Human Resource Personnel are typically tasked with conducting generally impromptu or slightly more protracted universal queries consisting of a tipster report or a records abnormality triggering formal to informal interviews, but history tells us that having employees investigate co-workers, superiors or subordinates is problematic and downright tricky.
In one case an HR employee got the task to “dig into” the activities of another employee in a different department and failed to fully disclose the secret romantic affiliation with the person to be “looked into.” This “conflict of interests” led to this firm’s involvement upon which the so-called conflict developed into facts that investigators followed to discover a more insidious profit motive for the internal investigation to “drag on” as one confidential case contact described the situation.
In a separate case, one employee “asking around” about another employee was quickly accused of sexual harassment by the person under informal investigation.
The above real case examples goes to why a disinterested third party evidence-following organization of trained and experienced private investigation firm employees, with “no dog in the fight” may be the best “ounce of prevention versus a pound of cure” solution when the investigated may become litigious, threatening, and even too well insulated to fully establish internal work policy violations or possible outright criminal violations of applicable laws.
One plan is to have this Firm’s investigators come in for scheduled interviews after the firm has determined who to investigate, what is being investigated, what to look for in terms of potential evidence, and then who to interview.
Detailed written reports are controversial depending on who one talks to.
While some opt not to generate written reports that may be subject to later civil discovery, this Firm’s position is that written detailed reports are absolutely crucial to avoid investigators being “sworn in” and trying to testify from memory weeks, months and even years after an investigation has concluded.
Investigators from this Firm are also seasoned bail bondmen and bounty hunters who could be financially ruined, maimed, and even murdered if they are unable to interrogate people while seemingly not interrogating people, which is the essence of bail bond underwriting and developing informants in pursuit of wanted felony bail fugitives. Stated differently, this Firm’s interview investigators are the best in the business at getting to the truth with a smile and kind word where others may turn to unnecessary aggression out of frustration or inexperience.
A second option is to have this Firm’s top tier undercover operatives come in as new hires and work side-by-side in the general area or areas of those to be studied for company policy violations, creating hostile work environments, stealing, sleeping on the job, having friends punch in for them, running secret side businesses selling inventory or securing vendor contracts, and the list can really go on from here.
Internal employee investigations are indeed very, very tricky, but this Firm’s investigators know the tricks and pitfalls and therefore know how to anticipate and avoid problems before they happen.
Copyright 2004 RV Detective Agency
WORKPLACE INVESTIGATIONS
It is hypercritical to engage a California workplace environment with specially trained and seasoned undercover operatives who can gather information and generate documentation not only legally but who can also be unimpeachable during a deposition or on a witness stand should an investigation uncover employee theft, fraud, embezzlement, sexual harassment, corporate espionage, and even good old fashioned sleeping on the job.
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