Honesty and Integrity

Honesty and IntegritY

This goes much further than adherence to professional standards: it is about openness and prudent judgement. It is about being trustworthy and straightforward in all of our working relationships.

This means...

We Don't:

·  Overpromise to clients or colleagues

·  Fail to do what we commit to do

·  Avoid difficult conversations

·  Tolerate dishonesty

·  Play down important issues

·  Condone manipulative behaviour

·  Allow personal relationships or other interests to cloud our judgement

·  Operate with anything less than absolute professional integrity

We Do:

·  Give advice we believe in

·  Behave ethically and stay true to our standards

·  Avoid conflicts of interest

·  Behave honestly with regard to our fees and how we charge our time

·  Agree clear expectations

·  Adopt a truthful and straightforward approach, even if the message is difficult

·  Speak up if we think something is wrong, without fear of recrimination

·  Respect confidences

·  Consult and communicate in an open manner

·  Seek out, and give, honest and constructive feedback

·  Appraise people objectively and treat them fairly

Taking Personal Resonsibility

We treat each other as equals. We all have a strong sense of responsibility to colleagues and the firm, and everyone has the right to operate with flexibility and freedom. We appreciate and recognise every individual’s strengths. We can be ourselves.

This means...

We Don't:

·  Abdicate responsibility or pass the buck

·  Spoon-feed or talk down to more junior colleagues

·  Intervene at inappropriate times or impose unnecessary controls

·  Condone the abuse of power or position

·  Moan if something is wrong rather than try to fix it

·  Turn a blind eye to unacceptable behaviour

We Do:

·  Operate in a flexible way within agreed parameters

·  Demonstrate faith and trust in each other

·  Delegate and encourage people to take responsibility as early as possible

·  Give others the freedom to try things out and support without interfering

·  Nurture independent thinking and ideas

·  Value individuality

·  Show initiative and challenge our own comfort zones

·  Create and make the most of opportunities

·  Adopt a proactive approach to problem solving and improvements

·  Lead by example

Mutual support

We treat each other with consideration and respect and have a strong ethos of sharing and consultation. We go to great lengths to help each other out. We stand up for each other and do not have a blame culture.
This means...

We Don't:

·  Take advantage of the good nature of colleagues

·  Condone self-promotion at the expense of others

·  Always wait to be asked before we offer help

·  Indulge in parochial, narrow-minded or petty behaviour

·  Insist on doing things in our own way where there are agreed procedures or best practice

·  Undermine, ridicule or criticise others behind their backs or in public

·  Use email when other forms of communication would be more appropriate

·  Blame others or punish genuine mistakes

We Do:

·  Make time for any colleague who wants to talk through an issue

·  Help each other out by freely giving advice and sharing workloads

·  Ask for help when we need it Share ideas, opportunities, knowledge and resources

·  Try to understand each others’ points of view

·  Accept that people will sometimes get things wrong

·  Learn from our mistakes

·  Support others when they are in difficult personal circumstances

·  Consult and involve others in decisions

·  Show consideration for people’s needs inside and outside work

·  Maintain a sense of humour and a positive attitude

·  Act as one firm

Strong and Personal Client Relationships

Our client relationships are more than just business partnerships: we aim to understand people as well as business, and build long-standing relationships based on mutual respect and trust. We care about the success of our clients and are committed to delivering value. We adopt a professional approach and it is important that our clients enjoy working with us
This means...

We Don't:

·  Let issues fester

·  Try to do everything ourselves when others could do it better

·  Oversell or spread ourselves too thinly

·  Hog relationships to the detriment of client service

·  Leave things to the last minute

·  Deliver work that is less than of the highest quality

·  Abuse the personal relationships we have with our clients and the business community

We Do:

·  Ensure we are accessible and quick to respond

·  Adopt a proactive approach

·  See our clients and communicate with them on a regular basis

·  Give high quality, constructive and tailored advice

·  Inform our clients of relevant developments that might interest them

·  Think about the needs of our clients

·  Take the time to understand our clients’ aspirations and service requirements

·  Analyse why client relationships succeed or fail

·  Develop and demonstrate expertise

·  Seek out, and respond to client feedback

·  Ensure we provide the best match of skills and personalities on our teams

·  Build relationships at all levels