At the 2017 Public Relations Institute of Southern Africa (PRISA) Conference, media update’s Adam Wakefield listened to what leaders in PR and ethics had to say about why good ethics is good business and how, in the end, you will always suffer the consequences of not acting ethically.

The industry knows the importance of ethics

At the conference in May, outgoing president Thabisile Phumo spoke about the importance of ethics and why it lies at the industry’s troubled centre.

“In 1971, the PRISA Code of Ethics was published and it took five years for members to adopt it. In 2004, it was the first time that PRISA signed the Global Protocol of Ethics in Public Relations and this is fundamental to our profession in an area we’ve glossed over,” Phumo said.

“Unless we put the issue of ethics back on the agenda, we are doomed to fail as professionals and as an industry.”

As PRISA assesses its role, it must be a watchdog for the industry and an advocate for what serves the industry and what does not.

PR has power that must be wielded responsibly

A person whose business is literally ethics is Driekie Havenga, group ethics officer at Nedbank. A speaker on the second day of the PRISA Conference, Havenga emphasised why good ethics is good business.

Starting off with the quote, “Power does not change who you are, it just reveals who you are”, Havenga said public relations practitioners have tremendous power by being able to influence public perception and discourse.

“That is a huge responsibility and this quote makes so much sense because it focuses on your duty, on your ethical leadership, on the responsibility that you have not just to yourself but to all your stakeholders,” Havenga said.

“That is something you may all take close to heart. It is important we practise this.”

Trust is the glue of life and is inseparable from ethics

When it comes to effective communication, the essential ingredient, according to Havenga, is trust, which she calls the “glue of life”.

“It is the foundation principle that holds all relationships together … The first thing that we usually tell our people when they come to our [offices is], ‘Please remember, we are not in the business of making money. We are in the business of creating trust’,” she said.

“If you don’t have trust in your investor, your client, or your shareholders, then you won’t have people giving you money to make money with.”

The elements of trust, according to Havenga, are values, conduct, respect, competence, confidentiality, and, an element all those who work in PR are familiar with, reputation.

“The culture of your business will flow through you to the work you do for your client and, if you trust in your work, what you do for clients will be responsible as well,” she said.

“That all starts with a common set of values. As much chaos and uncertainty there is in our world today, the one thing that doesn’t change is our set of personal values that is carried with you.”

Values are important because they must always be applied, and consistently. You cannot apply a certain set of values depending on the situation.

Respect is the foundation principle of trust, while confidentiality and discretion are of the utmost importance.

They all feed into your reputation, which has a direct impact on your business and who does business with you.

Employees are central figures in conducting good, ethical business, because if your employees are not ethical, your business will not be and will fail.

“You need to be on the same level as your employees and get the right people on board,” Havenga said.

“If we don’t keep on challenging ourselves, we won’t get any better. Consider your reputation and credibility in all that you do. What is your legacy going to be? Make a quick buck?”

When communicating, Havenga’s advice is to keep it simple. The more complex a message is, the less impact it will have. This also means being transparent and honest when communicating.

Steer clear of unethical PR practices

Some of the unethical practices Havenga has seen PR companies perpetrate include paying bribes for information or for a story placement, creating rumours about a rival, knowingly using inaccurate information, and conflicts of interests, especially where the state is concerned.

Her advice is to steer as far away from these transgressions as possible because, even if you do not commit any of these unethical actions, if you are associated with them, the perception will linger in the minds of those outside the business, harming your reputation in the process.

Uncompetitive business practises are another no-go area and, as Havenga warns, unethical business practices always harms the perpetrator in the end.

Want to stay up to date with the latest public relations news? Subscribe to our newsletter.

At the PRISA Conference, the PR industry looked inward, and listened. Read more in our story, PRISA Conference: Uncertain times is when PR comes to the fore.

*Image used under this license