Workplace conduct

Conflict of Interest

20 minutes

1 module

NOTE

This course can be customised to incorporate your organisation’s approved conflict of interest policy, disclosure process, gifts and hospitality rules, outside-employment requirements, sector-specific obligations, internal contacts and escalation routes.

overview

A conflict can compromise a decision before anyone calls it misconduct

Conflict of interest training helps employees and managers identify situations in which a personal interest, relationship or benefit may affect, or appear to affect, a workplace decision. The conflict itself is not always wrongdoing. The risk is that an employee takes part in a decision without giving the organisation the information it needs to assess the situation.

That disclosure step matters because conflicts arise in ordinary work: a gift from a supplier, a family member applying for a role, outside employment, a side business, a financial interest or a decision involving someone the employee knows. If the employee does not recognise the conflict, the policy and disclosure process never get a chance to work.

The course

Know when a possible conflict needs to be raised

The course explains what a conflict of interest is, when one may arise, who should report it and what can follow when a conflict is not disclosed.

It uses scenario-based examples involving moonlighting, working with family, gifts and personal financial interests to connect the topic to ordinary workplace decisions. Learners get a clearer basis for recognising the point at which a private interest should be raised so that the organisation can decide how it should be managed.

Disclosure

An organisation cannot manage a conflict it never hears about.

Regulatory context

The duty to disclose is not just a policy preference

In South Africa, the applicable rule depends on the employee’s role and sector. The Companies Act requires directors, prescribed officers and board committee members to disclose personal financial interests and restricts their participation in the matter.

For authorised financial services providers, the FAIS General Code requires an FSP to adopt, maintain and implement a conflict of interest management policy. Relevant employees and representatives must be made aware of the policy and provided with appropriate training and educational material. Compliance must be monitored and reported on. The FSCA can impose administrative penalties and suspend or withdraw authorisation for breaches of financial sector law; conflict-of-interest contraventions have formed part of enforcement action.

These regimes do not apply identically to every employee. That is why the organisation’s own policy and disclosure route matter. Awareness gives employees the point of recognition: this may be a conflict, and it needs to be raised before the decision continues.

Give employees a clearer basis for disclosing conflicts early.

Got questions? Start here.

Who should complete conflict of interest training?

Employees and managers can use this course as a shared awareness baseline. It is particularly relevant where people make or influence decisions, receive gifts, work with relatives, have outside employment or hold personal financial interests that may overlap with their work.

Can the course reflect our sector rules and internal policy?

Yes. The standard course covers the core recognition and disclosure issues. It can be customised to incorporate the organisation’s approved policy, disclosure steps, gifts and hospitality rules, outside-employment requirements, internal contacts and relevant sector obligations, including FAIS or public-sector requirements where applicable.

Does the course train managers to assess and manage disclosures?

No. The standard course gives employees and managers a shared awareness baseline. Managers, HR, Legal or Compliance staff who must assess a disclosure, decide on safeguards or document how a conflict will be managed may also need role-specific guidance or a customised version of the course.

Can the training form part of our compliance record?

Yes, where the chosen delivery route records assignment, completion or assessment. That record can help the organisation show who received the awareness and what they completed. It does not prove that every conflict was disclosed or that the organisation is compliant.