site http://www.apsc.gov.au/conflicts-of-interest • by downloading the document APS Values and Code of Conduct in Practice at http://www.apsc.gov.au/aps-values-and-code-conduct-practice • by downloading the Department of Finance Resource Management Guide - 203: General duties of officials at https://www.finance.gov.au/government/managing-commonwealth-resources/general-duties-officials-rmg-203. |
