The University of Johannesburg’s Finance department has recently teamed up with auditing powerhouse KPMG to implement ethical and anti-corruption practice in the workplace.
The University saw it fit to launch the campaign parallel to their annual Staff Day in May 2014 at one of the University’s sports grounds. To add a creative twist to the campaign UJ turned to creative house, IntelliLAB to come up with something extraordinary.
KPMG and UJ’s Finance department have created a hotline where people can turn to anonymously if they suspect any fowl play in the workplace. The question, however, was “How do we get staff to be interested in this?”
IntelliLAB, which comprises of a variation of creative minds from television directors to graphic designers to communication and marketing experts, came up with an angle to make ethical practice in the workplace an appealing topic to the masses.
To draw the crowds nearer, IntelliLAB set up a red carpet area where people were required to take a selfie and upload it to any social media platform of their choice, using the hashtag #EthicsSelfie and in turn, stand a chance to win one of two iPads. That’s not all though – while people were queuing up to take their selfie, various banners were present, communicating all the details about the Ethics Hotline (0800 204 975) as well as a video entitled ‘Mr. Clean’. The video shows a man who has engaged in a variety of unethical practices ranging from embezzlement of tuition fees to unethical spending of overseas travel allowances. The hotline number was also displayed in the background of the selfie-taking section. This way, people have the number even if they did not save it on their cellular phone.
“Participation in a message is important in changing behaviour and communicating effectively”, says Lynette Oelschig, strategist at IntelliLAB.
Producer, DuPreez Strauss explains more on the production behind the scenes on the day: “We wanted to create a fun and engaging environment in which every staff member of UJ could become a star in the campaign. Adding a touch of glamour to the day’s proceedings was what we wanted to achieve, and I think all our elements came together beautifully: From the plush red carpet to the beautifully designed interior of the tent and our slick and informative video that looped inside the tent all day. Everyone certainly remembered their visit to the Ethics Stall.”
Feedback from KPMG with regard to the usage of the ethics line was received with reports that there has already been response with people using the line. Furthermore, the general sentiment about the ethics and anti-corruption campaign from the UJ staff was positive and they are pleased to have a tool to report unethical behaviour at UJ anonymously.
