Licenses and Inspections (L+I) Deputy Commissioner and appointed Integrity Officer Ralph DiPietro is this year’s winner of the Joan Markman Award for Integrity.
Ralph won the award for his outstanding service to the City and his work with investigations that have resulted in meaningful change within L+I.
Ralph has logged countless hours working on hundreds of investigations with The Office of the Inspector General (OIG) and The Office of the Chief Integrity Officer (CIO) recovering thousands in taxpayer money. His dedication to honesty has set a precedent within L+I that misconduct, no matter the scale, would not be tolerated.
“Ralph has instilled a sense of pride in L+I employees, and he has changed the view that city employees are corrupt into a message that city employees are not for sale,” said City of Philadelphia Inspector General Amy Kurland during the award ceremony. “He has done this by emphasizing every day that integrity is the most important part of L+I employees’ jobs,” she added.
As a life-long Philadelphian, Ralph was inspired by his father’s reverence for the highest ethical standards, something that he has carried with him throughout his life.
“My father told me that a truly good man is a man who is good when no one is watching,” said Ralph.
In 1998 he started out as a field inspector and became appointed Integrity Officer for L+I in 2012, Deputy Commissioner in 2014. Since then, Ralph continued his mission to root out fraud and misconduct by working closely with OIG and CIO on several investigations of significance.
Additionally, he is certified as a Master Code Official by the International Code Council. This is the highest level of certification in the building code field and only 700 individuals worldwide hold this designation.
Ralph credits his team’s support in the fight against corruption and misconduct for his win, especially L+I Commissioner David Perri, who Ralph said has always been a great example to the entire department of lifelong dedicated, ethical public service.
“Ralph goes above and beyond the call of duty and supports the OIG mission of upholding the public trust and rooting out fraud, corruption and misconduct,” said Commissioner Perri.
Today, Ralph hopes to set a great example for his kids, just as his father inspired him to always do the right thing.
“My family is the reason why I do what I do. They keep me grounded,” said Ralph after receiving the award. “I always believe that parents don’t teach, they show. It’s a subtle difference, but it’s an important one, and I’ve always taken that to heart.”
The Joan Markman Award for Integrity is named after the City’s first Chief Integrity Officer who passed away in 2015. It honors a City employee who demonstrates a strong commitment to integrity, diligence, and transparency on behalf of the City of Philadelphia.
