Informing and advising employees

Ensure that employees understand:

their conflict of interest obligations
the public duty reasons for them
the policy and processes to follow.

Communications strategy

Develop and implement a communication strategy to make your organisation’s conflict of interest policy, processes and culture known and understood by:

employees
external stakeholders, such as suppliers and prospective suppliers.

The strategy will usually include:

raising awareness about the policy, how it works and where to get information
targeted communication in high risk areas or at high risk times.

Information for employees

We recommend that all employees be made aware of, and provided with ready access to, the documents listed below.

For example, provide links to these documents on a dedicated Conflict of Interest page on your organisation’s intranet.

Your organisation’s documents

conflict of interest policy (employees)
high risk areas for conflict of interest. If this is not yet determined for your organisation, refer instead to our list of typical areas of high risk areas.
guidance on conflict of interest
conflict of interest declaration and management plan form
seclaration of private interests (DOPI) form.

Commission guidance

The guidance we offer for employees and organisations on conflict of interest. This includes:

Conflict of interest key things to know and do
Consensual personal relationships
Declarable associations
Duty or loyalty to another organisation or group.

In addition to this general guide we offer specific guidance for:

Guidance that only applies to the VPS

We also offer guidance on procurement by government departments and other Victorian public service (VPS) organisations. Note that it does not apply to the broader public sector, such as public entities.

Advice and support

Ensure your employees:

are aware of who they can contact for advice about conflict of interests, and
feel encouraged and supported to do so.

Usually, the employee’s direct manager will be the first point of advice. But ensure that alternative contacts exist. For example, your organisation’s human resources manager, integrity manager or conflict of interest officer.

Induction

Embed training about conflicts of interest and how to comply with your organisation’s policy into the induction process.

We recommend that conflict of interest training be a compulsory part of the induction/onboarding process.

Regular awareness raising and learning opportunities

Provide regular awareness raising and learning opportunities about conflict of interest. For example:

make conflict of interest a regular agenda item in team meetings – this is an opportunity to foster awareness, a culture of integrity and discussion that can surface potential issues and opportunities
publish ‘awareness raisers’ – such as news items or case studies
link employees to other learning resources that are consistent with your organisation’s policy – such as the model policy we provide.

If resources permit, other strategies could include:

short videos – such as senior leaders or a group of employees discussing conflict of interest issues or cases studies
short digital modules that employees work through at their own pace
interactive refresher training programs.

Targeted information and awareness

Provide targeted information and awareness for employees where there is added risk, obligations or processes. For example:

employees involved in high risk areas or activities
managers with direct reports
employees, such as certain financial delegates and executives, who complete an annual Declaration of Private Interests (DOPI).

Declaration of Private Interests (DOPI) information and support

For employees who submit an annual DOPI:

encourage a culture of seeking advice from their manager if they’re unsure what private interests to declare and when

Also provide an alternative source of advice, for example, if your organisation has an integrity officer:

consider making it part of their annual performance review to ensure their DOPI is current
if recruiting to fill a position where the successful candidate will be required to complete a DOPI, specify this in the position description.