Values and culture

Integrity is a core requirement of ours. For an individual, integrity is displayed through the soundness of moral principles, honesty and sincerity.

We demonstrate integrity through:

• a genuine commitment to the success of individuals
• complete honesty and forthrightness in all commitments with people
• high standards of personal conduct and character at all times
• complete trustworthiness when handling information, money and property.

Commitment is characterised by dedication, application, perseverance and a belief in one's ability to achieve and add value.

We demonstrate commitment when we:

• apply ourselves to all tasks and jobs for which we are responsible
• persist with jobs until objectives are achieved or are no longer reasonably attainable
• strive to uphold the vision and mission of the AFP
• strive to achieve individual, team and corporate milestones.

We believe there is always room for improvement – and that the never-ending search for improvement leads to excellence. We aim for excellence in everything we do.

To promote excellence we:

• empower our employees and involve them in providing a quality service
• coach and develop people rather than control and direct them
• strive to deliver the product that best serves the needs of our clients
• constantly improve work performance by seeking to remove waste and inefficiencies
• dedicate time and effort to self-improvement
• encourage innovation, experimentation and risk-taking
• support teamwork by communicating with each other; participating together with problem-solving; sharing work; delegating and taking responsibility for individual tasks; and dealing with conflict, performance problems and discipline issues.

Accountability is about ownership of work or results and being answerable for outcomes.

We demonstrated accountability when we:

• accept personal responsibility for the consequences of our efforts
• ensure people know what is expected of them, how their work will be evaluated and how success is measured or determined
• allow individuals and teams to make decisions about their work
• don't assume credit for the work of others
• give feedback on work performance.

Fairness means being impartial and equitable.

We demonstrate fairness when we:

• apply anti-discrimination, fairness and equity principles in our daily work
• don't act from malice, prejudice or personal bias when making decisions
• approach people and issues with tolerance and an open mind.

Trust means having faith and confidence and being able to rely and depend on others.

We demonstrate trust when we:

• assume people can be relied on to do the right thing
• declare conflicts of interest if they arise
• don't subject people to abuses of power
• foster an environment where people do not fear punishment for making honest mistakes.

Respect means treating ourselves and all others with consideration.

We demonstrate respect when we:

• value our employees
• appreciate and leverage the inherent diversity our employees bring to the workplace
• consider the interests of others in our daily behaviour regardless of roles and status.

• An AFP appointee must act with due care and diligence in the course of AFP duties.
• An AFP appointee must act with honesty and propriety in the course of AFP duties.
• An AFP appointee must act with fairness, reasonableness, courtesy and respect, and without discrimination or harassment, in the course of AFP duties.
• An AFP appointee must comply with all Australian laws. For this purpose, Australian law means any:
  • Act, or any instrument made under an Act
  • law of a state or territory, including any instrument made under such a law.
• An AFP appointee must comply with any lawful direction given by a person who has the authority to give such direction.
• An AFP appointee must disclose, and take reasonable steps to avoid, any conflict of interest (actual, perceived or potential) connected to their AFP duties or employment.
• An AFP appointee must not improperly use:
  • information obtained directly or indirectly as a result of AFP duties or employment and/or
  • duties, status, power or authority as an AFP appointee in order to gain, or seek to gain, a benefit or advantage for the AFP appointee, or for any other person, or for any other improper purpose.
• An AFP appointee must use and manage Commonwealth resources in a proper manner.
• An AFP appointee must behave in a way that upholds the good order, discipline and security of the AFP.
• An AFP appointee must behave in a way that upholds the AFP Core Values, and the integrity and good reputation of the AFP.
• While deployed overseas, an AFP appointee must behave in a way that upholds the good reputation of Australia.
• An AFP appointee must not do either of the following with the intention of prejudicing police services or protective service functions:
  • fail to give prompt attention to their duties
  • be absent from duty without authority.
• An AFP appointee must not, without lawful authority or excuse, disclose or take any action that brings, or is intended to bring, information to the notice of another AFP appointee or any other person, relating to:
  • information given by a person under Part V of the Act (professional standards and AFP conduct and practices issues) that raises an AFP conduct issue
  • a decision made by the Commissioner under section 40SD of the Act that an AFP conduct issue in relation to an AFP appointee is to be dealt with under Part V of the Act
  • an investigation of an AFP conduct issue in relation to an AFP appointee under Subdivision D of Division 3 of Part V of the Act (dealing with category 3 conduct issues and corruption issues)
  • an inquiry under Division 4 of Part V of the Act (Ministerially directed inquiries).
• An AFP appointee must not do either of the following except in the performance of the AFP appointee's duties:
  • use or communicate to another person any information that comes to the AFP appointee's knowledge, or into the AFP appointee's possession, by reason of being an AFP appointee
  • obtain access to information by reason of being an AFP appointee.
• An AFP appointee is deemed to have obtained access to information even if the information:
  • is not in the possession, or under the control, of the AFP
  • consists of a computer program or part of a computer program, or is otherwise stored in, or entered or copied into, a computer.