Trust, Ethics and Governance Alliance tabs

Trust, Ethics and Governance Alliance brings together an interdisciplinary group of experts with complementary backgrounds in management, law, accounting, strategy, finance, marketing, tourism, international business and business information systems. Together we tackle the complex trust, ethics and governance challenges currently facing industry, government, not-for-profits, and society.

Leads

Professor Nicole Gillespie – KPMG Chair in organisational trust – building, repairing and maintaining trust in organisations, measuring stakeholder trust, managing trust during change and disruption, trust in AI & technology-mediated services, designing trustworthy organisations; trust across cultures.

Nicole’s research focuses on the development and repair of organisational and stakeholder trust, particularly in challenging contexts such as after trust failures, during organisational transformation and technological disruption, and in contested contexts. She is also an expert on the measurement of trust. Current projects focus on understanding trust in artificial intelligence, repairing trust in organisations, designing trustworthy organisations, understanding and measuring stakeholder trust, preserving trust during change, and understanding the causes of and responses to trust failures in non-profit organisations. Her work spans the Banking, Resources, Health, Education, R&D and Not-for-Profit industries.

Professor Thomas Maak – inaugural UQ Chair in Ethics, moral agency, corporate responsibility, social cognitive neuroscience, and the foundations and study of responsible leadership.

Thomas Maak is the inaugural Chair in Ethics at The University of Queensland Business School. Prior to joining UQ in 2023, he was Director for the Centre for Workplace Leadership and Professor of Leadership at the University of Melbourne. A business ethicist by training, Thomas is a global authority in the field of ethics and responsible leadership. He uses a multi-level lens to research leadership at the individual, group, and organisational level, linking ethical theory, political philosophy, relational thinking, and stakeholder theory. His research interests are at the interface of moral agency, corporate responsibility, social cognitive neuroscience, and the foundations and study of responsible leadership.

Key researchers

Dr Saeed Akhlaghpour – Data privacy and data protection (organisational, legal, and technical aspects), organisational responses to data breaches.

Professor Neal Ashkanasy – Emotions and trust, including emotional intelligence and emotional regulation. Organisational and national culture, abusive supervision and ethical behaviour in organisations.

Dr Micheal Axelsen – Data governance/IT governance, privacy laws, data breach notification scheme, information systems audit and compliance, artificial intelligence and reliance on intelligent decision aids.

Associate Professor Francesca Bartlett – Ethics, professional ethics, private law and governance and woman and the Law.

Dr Ivano Bongiovanni –  Cybersecurity Management, Information Security Governance, Information Security Leadership, Design Thinking & Risk Management.

Dr Justin Brienza – Wisdom and ethics, reasoning and decision making, bias and balance and conflict and cooperation.

Professor Andrew Burton-Jones – Design, use and governance of IT in healthcare.

Dr Cassandra Chapman – Prosocial behaviour, trust in charities, moral organisations (e.g., non-profits), public responses to ethical transgressions.

Dr Monica Chien – Impacts of transgressions, misconducts and scandals in marketing, tourism, and sport; overtourism induced conflicts and disruptions; stigma and brand equity.

Dr Hasibul Chowdhury – Corporate governance, workplace diversity, executive social network, corruption.

Dr Michael Collins – Ethical leadership, disinhibition and unethical behaviour, personality, intelligence and leadership.

Dr Vicky Comino – Building, repairing and maintaining trust in corporations and financial institutions, corporate culture and governance.

Dr Peter Do – Financial accounting, corporate governance; board monitoring and information intermediaries in capital markets.

Associate Professor Martin Edwards – People analytics, governance of analyses of employee linked data, ethical challenges of people analytics transparency and accountability of automated HR analytic/HR processes bias algorithmic application in HR decision making and employees' perceptions of their employer's social responsibility credentials.

Dr Rachel Fitzgerald – Digital disruption; partnership for practice and microcredentials. 

Dr Cassandra France – Role of trust in brand strategy and brand relationships.

Associate Professor Kathleen Herbohn – Accountability of organisations around climate change and consequences for their choices within equity and debt markets.

Professor Matthew Hornsey – (Mis)trust in communication within and between groups, predictors of ethics breaches in organisations and efficacy of different trust repair strategies.

Professor Marta Indulska – AI and responsible stewardship, data quality and governance.

Dr Radha Ivory – Corporate criminal liability laws, their features, reforms and problems, international anti-corruption law, its regulatory form and unintended consequences, corporate negligence offences and legal regulations on corporate culture, non-trial resolutions with corporations in foreign bribery cases.

Dr Adam Kay – Mindfulness in organisations, pro- and anti-social workplace behaviour, and corporate social (ir)responsibility.

Dr Yiqiong Li – Counterproductive behaviours (workplace bullying, abusive supervision, and customer aggression), employee voice, team mindfulness, and organizational climate.

Dr Tracy Martin – Behavioural corporate governance, board decision processes and strategic human resource management.

Dr Mireia Guix Navarrete – Corporate social responsibility, sustainability accounting and reporting in hospitality and tourism, trust.

Dr Lance Newey – Wellbeing as strategic ethical governance, strategic stakeholder wellbeing, business and society wellbeing strategies and paradoxical wellbeing tensions in leadership.

Professor Tyler Okimoto – Justice and justice repair, post-conflict reconciliation, biases in organisational and ethical decision-making and inequality and discrimination.

Dr Andre Pekerti – Acculturation cross-cultural research ethics multiculturalism within individuals.

Dr Josephine Previte – Ethics of care and community resilience, social change processes in behaviour change campaigns and program evaluations.

Dr Vanitha Ragunathan – Corporate governance, board behaviour and delegation, board responses to crises.

Dr Tapani Rinta-Kahila – Organisational implementation of AI, socio-technical change, AI explainability, unintended consequences of AI and replacement of legacy systems.

Dr Marten Risius – Social media, blockchain technologies, online extremism, business information systems.

Associate Professor Sergeja Slapničar – Behavioural aspects of performance measurement and incentive systems in various areas, corporate governance.

Dr Ida Asadi Someh – Organisational and societal impact of data analytics and artificial intelligence.

Dr Jamie Tong – Corporate misconducts, management and financial fraud, corporate governance, corporate social responsibility. 

Dr Michael Turner – Ethics and fraud, corporate governance.

Associate Professor Gabrielle (Gabby) Walters – Image and reputation management, market recovery following crises and disastrous events, consumer behaviour and hospitality and tourism.

Mr Brydon Wang – Trustworthiness, climate resilient smart cities, blockchain, automated decision-making systems, law. 

Dr Katie Williams – Governance, information technology, data analytics, information security risk management

Early career researchers

Dr Shannon Colville – Corruption ecosystems, trust violation and repair, social networks.

Dr Caitlin Curtis – Trust in AI, ethics, policy, and public awareness of DNA testing and AI.

Dr Bichen Guan – Organisational trust, workplace emotion regulation; employee well-being, interpersonal relationships, psychometric assessment.

Dr Steve Lockey – Trust violation and repair, role of emotions in the process of trust violation and repair, ethical leadership and wellbeing.

Dr Brad Patridge – Ethical issues in medicine and healthcare, trust in AI, attitudes towards new technology

Dr Javad Khazaei Pool – Information systems, data privacy, trust.

Dr Natalie Smith – corporate governance, transformational change, leadership.

Honorary Members

Associate Professor Bernard McKenna – Wisdom; leadership; ethics; wise decision making.

PhD students and research associates

Mahsa Amirzadeh
Kaylene Ascough
Agata Bialkowski
Mahomay Chaskar
Claire Cunningham
Niamh Daly
Lucas Dixon
Alana Dorris
Megan Gale
Hamidreza Harati
Daniel Holm
Alexandria Macdade
Fitri Oktaviani 
Vanvilay Phommalah
Sarah Richardson
Shaun Star
Wanting Sun
Sandor Talas
Amy Tsai
Resham Vasandani
Gaala Watson

Advisory board

The Trust, Ethics and Governance Alliance advisory board are highly respected professionals, with extensive knowledge and experience in the areas of trust, ethics and/or governance.  Together, we help advance research and its translation into practice to better tackle current and future challenges.
 

Heidi Cooper – CEO & Board Member, CCIQ

A senior executive with more than 20 years’ experience and is a passionate advocate for Queensland’s strategic growth and business sector.  As a corporate affairs professional ad qualified solicitor, Heidi has specialised in leading strategy in major companies with strong growth agendas and significant customer and community relationships. Heidi has held board positions and senior roles in infrastructure, energy, education and training, agriculture, and not-for-profit sectors.  She is currently a member of the Jobs Queensland Board and Brisbane Festival Giving Committee.

Michael Hiller – Queensland Chairman, KPMG

Micheal Hiller is currently the Chairman of Partners for KPMG in Queensland and also serve as the Deputy Chairman of the KPMG Board in Australia. He has extensive experience in working across all levels of government and the private sector in Australia where he has helped organisations improve their performance by focussing on their people, processes, technology and organisation structures. He is also a registered psychologist and a chartered accountant.

Leanne Kemp – CEO of Everledger

Leanne is the Founder and CEO of Everledger and Former Queensland Chief Entrepreneur. Leanne co-chairs the World Economic Forum’s Global Future Council on the Future of Manufacturing and takes part in the Global Future Council on Blockchain. She also co-chairs the World Trade Board's Sustainable Trade Action Group, and is on the IBM Blockchain Platform Board of Advisors. More recently, Leanne has been appointed to the Global Blockchain Business Council as a Regional Ambassador of Australia, an Adjunct Professor in the Institute for Future Environment at the Queensland University of Technology and Blockchain Advisory Board Member of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development.

David Lavell – Integrity and Investigations Unit, The University of Queensland

David is currently the Associate Director of the Integrity and Investigations Unit at the University of Queensland. Previously David has held a number of leadership roles including: the Director of the Ethical Standards Unit, Department of Community Safety in the Queensland Government; Assistant Director of the Ethical Standards Unit, Department of Education and Training; Principal investigator, Ethics Unit of DETA. He has also held previous Detective Sergeant positions with a range of government agencies and Criminal Investigation Branches of the Queensland Police.

Juanita Maiden – Senior Associate, Mullins Lawyers

Juanita is a Senior Associate at Mullins Lawyers and specialises in sports law. She holds multiple board positions including Queensland Cricket, South East Queensland Rugby League, and Trinity Anglican School. Juanita is also the Chairperson of the AFL Queensland Tribunal and has multiple memberships with the Queensland Law Society, Society of Trust & Estate Practitioners, Australian Institute of Company Directors and the Australian & NZ Sports Law Association.

Katrina King – General Manager - Capital Solutions, QIC

Katrina has over 25 years’ experience in financial services and is responsible for originating research, product innovation and product governance at QIC. She has a strong passion for ESG integration into QIC capabilities and working with clients to tailor this for their requirements. Katrina was previously Head of Fixed Income Research and Strategy in QIC's Global Liquid Strategies team. Prior to joining QIC in 2006, Katrina was employed by JPMorgan in New York, Tokyo and London working in roles focused on credit card securitisation, structuring credit issuance into the Asian market and running the CDO Syndicate Desk in Europe.

Karl Morris – Chair of QSuper and Broncos, Managing Director of Ord Minnet

Karl’s career spans over 30 years in financial services and wealth management. Karl is the Chair of QSuper and the Broncos and Managing Director of Ord Minnett. He is also chair of the Bravehearts Foundation Fund and the Mary MacKillop Brisbane Catholic School Access Fund. He is a Master Member ( and former chair 2012-2028) of the Stockbrokers and Financial Advisory Association of Australia.

Graham Newton - Partner with McGrath Nicol

Graham is a Partner with McGrath Nicol and specialises in financial crime and investigations, contract assessment, dispute advisory and fraud risk management. He has more than 25 years of investigative and advisory experience and has worked with all levels of government, private sector companies, listed groups and legal advisors on a range of assignments such as foreign bribery, fraud, corruption investigations and workplace and misconduct complaints.  He is also an Adjunct Lecturer at the University of Queensland where he delivers lectures on financial crime. 

Fraser Power – Stakeholder & Advocacy Manager, Australia Pacific LNG

Fraser is an experienced Corporate Affairs professional specialising in reputation enhancement through the development and delivery of successful stakeholder engagement, advocacy programs, partnerships and communications for corporate, non-profit, government and energy sectors. He is currently the Stakeholder and Advocacy Manager at Australia Pacific LNG where his key areas of focus include delivering enhanced customer, government and stakeholder engagement, issue management and service delivery.

Lesley Ray – Executive Director -Philanthropy, Mater Foundation

Lesley is Director Philanthropy at Mater Foundation, Queensland where she culminates fundraising practice with organisational management and leadership. She leads a team of fundraising professionals and is charged with the development of the organisation’s individual giving and philanthropic engagement programs. Lesley is Chair of the Certified Fundraising Executive (CFRE), an organisation based in Washington DC. She is also a Fellow of Fundraising Institute Australia (FIA), and in 2015, Lesley was announced as the recipient of the Arthur Venn Fundraiser of the Year award, which recognises an outstanding contribution to fundraising in Australia.

Chris Savage – Enterprise Risk Manager, Suncorp

Chris is the Financial Crimes Risk Manager for Suncorp Group where he provides advice and oversights the Group’s financial crime framework. Over the last 20 years, Chris has acquired specialised experience with risk governance and integrity risk management and conducting financial crime and integrity investigations. Chris has worked across a range of industries and understands the challenges associated with leading or managing an organisation that values and acts with integrity.

Richard Watson –  Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Trade and Investment Queensland

Richard has more than 15 years’ commercial and government experience in senior executive roles in sports management and events. His career has spanned consulting, business development, financial control and management, and stakeholder engagement and management. Richard is currently the Deputy Chief Executive Officer at Trade and Investment Queensland where he leads TIQs corporate governance and services, including policy development, strategy implementation, and corporate communications. Prior to joining TIQ, he was Deputy Director-General – Sport and Recreation Services with the Department of National Parks, Sport and Racing.
 

Our researchers conduct innovative, high quality research projects, often in partnership with industry and government, to address pressing concerns and transform the future outlook of trust, ethics and governance in organisations and society.

Trust Building and Repair

• A.I. bias undermines trust in leaders
  Researchers: Justin P. Brienza and Bernard McKenna
  Revealing bias against A.I.; A.I. may be “intelligent” but it cannot be wise—leaders who rely on A.I. suffer decrement in perceived trustworthiness via undermined perceptions of their ability to be wise. 
• After the fall: Understanding the role of identification in organisational trust failure and repair in member organisations 
  Researchers: Nicole Gillespie, Shannon Colville, Alex McDade and Niamh Daly
  Following a trust breach in a member’s organisation, this project explores organisational identification and its influence on trust repair effects and trust trajectories.
• Behind the moral shield: Responses to trust breaches and trust restoration among mission-based groups. (Australian Research Council Discovery Grant)
  Researchers: Matthew Hornsey, Nicole Gillespie and Cassandra Chapman
  This program of research examines the causes and responses to trust breaches within non-profit organisations, and the effectiveness of various strategies for restoring trust. It examines how the dynamics of trust breakdown and repair differ for non-profit and commercial entities.
• Charitable triad: How donors, beneficiaries, & fundraisers influence giving. 
  Researchers: Cassandra Chapman
  This project aims to test a new model of charitable giving to examine how donors, beneficiaries, and fundraisers together influence donor decisions.
• Community expectations and trust of the environmental performance of Australian livestock industries (Industry Grant)
  Researcher: Nicole Gillespie
  In 2017, the Australian Beef Sustainability Framework (ABSF) was developed to meet changing community and consumer expectations. This project evaluates the successes, challenges and trust building potential of the ABSF by drawing on 40 in-depth interviews with key industry and external stakeholders, including recommendations for future adaptation and improvement of the ABSF.
• Dynamics of Forgiveness and Self Forgiveness. (Australian Research Council Discovery Grant)
  Researcher: Tyler Okimoto
  This project aims to study the dynamics between forgiveness and self-forgiveness following hurt and wrongdoing in interpersonal relationships. This project seeks to break new ground, studying dyadic-level dynamics between both parties: interdependencies between forgiveness and self-forgiveness in a dialogical process of moral repair. 
• From luxury escape to mandatory quarantine: an examination of hotel brand stigma
  Researchers: Monica Chien and Sarah Kelly
  The project seeks to understand how re-deployment of travel brands such as hotels into quarantine and medical treatment purposes as part of the COVID-19 response impacts upon the brands, in terms of brand equity and trust.
• Getting tourists back on board: How Covid 19 is likely to influence consumer choice when considering a Cruise style holiday
  Researchers: Gabby Walters and Sarah Kelly
  This project aims to determine how and why Covid 19 has influenced consumers’ preferences for and trade-offs between specific aspects of the cruise experience. Such insight will be highly valuable for Cruise organisations seeking to better understand the evaluative criteria by which their consumer segments are now using to guide their decisions.
• Identifying and resolving challenges to the effectiveness of collective apologies. (ARC Discovery Project administered by Flinders University)
  Researchers: Matthew Hornsey and Tyler Okimoto
  In systematically focusing on the distinct features of intergroup contexts, this project offers a novel analysis of the challenges to the effectiveness of collective apologies and ways to overcome them. Using creative experimental and survey approaches, the research will aid societies in harnessing the potential of collective apologies towards forgiveness and reconciliation.
• Impact of Perceptions of Leader Wisdom Buffer Trust Breeches
  Researchers: Justin P. Brienza and Bernard McKenna
  Investigating the role of perceptions of leaders’ wisdom in followership (e.g., loyalty; willingness to trust and buffering effect of trust breaches; voting; commitment to organisations). 
• Mindful leadership and team functioning (BEL Connect Grant)
  Researchers: Adam Kay
  This project aims to develop a conception of and measure for a new construct termed mindful leadership. This measure will be validated and the implications of mindful leadership will be tested for leader, employee and team functioning in a large randomized controlled trial of online mindfulness training delivered to employees at a Canadian healthcare organisation.
• Perceptions of Low Self-Control Reduce Trust and Cooperation
  Researcher: Justin P. Brienza
  Investigating how team-mates’ perceptions of other members’ self-control (health; task persistence; etc) can affect cooperation in team projects, through damaged trust.
• Predictors of virtual healthcare adoption in the home for the aging population. (NHMRC Project Grant)
  Researcher: Nicole Gillespie
  This project examines the perceptions, needs and behaviours of aged Australians with respect to in-home virtual healthcare services. The project is developing and testing a model of the key factors which influence aged Australian healthcare consumers’ intention to adopt home telehealth services, across key market segments.
• Public Trust in Artificial Intelligence: Global Insights. (KPMG)
  Researcher: Nicole Gillespie, Steve Lockey and Caitlin Curtis
  This program of research seeks to develop an international understanding of public trust in AI across 5 countries: Australia, UK, Canada, USA and Germany. Two industry research reports have been published, funding received to extend to a broader global study in 2022, and scholarly publications are in progress.
• Stakeholder trust in the coal seam gas industry. (Industry Grant)
  Researchers: Nicole Gillespie and Steve Lockey
  This 5 year programme of research, based on in-depth interviews with 145 stakeholders followed by two large-scale surveys, identified the key drivers of trust in the CSG firms and industry from the perspective of four key stakeholder groups: landholders, community, regulators and CSG employees and contractors. 
• The bright side of organisational stigma for socially deviant firms
  Researcher: Adam Kay
  This project examines whether and to what extent operating in a stigmatized industry protects firms from the adverse market consequences of greenwashing, in terms of consumer trust and downstream sales. Results to date suggest that stigmatized firms are protected from the adverse consequences of greenwashing, but only.
• The effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on small and medium tourism businesses in Japan
  Researcher: Monica Chien
  The project seeks to understand the extent of voluntary and involuntary changes made in small and medium tourism and hospitality businesses in Japan, as well as their impact on front-line employees. Specifically, it evaluates the relationship among leadership, trust, and employee wellbeing in the context of ryokans, or traditional Japanese inns.  
• The impact of attentional resource depletion and negative emotions on ethical leadership and trust
  Researcher: Michael Collins
  An experimental study examining how attentional resource depletion and negative emotions leads to unethical leadership and low trust during a team problem-solving task
• The impact of anger, impulsivity and work on trust and ethical leadership
  Researcher: Michael Collins
  A quantitative study of Australian leaders examining how anger and impulsivity leads to unethical leadership, low trust and unsatisfying work.
• Trust and Compliance During the Covid-19 Pandemic 
  Researchers: Shannon Colville, Sarah Kelly, Nicole Gillespie, Steve Lockey, Martin Edwards
  This project strives to investigate the antecedents of trust, risk, and personal values on an individual’s willingness to adopt recommended behaviours during the Covid-19 pandemic. It also aims to explore the effectiveness of government communication strategies to predict optimal marketing/communication strategies for changing behaviours.
• Trust insights: Understanding Practices Supporting Trustworthy Organisations
  Researchers: Nicole Gillespie and Steve Lockey
  This project examines the organisational practices that support and facilitate trustworthy organisational conduct and examines their influence on stakeholder trust.
• Understanding and overcoming public rejection of scientific innovation.
  Researcher: Matthew Hornsey
  This project examines a new psychological construct that explains why some people resist scientific innovation, while others embrace it. The project will be the first to measure this new worldview dimension (Up-Down orientation), and the first to test whether scores on this dimension uniquely predict attitudes toward emerging technologies that promise to shape life in the 21st century (e.g., life extension technologies, artificial intelligence).

Ethics, Corporate Regulation and Culture

• Anti-Doping Governance and Ethics: an investigation into WADA code procedural fairness and natural justice in India.
  Researcher: Sarah Jane Kelly
• An investigation into Loot boxes and microtransactions in online gaming: the new gambling frontier.
  Researchers: Sarah Jane Kelly and Shaun Star
• An investigation of personality and whistle-blowing accounting fraud. (Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia (ICAA))
  Researcher: Michael Turner
  The project investigates the role of personality in relation to accountants' propensity to whistle-blow accounting fraud.
• Blowing the whistle: The impact of formal channels, anti-retaliation protection and financial rewards. (Accounting & Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand (AFAANZ))
  Researcher: Micheal Turner
  The project focuses on whistle-blowing, which has seen considerable recent activity on the part of regulators internationally to provide incentives and protections for whistle-blowers as corporate fraud social enforcement have become a key feature of regulatory policy.
• Building Global Sports Integrity through Transnational Education: A Sports Law Immersive Course and Practicum.
  Researcher: Sarah Jane Kelly
  This programme of research explores the role of governance, risk and regulation in sports and esports.
• 'Corporate culture' is the 'new black' - Its possibilities and limits as a regulatory tool for corporations and financial institutions 
  Researcher: Vicky Comino  
  The focus of this project is on the role of ‘culture’ in corporations and the extent to which corporate culture can be used as a regulatory tool.
• The Dark Side of Mindfulness
  Researcher: Adam Kay
  This project investigates the potential negative effects of mindfulness training given to individuals with dark personality traits like psychopathy, narcissism, and machiavellianism. Research is ongoing, but results to date suggest that organisations should be careful about offering mindfulness training to employees with such personality traits.
• Ethical intelligence: helping good people avoid bad decisions
  Researcher: Michael Collins
  How disinhibition leads to ethical blind spots and unethical behaviour.
• Ethics and professionalism podcast, Conexus Financial
  Researcher: Michael Collins
  Expert commentary on the implications for financial planners of the introduction of the new.
• Impact of ubiquitous information on youth decisions: wisdom training for the internet.
  Researchers: Justin Brienza and Bernard McKenna
  This study will help us to better understand i) when and how youths decide to go online rather than seek advice from parents or others better able and motivated to help; ii) what makes youths more susceptible in discerning false and unwise online information. Then (iii) use these findings to develop and validate a critical training program that can make youths more resistant to misinformation by improving their ability to select genuine and wise advice to make wiser decisions.
• Leading to Serve: A Community-Centred Approach to Leadership in the Queensland Police Service. (Industry Funding QPS)
  Researchers: Michael Collins and Bernard McKenna
  A review of the Queensland Police Service leadership capabilities from recruit to senior executive levels using qualitative and quantitative methods. The findings from this review will inform the development of ethical and pro-social leadership at the individual and organisational level. 
• Mindfulness and third-party reactions to injustice
  Researcher: Adam Kay
  This project investigates the role of mindfulness in third-party reactions to witnessing injustice in the world. In contrast to voluminous research showing that mindfulness tempers emotional reactions to self-relevant mistreatment, this research demonstrates that mindfulness amplifies moral outrage in third-party witnesses of injustice, making mindful individuals more likely to punish those who perpetrate injustice against others.
• Policy and Regulation of harmful product advertising on competitive online gaming and esports.
  Researcher: Sarah Jane Kelly
  This project aims to gain insight into the esports and gaming ecosystem, consumer behaviour within it and the implications for alcohol advertising and exposure to participants. Project outcomes were used to inform health policy and potential regulation and governance of the esports industry and digital platforms regulation in Australia.
• Promoting woman in leadership: Diversity on boards in Australia and India 
  Researcher: Shaun Star
  This project is supported by the Australian Alumni Grant Scheme, Awarded by the Australian Consulate, Chennai, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Partners include University of Queensland, O.P. Jindal Global University, Australia India Business Council, Institute for Australia India Engagement.
• Supportive workplace programme
  Researcher: Yigiong Li 
  The projects involve UniSA and University of Queensland researchers working together with staff from industry partners to identify where and how to change work systems and practices. The ultimate goal is to create a more supportive and respectful workplace for everyone at Woolworths.
• The effectiveness of governance mechanisms in sporting clubs: Perceptions of the stakeholders. (Accounting & Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand)
  Researcher: Michael Turner
  The project focuses on actual events surrounding the 2011-2012 scandals relating to the use of performance enhancing drugs in two high profile sporting clubs in Australia: the Cronulla Sharks Rugby League Club; and the Essendon Football Club. Issues relating to the commercialisation of sport and short-comings in governance are key.
• The true colour of "omotenashi": Impact of COVID-19 on immigrant workers in Japan's tourism and hospitality sectors
  Researcher: Monica Chien
  Japan's immigrant workers in tourism and hospitality are facing increasing discrimination and hateful remarks due to COVID-19. This project investigates how the pandemic induced prejudice against non-Japanese workers impact on these individuals' quality of life and job satisfaction.
• To what extent are conspiracy theorists concerned for self versus others? 
  Researcher: Matthew Hornsey, Cassandra Chapman 
  The project drew on the COVID- 19 context as a test case to examine competing notions of the extent to which conspir-acy theorising is associated with beliefs and behaviours that suggest concern for others versus concern for the self.
• Tourism induced intergroup conflict and its impact on residents of the host destination
  Researchers: Monica Chien and Matthew Hornsey
  This research examines residents' construal and evaluations of conflicts between fellow residents and tourists, as well as the downstream consequences of these evaluations such as retaliation and other unethical behaviours.
• Whistle-blowing regulation: A uniform or tailored approach? (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (The German Research Foundation)
  Researcher: Michael Turner
  The project examines whether United States (U.S.)-style regulatory intervention to encourage whistle-blowing can be immediately effective if transplanted into another country with a distinctly different historical cultural background and institutional system.

Responsible Stewardship of Technology in the Digital Era

• Access to Justice: Technology, Innovation and Sustainability. (Conducted in collaboration with legal centre, Law Right, and UQ Business School)
  Researcher: Francesca Bartlett
• Achieving Trustworthy Artificial Intelligence in the Public Sector (KPMG, Bel Connect and UQ) 
  Researchers: Nicole Gillespie, Steve Lockey, Caitlin Curtis and Tapani Rinta-Kahila
  Revealing bias against A.I.; A.I. may be “intelligent” but it cannot be wise—leaders who rely on A.I. suffer decrement in perceived trustworthiness via undermined perceptions of their ability to be wise.
• Artificial intelligence: An approach to organizational deployment of inscrutable artificial intelligence systems
  Researchers: Tapani Rinta-Kahila 
  This project explores an approach for implementing inscrutable (i.e., nonexplainable) artificial intelligence (AI) such as neural networks in an accountable and safe manner in organizational settings.
• Community attitude to law enforcement data
  TEGA Researchers: Marta Indulska 
  In collaboration with the Queensland Police Service, this project explores how to increase trust that people place in the use of their data. The research will investigate how people view the use of their personal data and how organisations can gain social licence to expand their use of data and technology.
• Developing Data-Driven Organisations: An Agent-Based Modelling Approach
  Researcher: Ida Asadi Someh
• Empowering users to protect their personal privacy on social media 
  Researchers:  Marten Risius 
  This research aims to take a bold approach to finally overcome the paradoxical inertia of people who care about their privacy but do not protect it.
• Enhancing Fairness in Algorithmic Decision-Making through Perspective Taking
  TEGA Researchers:  Ida Someh
  This project examines how AI explanations and evaluation metrics can be framed and presented to prompt decision-makers to adopt different stakeholder perspectives and ultimately help achieve fairness. 
• Explanations: A New Enterprise Capability for Artificial Intelligence   
  Researcher:  Ida Someh
  This project explores the challenges that opaque algorithms pose to organizations and aims to introduce AI explainability as a new enterprise capability for organizations that are investing in AI. AI explanations are explored from multiple stakeholder perspectives. 
• Public Trust in Artificial Intelligence: Global Insights. (KPMG)
  Researchers: Nicole Gillespie, Steve Lockey and Caitlin Curtis
  This program of research seeks to develop an international understanding of public trust in AI across 5 countries: Australia, UK, Canada, USA and Germany. The report from the Australian survey is forthcoming in October 2020.
• Succeeding with AI in the Public Sector (Industry engagement fund – SAP)
  Researchers: Ida Someh, Nicole Gillespie, Tapani Rinta-Kahila
  Public-sector organizations face mounting challenges in adopting and creating value from AI. This project focuses on how governments can build and deploy trustworthy AI applications and in doing maximize benefits for a broad set of stakeholders including citizens.
• The Effect of Algorithm Explanations on Managerial Decision-Making. (National Australia Bank (NAB))
  Researcher: Ida Asadi Someh
• Trust in artificial intelligence. (KPMG and Australian Institute of Business and Economics (AIBE))
  Researchers: Nicole Gillespie, Steve Lockey & Ida Someh
  Using a multimethod design, this program of research seeks to understand stakeholder trust and perceptions of Artificial Intelligence and its applications in society and organisations.
• Understanding and trusting algorithms in data-driven governments. (Systems, Applications & Products (SAP))
  Researchers: Ida Asadi Someh and Nicole Gillespie
• Understanding trust in artificial intelligence. (KPMG and Australian Institute of Business and Economics (AIBE))
  Researchers: Nicole Gillespie, Steve Lockey, Ida Someh, Matthew Hornsey and Caitlin Curtis
  Using a multimethod design, this program of research seeks to understand consumer and public trust and perceptions of Artificial Intelligence and its applications in society and organisations. 
• Unintended Consequences of Algorithmic Decision-Making
  Researchers: Ida Someh, Nicole Gillespie, Tapani Rinta-Kahila
  This project investigates the recent failure cases on algorithmic decision-making such as Robodebt and aims to understand and explain how organizations can anticipate and avoid unintended consequences of algorithmic decision making.

At a glance:

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Insights

Preserving organisational trust during disruption

Organisational trust is important during periods of disruption. Trust helps employees and managers to effectively navigate challenging events and respond constructively to change, and underpins organisational agility and resilience.

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Why not-for-profit organisations trigger more negative reactions from consumers than commercial businesses after a breach of trust

Nonprofit organisations play a unique role in sustaining the fabric of society: many have a core mission to increase inclusiveness, preserve equality, and protect the interests of society’s most vulnerable members. They deliver this mission in ways that cannot be substituted through commercial or government activity.

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Trustworthy by Design: A practical guide to organisational trust

Why do some organisations earn and sustain a reputation for trust over time, while others become embroiled in trust scandals? Our research indicates the difference lies in how the organisation is designed. While simple, this perspective is powerful and highlights why many organisations struggle with trust.

So what does a practical alternative look like that designs trustworthiness into the DNA of an organisation? This report describes what a strategic, whole-of-business approach to managing and preserving organisational trust looks like. To do this, we break down organisational infrastructure into key components and show how each plays a unique role in driving or undermining trustworthy conduct. The report provides practical questions for assessing the trustworthiness of your organisation, along with strategies for designing and aligning organisational infrastructure to engender trust. The principles and best practice guidelines are neither quick nor easy to implement. However, our case study research suggests they are key to achieving a resilient and sustainable reputation for trust across one’s stakeholder network.

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Mindfulness facilitates constructive conflict management

Conflict is a pervasive and inescapable part of organisational life that is commonly assumed to be harmful. However, when conflict is managed constructively organisations can realise tremendous gains. Thus, an important question for research and practice is: what can organisations do to cultivate more constructive attitudes and behaviours around workplace conflict?

The GFC and beyond – how do we deal with corporate misconduct

The Global Financial Crisis (GFC) and procession of scandals since, both globally (eg, manipulation of LIBOR) and locally (most recently, involving Westpac, alleging serious breaches of anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing laws), have highlighted widespread corporate misconduct, raising the question ‘how to best cope with corporate wrongdoing’?

News

Trust in Artificial Intelligence: A global study 

The University of Queensland and KPMG partnered on a global study to understand trust and attitudes towards Artificial Intelligence. 

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A survey of over 17,00 people indicates only half of us are willing to trust AI at work

Artificial intelligence (AI) tools are increasingly used at work to enhance productivity, improve decision making and reduce costs, including automating administrative tasks and monitoring security. But sharing your workplace with AI poses unique challenges, including the question – can we trust the technology?

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Trust, distrust and cybersecurity

The most common cybersecurity attacks that affect businesses worldwide are phishing attacks and they are increasingly on the rise. When phishing attacks trigger data breaches, the consequences for businesses can be severe.

On 3 November, Professor Rosalind Searle gave a thought-provoking talk on ‘trust, distrust and cybersecurity’ as part of our Trust, Ethics and Governance Alliance seminar series. In her talk, Professor Searle discussed the dynamic processes that can follow an initial attack, making salient vulnerability to an unseen exploiter, and germane trust and trustworthiness for a number of relationships in an employing organisation. She offered a multi-level conceptual trust model of the interrelations between the emotional, cognitive and social processes that an attack can produce, distinguishing two paths of markedly different duration, magnitude, and threat consequences.

Some Takeaways

• Phishing attacks can have a ripple effect through an organisation impacting multiple stakeholders
• Organisations have choices but there can be unintended consequences
• Vulnerability through these cyberattacks is a very salient concern
• Line managers play a crucial role in mitigating risks and reducing vulnerability
• Containment of these attacks can increase the resilience of both the target and their employing organisation

What is shadowbanning? How do I know if it has happened to me and what can I do about it? 

Tech platforms deny quietly suppressing content but there’s plenty of evidence to suggest that it is truly present. This practice called 'Shadowbanning' is the act when social media posts are taken down, muted or hidden from followers without informing the user or creator. However, any censorship of the content with the idea of suppressing voices can severely damage the trust between social media platforms and their users. Check out Marten Risius (TEGA) and Kevin Marc Blasisk's article in the conversation where they unpack what shadowbanning is and what you can do about it.

APS: Building & preserving trust in organisations

Trust helps our complex world work. Sometimes trust can be quickly given, but even more swiftly lost. Building durable trust over time takes effort, forethought and an investment in deliberate action. On 13 September, TEGA members Prof Nicole Gillespie, Dr Steven Lockey and Dr Bichen Guan were invited to be panellists at the APS College of Organisational Psychologists event “Building and preserving trust in organisations”.

Professor Gillespie, opened the session with an overview of the field of trust to create a solid, shared understanding of this construct. In an interactive discussion, Dr Bichen Guan shared a current snapshot of trust in organisations across Australia and the practices that build trust at work. Dr Steve Lockey discussed his recent work on trust repair at both individual and collective levels. 

One interesting insight from their ongoing research is a clear divide in the level of trust Australian executives and senior managers have in their organisations compared to front-line workers and first-line managers, with the former trusting much more than the latter.

Further, when asked what was most important for enhancing trust in their organisations, employees frequently mentioned managerial openness and transparency, and remuneration, with a number of employees noting the issue of not being paid on time.

Transforming the Future: Building Trustworthy and Ethical Organisations

The University of Queensland’s Trust, Ethics and Governance Alliance hosted its annual Summit ‘Transforming the future: Building trustworthy and ethical organisations’ on 11 May 2022. The event, hosted at Customs House and online, was a combination of both industry and research knowledge leaders who shared cutting-edge insights through interactive panel discussions and practical research presentations.

Trust in Artificial Intelligence (AI Ethics: Global Perspectives) 

Professor Nicole Gillespie discusses building trust in AI systems and technologies is critical for our future. 

The Trusting Brain: Building trust through neuroscience.  

Professor Nicole Gillespie discusses the study of neuroscience and in particular how the brain builds trust has become a focus point for leaders and companies in a KPMG Australian Podcast series with Whitney Fitzsimmons. 

Culture is key 

Dr Vicky Comino discusses the link between defective culture and unethical conduct and wrongdoing in banks and financial institutions. 

Podcasts

How leaders can build trust within culturally-diverse teams

Associate Professor Gill was joined by Professors Nicole Gillespie from the University of Queensland and Bart De Jong from the Australian Catholic University, to speak with Yasmin Rupesinghe about a new way to foster trust that could improve performance in culturally-diverse teams.

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The Power of Apologies

Why is it so hard to say ‘I’m sorry?’ In part two of our series on forgiveness and apologies, Professor Tyler Okimoto talks about the mental barriers that keep us from admitting when we’ve done something wrong, as well as the transformative power of apologies.

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