Why are we interested in conflicts of interest?
Conflicts of interest (COI) are pervasive and an inevitable part of organisational and professional life in all sectors. These actual, potential, or perceived tensions between professional and personal responsibilities and interests are to be expected. Different positions, activities and relationships can impact upon each other, potentially interfering with a person’s ability or willingness to fulfil obligations associated with a role.
Notwithstanding the ubiquity of conflicts of interest and the growing number of organisational policies aimed at avoiding and dealing with COI, people still struggle to identify, evaluate, and manage them. Aspects of contemporary professional life can add to the complexities of addressing COI, including the increasing number and range of collaborative stakeholder relationships that characterise many roles and organisational activities.
COI that are not identified and managed can lead to a range of strategic, financial, reputational, relational and ethical harms. The risk of such harms–and their severity–is influenced by factors such as non-transparency, poor governance, complexity, and issues of power and vulnerability in this context.
Why Contegrity?
Contegrity is a practical decision support tool that helps individuals and organisations to better address conflicts of interest, to meet their professional obligations and to maintain trust.
The Contegrity tool bridges the gap between organisational policies, guidelines, checklists and case studies on COI and the actual situations where competing and conflicting interests need to be addressed. By providing a practical way of thinking through COI identification, appraisal and management, Contegrity supports the implementation of relevant policies and procedures. This support for reasoning also helps distinguish COIs from other morally relevant situations.
Contegrity seeks to support people who may at times have difficulty reasoning their way through COI in practical terms and subsequently manage it inconsistently or inadequately.
Contegrity also recognises that acknowledging a conflict of interest can avert certain professional harms but may not necessarily preclude any action or demand onerous management.
Rigorous
Contegrity Ethics has been developed through a rigorous research process focused on real-world conflicts of interest. As a result, it provides relevant and practical decision-making support for COI management.
Adaptable
Contegrity Ethics can be adapted for different organisational and professional contexts: research, teaching, procurement, recruitment, management, mentorship, supervision, consulting, external employment, funding, peer review, committee work, and stakeholder engagement.
Easy to use
Users are guided online through a step-by-step process for identifying and assessing conflicts of interest and developing workable management plans.
Practical
Contegrity Ethics generates an individualised report that can be saved and used as a record of conflicts of interest assessment and planning. This management plan can be used for several purposes, for example, seeking approval for activities and negotiating partnerships.