A care worker is accused of mistreating a resident. The allegation hits social media before you've even finished your internal review. It gains traction and begins going viral. Within days, families are pulling their loved ones from your care, funders are requesting urgent meetings, and journalists are asking questions you're not ready to answer. Your organisation has spent fifteen years building trust in the community. It takes a week to see it on the brink of collapse.
NFP Boards carry significant legal and ethical responsibilities, yet some Directors are unaware of the entirety of their duties. They're passionate about the mission, committed to the cause, and often generously volunteer their time. Passion and good intentions however, do not always equate to effective oversight. When issues inevitably emerge, Boards may quickly discover they've been asking the wrong questions.
The convergence of digital and physical infrastructure means the security of our national assets is more than just a matter of protection—it's a foundation for community resilience, public trust, and uninterrupted government services. For Federal, State, and Local government entities, safeguarding critical infrastructure—including water supply, energy networks, transport systems, public facilities, and sensitive data—is essential. These assets underpin daily life, economic stability, and the well-being of every Australian.
A serious allegation of workplace misconduct lands on your desk at 9am on a Monday. A staff member claims their supervisor has been falsifying client records. Another team member heard about it and the story is spreading. The accused is demanding to know who made the complaint. Your Board wants answers, and you're realising you've never dealt with a situation like this before.
The Australian Signals Directorate’s Australian Cyber Security Centre (ASD’s ACSC) has recently released its Annual Cyber Threat Report 2024–2025 which provides insights into the cybersecurity and cybercriminal landscape in Australia. While most organisations are undertaking a range of good activities for Cyber Awareness month the report is a timely reminder of the need to be cyber safe every day of every month.
The past couple of weeks of grand finals has reminded us why Australians love sport. From the AFL to the NRLW and NRL, the games have been a celebration of competition at its very best, with the very best rising to the top. The Lions and Broncos delivered incredible performances that made Queensland proud and showed what happens when skill, preparation and competitive spirit come together.
Stephen Calder is a Canberra-based governance and assurance professional with a long-standing commitment to public service and community. He recently joined Centium, a leading consultancy specialising in risk, governance, internal audit, investigations, probity, and cybersecurity. In his role, Stephen works closely with Commonwealth agencies to help them navigate complex challenges and deliver better outcomes for Australians. […]
When was the last time someone in your organisation raised a concern about potential misconduct? If you can't remember, or the answer is never, there's a good chance your reporting channels aren't working.
As a leader in a non-profit, the lack of red flags being brought to your attention might seem like an attractive scenario. Fewer problems brought across your desk means fewer problems are occurring, right? We all know it doesn't work that way. As soon as you scratch below the surface, you find the deeper problem.
Financial misconduct in not-for-profits isn't usually the dramatic fraud that makes headlines. More often, it's a series of small lapses that compound over time; a missing receipt here, an informal approval there, or grant funds used for the "wrong" purpose during a cash flow crunch. These examples sound free of malice and ill intent, because they often are, as we explored in our previous article on unintentional misconduct. In resource-constrained environments where staff wear multiple hats and trust often substitutes for process, these risks multiply.
