Griffith PhD candidate awarded grant to research ethical decision making in Indigenous financial markets

QSuper welcome statement.

At the recent Australasian Business Ethics Network (ABEN), Clare Burns, PhD candidate and sessional academic in the Department of Business Strategy and Innovation was awarded an ABEN-Ecstra grant to research ethical decision making in financial markets. The grant allocation was competitive and underwent international peer review.

Ecstra Foundation is a new not for profit organisation committed to building the financial capability of all Australians within a fair financial system to equip Australians with access to the knowledge and resources they need to make confident money decisions for their financial future.

Clare’s proposed research aims to increase moral awareness of good practice in Indigenous superannuation financial services through an appreciative case study.

“QSuper were identified in the Royal Commission for their exemplar service with Indigenous customers”, Clare said.

“Raising moral awareness on how effective services can be delivered, could serve to increase moral capacity for finance organisations seeking to live their espoused ethical values of equality and integrity”.

QSuper’s positioning stands in stark contrast to other finance organisations identified for their misconduct: deliberately targeting Indigenous Australians using high pressure tactics to sell products not fit for purpose.

This case study is designed to contribute real world insights to existing recommendations when serving Australia’s 798,400 Indigenous and other vulnerable customers.

Findings from the research will be presented at the 2020 ABEN conference.