Transparency International Reviews

The International Secretariat in Berlin is unfortunately faltering. It's not a nice place to work, with morale very low among the mostly lovely and hard-working colleagues. With the departure of the old senior management team in 2017 (who were no angels, but compare favourably to the current crop), a new MD was brought on board. Unfortunately TI was not able to attract someone with commensurate skills and experience required for the role. She is neither a strong advocate for the cause, nor a strong internal manager. In fact, she appears to be weak on both fronts and therefore is very insecure in her position and does not trust anyone, particularly longstanding, knowledgeable staff, who she seems to see as a threat. Therefore the organisational culture has become one where mistrust of staff reigns and favouritism is the order of the day. The MD has surrounded herself with 'yes men and women' who do not dare to challenge her, even in the face of incompetence. In the wake of accusations of bullying and harrassment, the international oversight board has done little or nothing to address the ongoing issues. The future does not seem bright unless there is a change of leadership both at executive management level and at the level of the international board.

TI’s downfall started in 2016 with its restructuring process. Efforts to recover the institution since then keep failing as personal agendas and incompetencies take a lead over institutional interests and real priorities. Present executive leadership is clearly not cut out to lead an advocacy NGO. She is out of depth, extremely old school in her approaches and disturbingly unethical. Despite being an organisation promoting transparency and accountability, the senior management team (SMT) was selected without due process or having terms of reference. When the managers were appointed the favourites of the leadership were told before the process that they were earmarked for the positions. Some potential candidates were even reprimanded and told not to apply for any managerial positions within the organisation. Favouritism at its best paving the way for command and control. So much for the meritocracy that TI preaches about! All these resulted in a few incompetent and inexperience staff members getting appointed to the SMT. Their lack of skills, unprofessional and unethical conduct unfortunately are ruining this organisation. The relatively younger female SMT member even carries no uneasiness to air her racial prejudices or bad mouth about other staff members. The only way to survive within the organisation is to declare unwavering support to the SMT. Then you will be rewarded despite lack of performances in the past or serious allegations against ethical conduct within the organisation. So for a very few this is the way to survive. There is no institutional performance evaluation in the organisation at present. Some staff members questioned the leadership about their conduct in staff meetings. They were simply told - leave the organisation if you are unhappy. Currently there is no institutional or leadership vision for TI. Despite a strategy approved by its membership running up to 2020, SMT turns around priorities placing personal agendas at the forefront beyond institutional interests. A horde of competent and experience staff members have left in the recent past or in the process of leaving. It is a public secret within the organisation that every other person is looking for a job to leave. What is happening within TI at present is truly unbelievable. I doubt that the international board of this organisation cares. A classic example of how ambitions of politics and small privileges could take precedence over what is expected from an oversight body. A recent BBC article revealed what was happening within Amnesty International Secretariat. The content of the article resounds precisely what is happening at Transparency International currently.