Once a year, the ethics officers of International and the affiliates will meet in conference call to discuss any issues arising over the period.

Action:

Ensure that your affiliate has an ethics officer in charge of training and reporting. Provide the name and contact to the ethics officer at International (ethicsofficer@worldwish.org).

A register of complaints should be kept by the ethics officer. The process for handling complaints, log and the register will be provided to the affiliate ethics officer by the ethics officer at International.

Ethics officers should as a minimum be appointed as senior managers, but preferably as an executive, of the organisation in which they serve. They can also be a person outside the organization .

Personality Traits

In order for an ethics officer to effectively fulfill his/her responsibilities within an organisation, the board needs to carefully consider whether or not the potential candidate possesses the following personal attributes:

• courage
• integrity
• common sense
• empathy
• sound judgement/credibility
• tenacity
• diplomacy
• good listening skills and the ability to communicate objectively with clarity and brevity
• general knowledge of the charities business in your country and a good knowledge of your organisation
• ability to resist intimidation
• resistance to popular thinking and conformity; and
• intellectual honesty.

Having access to the required level of information, an understanding of the law and the affiliate’s various policies, possessing considered and rational decision-making skills, good common sense plus intellectual rigor are all prerequisites for being a proficient ethics officer. A legal background is always an advantage. Ultimately, ethics officers should be close enough to consult, but distant enough to criticize.