Investigations In The Workplace

Whether you are a professional licensed investigator or have been tasked by your employer to conduct an internal investigation, Investigations in the Workplace gives you a powerful mechanism for engineering the most successful workplace investigations possible. Corporate investigator Eugene Ferraro, CPP, CFE has drawn upon his twenty-four years of practical experience to craft a book that dispels the myths and troublesome theories promulgated by the uninitiated. He provides the back-story behind the methodology, rationale, and gritty practices that have made his workplace investigations soar. But most importantly, he shares this knowledge with you. The book is designed for easy reading and use. Although every page is filled with useful information, you do not need to read the book cover to cover. The exhaustive table of contents, innumerable references, and expansive index allow you to quickly find the immediate information you need. The Applied Strategies chapter shows you how to conduct a particular type of investigation and the action steps involved. To help capture salient points and simplify the learning process, the text is sprinkled with brief Tips and Traps that provide quick and easy lessons on how to make the best use of the information in a particular section. Few workplace activities invoke so much risk and at the same time, so much opportunity, as workplace investigations. A combination of skill, experience, and luck: successful workplace investigations are complex undertakings. An improperly conducted workplace investigation can be expensive and ruin the careers of everyone who touches it. Exploring modern investigative technique and strategies, this book gives you new solutions you need and provides the keys to master even the most complex workplace investigation.

"Your definitive guide to workplace investigations, showing you how to conduct a sound, procedurally fair and defensible workplace investigation. Written by Worklogic co-founders, Grevis Beard and Rose Bryant-Smith, and Associate Director, Lisa Klug, who have collectively conducted more than 300 investigations, this title is essential reading for anyone with responsibility for investigating workplace conflicts or complaints. With the second edition, you will learn how to: Judge when an investigation is required, scope and plan an investigation appropriately, collect and analyse evidence, make findings of fact in a procedurally fair way, assess any wrongdoing against your organisation's policies and procedures, in cases of bullying, harassment, discrimination, fraud and other breaches of policy, and determine whether your organisation should take any further steps to improve working relationships and to manage risks. The 2018 edition is fully updated and contains new material on digital evidence and fraud."--Wolters Kluwer CCH Website.

Written primarily for the Canadian workplace, this book is a plain language practical guide to assist practitioners in conducting effective investigations into harassment, sexual harassment, bullying and workplace violence. The book contains practical examples and tips for internal and external investigators in preparing for and conducting investigations. Guidance is included on identifying allegations, identifying witnesses, conducting interviews and gathering evidence. There are also outlines to assist in report writing and delivery by investigators. The book also contains guidance on the complaint and investigation process followed by selecting an appropriate investigator. There is an entire section on lessons learned from the latest case law in this growing phenomenon.

"Details experience-tested techniques for conducting investigations of workplace harassment based on such factors as sex, race, religion, national origin, age, and disability. The authors detail every step of an investigation - planning, documenting, interviewing, weighing evidence, making a decision, and taking remedial action"--P. [4] of cover.

Whether you are a professional licensed investigator or have been tasked by your employer to conduct an internal investigation, Investigations in the Workplace gives you a powerful mechanism for engineering the most successful workplace investigations possible. Corporate investigator Eugene Ferraro, CPP, CFE has drawn upon his twenty-four years of

The trust of a company by its customers is one of the most important ingredients in a company's success. Central to that trust is the company's ability to effectively police itself. Another foundation of success is conducting internal investigations and imposing discipline in a manner that employees find trustworthy and consistent with its values. But what happens when someone reports an incident of actual or potential employee misconduct? Does the company respond to the report to investigate it, remedy it or learn from it? Is the responsibility to investigate the report delegated ad hoc to a human resources manager or in-house attorney to resolve in addition to their regular duties? A robust investigations process is not about good corporate citizenship. Investigations furnish knowledge. The process of knowledge management determines what we know about our company's risks and influences how that information can be applied. This information lets a company manage risk effectively. The products of the investigative process should be a practical and personal piece of advice to executive management. The investigation goal must be to prevent future damage to the company by using investigation findings as a form of organizational intelligence -- rather than rebuilding it after the damage is done. The economics of capitalism and private enterprise favor risk taking. But the only way to accept a risk is if that decision is an informed one. A company must maximize its business success while eliminating or reducing unacceptable legal and financial risks. Identifying and addressing those risks through investigations places the process squarely within the business' fundamental purpose. So why doesn't every company adopt this approach? It may be that they think the company does not have the time, personnel and resources to conduct investigations in an organized manner. Executive management may think that the value of the investigation is limited to substantiating the misconduct of a single employee, and that the business leaders are already certain of his guilt. It may also be to "let sleeping dogs lie," and ignore problems that are known to exist but which are seen as too disruptive and costly to fix. It may be a lack of imagination to see the value. It may be that they are intoxicated by their own high-minded ethics message to consider anything else. True, many companies have historically staffed corporate-security departments or hired lawyers to look into allegations of wrongdoing, but these are not business processes with a focus on corporate counseling. There is a world of difference when you use the investigation process as a way to improve business processes and as a risk-management tool than if you think small and use it only as a way to prove that a discrete act of misconduct occurred. A business case with its own value proposition can be made for a workplace investigations unit. A properly prepared and executed investigation gives the business an advantage. Risks are identified and addressed. Dishonest employees are caught. Restitution can be attempted. But to do this, you need to know how to embed the workplace investigations unit in your company's culture and this applies even to those professionals in human resources and legal departments who freelance investigations as a business process. The ultimate value of a workplace investigations unit depends on its seamless integration in the business. The smoother the practice blends into the business routine, the easier it is to sustain. This book examines management techniques and processes to create a workplace investigations unit. It is intended as a guide for building and running a successful and valuable corporate resource. Attention is also directed to establishing investigative protocols and practices that will survive the scrutiny of business leaders