The Community Care Trust’s third value is Transparency.

Transparency means to work in a way that others can see what is being done, it implies openness, direct and honest communication and accountability with co-workers, people receiving support and whanau.

Being transparent can create an environment free from fear and people being honest about their achievements and mistakes.

It means to have no hidden agendas or conditions, to have all the information required for collaboration, cooperation, and collective decision making in all that we do.

Ways to Promote Transparency

Be transparent in your workplace and with people receiving support

Explain your decisions.

Have transparent work processes.

Respond positively to honesty.

Thoughts from staff

Transparency is the ‘why’. It is saying “we have done THIS, and here is WHY”. It is sharing information with others in a way that is honest and completely trustworthy so that we all have an understanding of the purpose and the reason for our actions.

What do I do if I am unsure about what the organisation is doing? I take advantage of our open-door policy and I walk into the Chief Executive’s office and I say “Mike, what is going on? WHY is this happening?” I always get an appropriate, measured, and honest answer. We don’t all need to know every detail and we deal with lots of sensitive information every day, but we do need to know that every interaction is truthful and not deceitful or ‘behind closed doors’. I believe we do this exceptionally well within Community Care Trust and I believe I can trust the people within my team to share with me the ‘why’ and to deliver this in a safe and meaningful way and at a level I ‘need to know’. We absolutely own this and are accountable from the CE to the cleaners. You guessed it, it filters down too.

Explain decisions; explain changes; explain planning. BE HONEST - if you make a mistake, say so and apologise and have a plan so it doesn't happen again.

No hidden agendas, no half-truths or outright lies, no robbing Peter to pay Paul, to be open about greater good issues.

To be as clear and concise as possible when communicating and in actions. Feeding back information to confirm both parties are on the same page. When expressing or explaining to be completely honest and straight forward.

Working openly and honestly with a person, treating him/her with integrity, explaining what you are doing and the rationale behind it.

Ensuring a person has balanced information (advantages, disadvantages and consequences) needed to make informed choices.

Immersing a person in the experience and journey.

Being open and honest with people supported and staff.    Clear and honest communication within teams. More information is being shared in “in the loop” and the family newsletter to provide open and honest information to all associated with Community Care Trust.

The next value we will look at is responsiveness. If you have a good definition or example and want it included in the next newsletter please e-mail angela@cct.org.nz