Conflicts of Interest Policy
Apollo Accreditation
1. Why this matters here
We advise providers who compete with each other, and we deal with the bodies that judge them. Both create conflicts. Pretending otherwise would be the problem, not the conflict itself.
2. What counts as a conflict
A conflict exists where our judgement on behalf of one client could reasonably be affected by an interest of our own, of another client, or of a body we deal with.
| Type | Example | How we manage it |
|---|---|---|
| Client against client | Two providers seeking accreditation for competing programmes in the same sector and jurisdiction | Disclosed to both before we accept, separate teams, no shared material |
| Commercial | A fee arrangement that would reward us for steering a client to a particular route | Not entered into |
| Personal | A team member with a family or financial connection to a client or to a body's decision-maker | Declared on the register, that person removed from the engagement |
| Body relationship | A close working relationship with an accreditation body whose decisions affect our clients | Disclosed to the client at the outset |
3. Our own group, and why we tell you first
Apollo Accreditation is a trading name of Auren Institute, which also operates as a compliance training provider in the United Kingdom and Malta. That means we may advise a client whose programmes compete with Auren Institute's own.
We disclose this at the outset of every engagement rather than waiting to be asked. It is the conflict a buyer is most likely to spot on their own, and finding it later would rightly damage trust in everything else we say.
Where a client competes directly with Auren Institute, the engagement is run by people who do not work on Auren Institute's own provision, and no client material is shared across the two. We do not act on an accreditation submission made by Auren Institute itself while acting for a competing client on the same route to the same body.
If at any point you would rather we did not act because of this, say so and we will step back and help you find someone else. That costs you nothing.
4. Declaring
Everyone working on an engagement declares conflicts before the engagement starts, and immediately if one arises later. Declarations go on a register that is reviewed quarterly.
Where we are unsure whether something is a conflict, we treat it as one and disclose it.
5. Managing
Managing a conflict means one of four things: declining the work, separating the teams and the material, removing the conflicted individual, or proceeding with the informed written agreement of everyone affected.
Informed means they know what the conflict is, not that they signed a general clause.
6. What we will not do
We will not accept a commission, referral fee or other payment from an accreditation body, awarding organisation or regulator for directing clients to it. If we ever did, we would disclose it on this page and in every proposal.
We will not act for two clients on the same competitive submission to the same body.
7. Review
The register is reviewed quarterly and this policy annually.
Common questions
Is Apollo Accreditation independent from Auren Institute?
No, and we say so up front. Apollo Accreditation is a trading name of Auren Institute, which also sells compliance training. We may therefore advise a client whose programmes compete with our own group's. We disclose this at the start of every engagement, we separate the teams where a client competes directly, and we will not act on an Auren Institute submission while acting for a competing client on the same route. If you would rather we did not act, we will step back and help you find someone else.
Does Apollo take commission from accreditation bodies?
No. We do not accept a commission, referral fee or other payment from an accreditation body, awarding organisation or regulator for directing clients to it. If we ever did, we would disclose it on that page and in every proposal.
Apollo works with my competitors. How is that managed?
It is disclosed to both parties before we accept the work, teams are separated, and no material is shared. We will not act for two clients on the same competitive submission to the same body.