Having the trust of stakeholders and the community has never been more important in corporate Australia. In an environment of constant scrutiny, the impact that a company – its products and services, culture or operations – has on people and the environment has become everyone’s business. An organisation’s social licence to operate is not a given and can quickly be challenged, in turn impacting its future and the broader market.

To build sustainable trust, greater transparency is key – from finances to supply chain operations, ethics, risk mitigation and more. In addition, organisations must consider how they are proactively building relationships and listening to stakeholders. They need to be willing to change, and to embrace technologies to better understand their impact on people and communities.
 

Insights on corporate trust

In our reports and articles, we explore how organisations can rebuild corporate trust. We have released two surveys in conjunction with The University of Queensland. 

Trustworthy by Design: a practical guide to organisational trust
The first in our series provides practical questions for assessing the trustworthiness of your organisation, along with strategies for designing and aligning organisational infrastructure to engender 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.

Trust in Artificial Intelligence: Australian Insights 2020
The second in our series explores attitudes towards AI, and how trust can be strengthened to realist its full potential. The risk and challenges that AI poses, including codifying and reinforcing unfair biases and infringing on human rights such as privacy, are also undeniable. Without public confidence that AI is being developed and used in an ethical and trustworthy manner, it will not be trusted and its full potential will not be realised. Are we capable of extending our trust to AI?