In our recently hosted webinar, “The Investigator’s Toolkit: Best Practices in Workplace Investigations,” we were joined by Noah Garber, a Shareholder at Littler and experienced labor attorney with 16 years of experience working in investigations. Hosted by Courtney Mochan, HR Acuity’s HRBP, the webinar covered practical tips for effectively conducting an investigation, including gathering evidence, making judgment calls, strategies for reporting and documentation and common mistakes to avoid.
Here are 3 key highlights from the webinar, but I recommend you check out the full webinar for more in-depth insight.
1. Upon notification of a complaint:
- Develop an investigative plan: Identify all personnel and chain of command. (How do they work together? Do they report to each other or someone else?) If applicable, research the history of the involved individuals. (Has there been a previous issue? Have they not gotten along in the past? Has there been a previous investigation?)
- Contact the complainant: Schedule a confidential interview ASAP. Tell them who you are, what you’re going to do and that you will be looking into the concerns they raised. If you don’t reach out quickly, they could assume nothing is being done, and during that time, they may go to a government agency or union representative. Touch base and move quickly to prevent issue escalation.
2. When conducting interviews:
- With the complainant: Move past the legalese buzzwords like harassment, hostile work environment and discrimination. Those words are all legal conclusions and don’t tell us what happened. Your goal is to find out the facts that make up the statement/complaint, not the label of it. Ask questions like, “What events led you to use the term discriminated against? What actually happened?”
- With witnesses: Use the funnel technique, which starts with easy questions on background, followed by open-ended questions, direct questions regarding the issue at hand and cross-exam style questions if necessary. Make sure you cover all the allegations with them and get their documentary evidence. And if they mention something in writing (such as an email or text message), get a copy of it. The actual document is the best evidence rather than a description of it.
- With the accused party: Conduct a confidential interview to obtain their documentary evidence and express neutrality throughout the investigative process. To build rapport with the interviewees, you can say something like, “I pass no judgment on what you’re going to say. I am just trying to get your response and/or a better understanding of the allegations at-hand. Don’t be concerned if I ask you follow-up questions – I am just trying to get a full picture of what happened – it’s not because I don’t believe you.”
Overall, you’ll want to ensure that interviews are thorough, neutral and efficient. People deserve finality, so make sure you don’t unnecessarily prolong the process and extend the timeline of the investigation. You may want (or need) to conduct follow-up interviews with the complainant and/or respondent, but follow-ups with witnesses should only take place if needed.
Also, when assessing credibility, keep in mind that demeanor is not a reliable way to determine truthfulness. Demeanor looks different for everyone – the person being interviewed may have cultural differences or just may be fearful of you or the situation, so avoid making judgments based on how they’re acting alone.
3. Reporting and documentation:
- Use plain English (know your audience, spell out acronyms)
- Address all allegations raised
- Make a record of your reasoning and steps taken
- Connect the best possible evidence
- Reach a factual finding for each issue
- Remain neutral and objective
- Keep all files easily accessible and organized in one place electronically
Once the investigation is done, your work is not. You will need to:
- Close out with the complainant and respondent
- Hand off for remedial action as appropriate (Keep in mind there are alternatives to discipline, such as training)
- Maintain file organization
There is so much more that goes into an investigation, these are just a few of the highlights discussed in the webinar. The full recording goes into more detail and covers more topics like credibility and evidence gathering. Watch the complete on-demand webinar here. If you’re looking for a solution that enables you to conduct air-tight investigations with best practices built in, schedule a demo with HR Acuity today.
