Governance and Ethics

Despite misconduct damaging an organisation’s most important asset - its reputation, every day, boards and employees risk their careers and their organisations’ success by making unethical decisions.

So what can a board do to protect its reputation and promote a strong ethical culture within an organisation? Here are some recommendations.

Managing Stress at Work

Stress is very common and while low levels of stress may not feel too bad, and may even motivate or challenge you, persistent and frequent high levels of stress can lead to some serious long-term health implications.

Making A Presentation

Presentations are a method of communicating a message, idea or argument to an audience. It is very normal to feel some fear or anxiety when you know you are giving a presentation, but there are some simple ways to reduce your anxiety and deliver a winning presentation. This Practice Guide will give you some valuable tips and guidance.

Social Return On Investment

Social Return on Investment (SROI) is a method of understanding and calculating value beyond outputs and finances. It is an approach to identify and calculate the “value” that initiatives and programs provide to stakeholders in the community. Conducting an SROI analysis can help funders and stakeholders understand the greater value that their contribution to an organisation creates in the community.

Action Learning

One approach that many companies and organisations have been using to promote learning and engagement in the workplace is Action Learning. They are using this process to encourage employees to discuss the problems they face at work and work together on solutions which can develop the effectiveness and capabilities of individuals, teams, and their organisation. Read more about Action Learning in this Practice Guide.

Difficult Conversations

Research indicates up to 70% of employees are currently facing a "difficult" conversation with a boss, co-worker, or direct report. So if you work in a team or supervise someone, it is highly likely that you will be having one of these difficult conversations in the near future. So what can you do to plan and have a difficult conversation without fear or conflict? This Practice Guide will give you some valuable tips and guidance.

Gambling Community Benefit Fund

This Practice Guide helps you to plan and write your submission to the Gambling Community Benefit Fund. This will be very helpful to you if you work for a Queensland organisation.

Jupiters Casino Community Benefit Fund

This Practice Guide helps you to plan and write your submission to the Jupiters Casino Benefit Fund. This Practice Guide will be very helpful to you if you work for a Queensland organisation.

Workplace Conflict

If conflict at work is managed poorly it can result in negative outcomes for individuals, the workforce and the organisation. On an individual level, conflict at work is usually stressful and unpleasant. But there are ways to prevent conflict from becoming a real problem. Here are some guidelines to prevent and minimise conflict at work.

Self-Care

Self-care involves making decisions that help you develop resiliency, self-awareness and self-esteem. It makes sense to adopt a strong commitment to caring for yourself, since self-care is a very large part of dealing with stress. Keeping yourself happy and positive benefits every area of your life. Read more about self-care by downloading this Practice Guide.

Performance Appraisals

If you dread performance appraisals then you are not alone! They are considered by many employees as a waste of time. (If you get an appraisal at all!) So why do so many organisations persist in doing appraisals? Maybe it is because they know the concept is a good idea, they are just not sure how to make it effective for both the employer and employee. Read this Practice Guide to learn how to make your appraisals valuable and enjoyable, accurate and fair.

Internal Communications

If you want to increase team morale, improve relationships, commitment to the organisation and productivity, you might want to develop or review your Communications Strategy. Effective and genuine internal communications help to engage employees and make them feel heard and valued. Read this Practice Guide to discover the key success factors that every manager should know when developing and implementing a Communications Strategy.

Managing Change

Leaders and managers play a critical role in helping a change management process to be successful. They need to articulate a clear vision to the organisation and its workforce so they stay focussed on the goal. Success can be achieved if managers provide the right communication, enthusiasm, support and resources. Read this Practice Guide about a manager’s role and responsibilities during times of change.

Time Management

Time is a precious resource, and if you manage it well, you can be more productive in every area of your life. This will give you the ability to meet all your personal and professional goals. If you want to know the secrets to good time management read this Practice Guide.

Case Notes

If you work in health or human services, your job may involve writing case notes, care plans, file notes or reports. The records you keep are a communication tool and are often a legal requirement which ensure that you, and the organisation you work for, are protected and accountable. Ultimately, written records assist you to provide an effective and quality service to your clients. Read this Practice Guide for some tips and advice about writing good case notes.

Program Evaluation

There is greater emphasis on accountability and evaluation today than ever before. Funders and donors are increasingly asking organisations to determine the outcomes of their programs and to prove their cost effectiveness. The best evaluations occur when program staff recognise the evaluation process as an important element of program delivery. When program staff regularly collect a wide variety of information about a program, they soon gain a systematic and critical approach to program evaluation, thus fostering a mindset of accountability and transparency. Read this Practice Guide to learn about the steps involved in designing a great program evaluation.

Leadership and Change

This Practice Guide explains how leaders can instil confidence in their workforce, help them to be open to change and adapt more readily to change.

Planning Strategy and Success

Planning is often considered to be one of the most important skills you can learn and use at work. Your personal and organisation’s health depends on your planning skills and the strategies that you use to execute your plans. This practice guide is designed to give you a basic outline of two vital planning tools for you to understand, develop and implement, the Business Plan and the Strategic Plan.

Negotiation

To be a good negotiator you need to be observant and strategic, a good communicator and a person who not only wants to get the best outcome for yourself, but for others too. This Practice Guide give you some key steps to achieve a successful negotiation.