In order for a workplace investigation to be credible, investigators must deploy certain tactics to verify the accuracy of interview responses. In a previous post, Investigation Interview Questions to Determine Credibility, we reviewed the EEOC’s 5 factors to consider when determining statement credibility during investigation interviews. One of the toughest challenges to overcome during investigation interviews is the fact that witnesses may withhold or modify their responses to protect the subject- or the complainant and possibly even themselves. As investigators are often pressed for time when conducting internal investigations, they cannot afford to get hung up on determining who is correct in the “my story vs. their story” battle. We have compiled a list of simple tips and techniques investigators can use to determine investigation interview credibility.

Please note: It’s unlikely that the occurrence of a single deception indicator means that the interviewee is lying. Therefore, investigators should carefully observe for multiple deception indicators during interviews when determining statement credibility.

1. Consistent Statements

When asking questions related to the timeline of events involved in an incident, watch for inconsistencies or vague responses. This can be done by asking the interviewee to repeat or recall the order of events at different times throughout the investigation. Ask interviewees to go into greater detail about the incident-related events.  In the “Black Book of Lie Detection,” author Martin Soorjoo states that “when digging deeper, do so in an ‘interested’ manner rather than accusatory. Lying about detail requires a lot of thought and concentration.”

2. Body Language

Controlling physical actions is extremely difficult- hence the phrase “actions speak louder than words”. Pay attention to the physical tendencies displayed throughout the interview. Observe facial expressions and listen to the variations of pitch and tone in their voice. Body language that signifies lying varies across different cultures. Some of the common physical gestures exhibited by someone who is lying include: nail biting, touching their face- usually rubbing nose or covering mouth, avoiding eye contact, stroking the back of their neck, sweating, turning red in the face and fidgeting. In the “Black Book of Lie Detection,” author Martin Soorjoo states that “if an investigator believes the interviewee to be lying, don’t let on about it. Innocent people may become defensive if accused of lying and will demonstrate signs of stress through nonverbal and vocal cues- which can be mistaken as lying.”

3. Consider Your Own Bias

Investigators must remain neutral and refrain from making prior judgments in any investigation. Biases not only shape the attitude an investigator has towards the individual being interviewed, but can also influence the types of questions asked during investigation interviews. In the Business Management Daily article “Assessing Witness Credibility in Workplace Investigations,” they recommend bringing an additional investigator into the interview so that there’s an extra person to compare impressions and notes with. If personal bias is too difficult to overcome, consider asking an investigation manager to reassign the case to someone else to avoid sacrificing the accuracy of the investigation.

4. In the Eyes

Martin Soorjoo, author of the “Black Book of Lie Detection,” provides great insight into how an interviewee’s eyes can give them away. According to Soorjoo, an increased blink rate is often consistent with telling lies. Looking away and avoiding eye contact is tricky, as it may not always signal a lie is being told. When people lie, their pupils tend to dilate, which can be a useful indicator, as the body has no control over pupil dilation.

The free guide below includes an interesting “eye” test that can be used to decipher whether or not a lie is being told.

5. Incorporate Background Questions Into Interviews

At the beginning of an investigation interview, it’s beneficial to ask general background questions as a way to ease the interviewee into the environment. It’s likely that the person being interviewed will expect the questions to be based solely on the incident, therefore, background questions can be used to gauge the ‘normal’ responses and physical tendencies of the respondent. When investigators begin asking difficult, case-related questions it’ll be easier to accurately measure and monitor behavioral changes that indicate lying.

Investigators must be cautious during investigation interviews. People often mistake physical manifestations of stress as being indicators of lies being told. This sometimes happens to innocent people standing trial in a criminal case for a crime they didn’t commit. The irony is, the guilty defendant will have had plenty of time- sometimes years, to rehearse their lie. The innocent person will not have rehearsed because they are telling the truth and are scared because they have a lot to lose. Take this advice into consideration throughout ALL investigation interviews.

i-Sight Investigation Software Overview

i-Sight Investigation Software is a customizable, centralized case management solution developed to help investigators, HR personnel and other members of a company’s investigative unit effectively manage case files. The above video provides a verbal and visual overview of how i-Sight Software works and the benefits it has to offer. Here are some of the topics discussed in the short video:

• Centralized, Web-based Case Management- As investigators are sometimes located around the world, collaboration and case access become issues that increase the time spent on an investigation. i-Sight centrally stores cases so that they can be accessed from anywhere, as they are stored and accessible through a web-browser. This allows investigators to work on cases from any location, at any time, therefore reducing the amount of time spent on investigations.
• Case Access- In i-Sight, case access can be restricted down to the field level. For security reasons, there may be sensitive case information that cannot be shared even within the investigative team. Therefore, investigators may only be granted permission to see cases and tasks assigned to them. Access can be determined by a number of factors- location, allegation type, department and other factors unique to any company’s business processes.
• Investigation Managers- When using i-Sight, investigation managers can control who views which case files. New cases are held in queue, where managers can assign cases to the appropriate investigator. Managers can review the work completed by investigators, and can issue reminders for tasks that are overdue. Reports to measure performance and identify trends can be quickly created through the use of dashboard reporting.
• Alerts- Reminders, notes, expense tracking, attaching exhibits and evidence management can all be done effectively within i-Sight. In order to complete investigations on time, automatic alerts are sent as new cases are entered, to insure the case receives attention immediately. Throughout the investigation process, alerts are sent if a task is overdue, in order to bring attention back to the case. As time is a critical factor in the success of an investigation, alerts make it easier to ensure no case is forgotten.
• Reporting- With many home-grown case management solutions, reports must be manually assembled, which is extremely time consuming in ineffective. With i-Sight, reports are created in minutes, as case information is extracted from the case file and compiled into a customized report template. This feature significantly reduces reporting time, improves report consistency and allows for remedial action to be taken sooner.
• Hosting, Support and System Updates- i-Sight is a hosted solution, which means there is no need to install and manage server hardware or an in-house system. Our staff builds, implements and updates systems as required, therefore, no IT resources are required on our client’s behalf. If a system requires an update- for example, workplace policies are amended or investigators enter or leave the workplace- i-Sight can be updated to reflect these developments.

Demo Request:

SEC is Hiring More Experts to Assess Complex Financial Systems- The Washington Post

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is expanding their hiring to those with specialized quantitative skills and who have previously worked on Wall Street. The goal of these efforts is to better understand the tricks used by fraudsters in order to identify fraudulent acts earlier on. As markets grow in complexity, the knowledge and abilities that these other employees bring to the SEC can help them make sense of messy data. The article discusses the SEC hiring of a nuclear physicist who excels at drawing conclusions from “chaotic information” and how his abilities have been applied in the financial sector.

Workplace investigations require a significant commitment of both time and money. As the costs of lawsuit settlements and fines approach record breaking levels, organizations are finally beginning to understand the importance of conducting high quality workplace investigations. Response times, evidence management, investigation interviews and reporting are critical factors of an investigation that must be properly managed. Spreadsheets and other “home grown” solutions for managing case loads can be ineffective, as they are often time consuming to develop and maintain, expensive and inflexible. ”Home grown” solutions also make it difficult to integrate multiple business systems into a unified program.

Improved Investigations

i-Sight Investigation Software helps businesses and investigation teams overcome these barriers, standardizing the investigation and reporting processes. Standardizing these processes saves companies both time and money. As organizations face an increasing number of cases to investigate, i-Sight makes it possible to manage larger case loads while reducing the need to hire additional investigators. Here are 4 common issues investigation teams and HR departments can overcome when using i-Sight Investigation Software:

1. Time

As mentioned above, spreadsheets and Access databases can become troublesome and time consuming when used for managing investigations. In the case of one of our clients, the existing Access database they implemented was slow and difficult to use. Reports became time consuming to put together, increasing the time it took to rectify allegations. i-Sight uses a drag and drop reporting tool, generating reports from information recorded in the case file throughout the investigation. A customized report template is created to meet the various needs of different organizations. Case information is pulled to fill in the fields in the template, and with the click of a button, the investigation report is ready to export.

Stricter federal guidelines place pressure on corporations to complete investigations within a specific time frame. i-Sight helps companies comply with these deadlines by:

• Reducing the time spent creating reports.
• Reducing redundant information entry within the case file- For example, i-Sight can be integrated with existing HR databases to pull employee or client information from the database into the case file. This saves investigators time as they no longer have to enter existing information into the case multiple times.
• Using automatic alerts- Alerts are sent to investigation managers as new cases are entered. Cases are assigned immediately, reducing the time it takes an investigation to begin. Alerts can also be used to bring attention back to abandoned cases if they remain unattended to for a certain period of time. Alerts help investigators stay on track and follow the investigation timeline.

2. Maintenance

Federal, state and industry legislation are constantly being amended and developed. When there are changes in organizational structure, employees and company policies and procedures, it becomes difficult for “home grown” solutions to reflect these changes. Eventually, these solutions become outdated, as it requires too much effort to remain on top of maintaining the system. Another concern regarding system maintenance is the loss of system creator(s). What happens when their knowledge leaves the workplace? i-Sight is flexible and can be easily configured to reflect changes within an organization. i-Sight is easy to use and is maintained by our own team, alleviating the pressure of maintaining the system in-house. i-Sight is a flexible solution that can accommodate a wide variety of business processes and requirements.

3. Development Costs

i-Sight is web based investigation software.  Many of the companies we speak to are deciding between building a system themselves, buying on-premise software or using a hosted investigation software solution like i-Sight. We’ve been hosting software to manage customer complaints and investigations for more than 11 years.  More companies are now realizing that the total cost of ownership related to on-premise software includes much more than implementation and licensing fees. Companies using software as a service (SaaS) solutions have the ability to reduce hardware and data centre costs, IT support/ staffing, eliminate upgrade and maintenance fees and over the long-term their total cost of ownership is actually lower than on-premise software solutions.

When building a “home grown” solution, it can be difficult to secure time from the IT department. Ensuring the development of an investigation management solution is a priority of the IT department is hard to do. At i-Sight, we focus solely on building case management software. The ability to deploy a system in weeks/months instead years better corresponds to the needs of potential clients.

i-Sight Investigation Software is easy to use, requiring minimal training. This saves companies from investing in costly training programs and also opens up the opportunity for a greater number of investigators to use the system, as it can be used by those with very minimal technical knowledge.

4. Access

Traveling investigators find it hard to log into a secure, centralized system from remote locations. With i-Sight being a web-based solution, investigators can securely access cases from anywhere, as long as an Internet connection exists. This enables staff across a number of locations to access case files, removing barriers to investigation completion.

When preparing for the investigation process, it’s important that managers and all the investigation team members focus on ensuring the integrity of the investigation in order to reduce the overall corporate risk and potential exposure. The steps you take to prepare for the internal investigation process can have a big impact on the overall success of the investigation.

We want to help you get off on the right foot during the internal investigation preparation process, so we’ve included some useful links at the bottom of our post and we’ve provided a few ideas in this post to help you out.

Set Goals:

When preparing for an internal investigation, all goals are to be accomplished with integrity, fairness, impartiality and respect. Goals should assist you to set a timeline for the completion of the investigation. Goals should include the following:

• Gather the facts
• Determine the merits of the complaint or allegation
• Comply with legal obligations
• Maintain confidentiality to the greatest extent possible
• Preserve the reputations of individuals and company
• Take proper remedial action
• Avoid liability
• Prevent future claims

Select an Investigator:

As we mentioned in our post yesterday, 8 Internal Investigation Tips, selecting an appropriate investigator for each case is crucial first step. In that post we also explained how i-Sight simplifies the assignment process and makes it less time consuming. i-Sight allows you to create automated assignment rules to ensure that every case is promptly assigned and that no cases fall through the cracks.

The same person isn’t going to be right for every internal investigation. Many of our clients use multiple investigators in highly complex cases or in cases where timing is a critical factor. It’s especially important to pay attention to the positions and authority of the complainant and subject, as well as any cause for bias an investigator might evoke among witnesses.  This can have a significant impact on the investigation.

Seeking out appropriate investigators is not always an easy task. Here are some key characteristics successful investigators must demonstrate:

• Active listener
• Ability to process and rapidly respond to new information
• Strong critical thinking skills
• Solid knowledge of company policies and practices
• Technical qualifications will depend on the type or complaint at issue, for example, an accounting background might be necessary for charges of financial mismanagement.

Information Review:

It’s important to determine which legal issues the complaint deals with, as well as collecting statements and evidence regarding the complaint. The employer must preserve all electronic data- everyone participating in the investigation should be instructed to preserve (never delete) any electronic communications and the IT department should preserve all archived and taped materials.

i-Sight employs have a series of back-up procedures to ensure that case information is never lost – even in the case of disaster.  i-Sight has daily, weekly, monthly and quarterly back-up routines that ensure case information is held in three secure locations.  i-Sight uses an off-site disaster recovery location to ensure that our clients are covered in the case of disaster.  You can find more on this in our post last week “ROI SaaS vs. On-Premise” and the i-Sight Security Overview.

Relevant physical evidence usually includes:

• Written complaint
• Witness statements
• Personnel file
• Written policies
• Computer records

i-Sight makes this process much simpler than it sounds. By providing a centralized area for all evidence to be attached to a case as you and your team work on it, evidence stays in one spot and is readily available to all investigators on the case.

Identify Witnesses:

You must review the personnel history of any possible witnesses in order to determine relationships and potential biases to ensure that you select appropriate witnesses to interview. Witnesses help bring more credibility to the case and can provide you with valuable information that may not be divulged by the complainant or the subject.

Once the potential witness profiles have been reviewed, the investigator is now prepared to identify key witnesses to interview. The investigator should generally interview the complainant first, the subject next, key witnesses and then other possibly related witnesses.

Once the order has been established, the investigator should prepare a chronology of events and an outline for each witness. Outline topics may include:

• Review of applicable company policies, including how they are communicated to employees, whether followed, etc.
• Summary of the complaint, including how the employer received notice, as well as a chronology of important events
• The names and identities of all relevant witnesses with notes on relevant background and relationships to complainant and accused
• Relevant employment information of the complainant, the accused and the key witnesses
• Specific information for each identified incident (who, what, when, where, why)
• Identity of other possible witnesses, new leads and new documents
• A conflict check procedure to resolve conflicting witness accounts without identifying the witness.

Other Resources:

47 Quick Tips for Better Investigation Interviews

Employers Guide to Conducting Internal Investigations