Services
Comprehensive Confidential Investigations
Speedy, comprehensive and highly confidential investigations are required into complaints against senior managers and board members who are alleged to be exhibiting destructive unhelpful behaviours and causing harm to individuals in a workplace.
Please Note: The basis for our investigations is based on decades of knowledge of the organisations, their interactions, their politics, and their modus operandi. We work with lawyers and have our own lawyers who review all reports. However, most typically when allegations such as destructive and incompetent management are made, the law is of little use.
Our Terms of Engagement for Speedy, comprehensive and highly confidential
1. The hiring party must be the Board Chair or a group of designated Board members or the Chief Executive Officer or senior manager designated by the Board. This individual becomes the Investigation Sponsor.
2. We require a copy of the actual written complaint as soon as possible.
3. We require a copy of the current annual business and/or operating plan, a chart showing the organisation structure, and the respective job descriptions and performance plans for the respondents (subjects of the complaint).
4. We need to be re-assured that the client organisation is taking reasonable steps to ensure the safety of and support for the complainant(s) and respondents - the person(s) against whom the complaint has been made.
5. We believe that it is preferable that the organisation’s Human Resources team, if one exists, is not party to the investigation. It is important for them to be seen as impartial and so be able to provide appropriate support to each party as necessary before, during and after the investigation. This simply will not happen if they are involved in the investigation.
6. We will gather relevant information regarding the complaint. This will include but will not necessarily be limited to the following activities and sources:
i. We will interview the complainant. If there is more than one complainant, we will interview up to five individuals, who self select as the primary spokespersons. Each individual will be interviewed separately. If there are more than twenty complainants we will discuss the most appropriate way forward.
ii. We will interview the alleged respondent(s) to the complaint. If there is more than one alleged respondent complainant, we will interview up to five individuals, who self select as the primary spokespersons. Each individual will be interviewed separately. If there are more than twenty respondents we will discuss the most appropriate way forward.
iii. The interviews of the complainant and the alleged respondent are to establish further the perceived substance for the complaint and to identify the relevant information surrounding the complaint including details of incidents. Following these interviews, we will determine the number of additional interviews needed and any additional information required.
Please note that as part of our standard investigation process, when a manager is the complainant or named as a respondent, we interview all direct reports and all peers.
iii. As indicated above, we may interview other parties involved directly or indirectly to understand the nature and history of relationships at work and outside of work. These interviews may include ‘witnesses’ named by the complainant(s) and /or the alleged respondents.
iv. We may review:
a. written records held by either party and/or related groups
b. organisational policies and procedures
c. strategic and business or operating plans
d. organisation charts, job descriptions and performance plans
e. the effects of the alleged offence on organisational and/or work performance, etc
f. whether Doctors or counsellors or other allied professionals were visited
7. We will provide the sponsor with a draft report detailing our findings and observations. Individual interview summaries will not be included. The specific individual content will be held as confidential by the interviewer and the interviewee unless the interviewee gives express permission for any information to be used under her or his name.
8. It is essential that this process is conducted in a procedurally fair manner. Both the complainant(s) and respondents(s) will need to be informed as to the outcomes of the investigation as soon as possible and be given the opportunity to respond to the report findings. They will meet separately with the Investigation Sponsor and the Consultants.
9. We are sure all organisations wish to create an atmosphere where all employees feel comfortable at work. Even if no individual is found particularly at fault, steps in the nature of future education and training may be beneficial. If we find it necessary and appropriate, we may provide some recommendations in this matter.
10. When we have completed our investigation, all documentation other than the final report is destroyed.
11. As with all our work, we recognise the sensitivity of our projects and maintain confidentiality of all information provided to us.