Why do investigations (still) matter? 🤔
Many of us that came into compliance through the internal investigations route. Conducting corporate investigations is a great way to learn about how companies work, how to implement strong preventive controls, and to understand how ethical culture and human psychology plays a role in corporate misconduct.
And of course, the regulators agree. The USSG and DOJ guidance still place a heavy emphasis on building and maintaining an accessible reporting channel and investigative process. But more practically speaking, the way your company handles investigations can have major impacts on your corporate culture and values.
Why?
Because EVERYBODY wants to know about investigations! 🔎
What other business process captivates employees, executives, and third parties like an interesting corporate investigation? Reporters who take the time to submit a report in your hotline system want to know their concerns are being taken seriously. Executives and Board members are intrigued by stories of what is really going on at the organization and how the company is responding.
Humans are curious. I loved the points Jim Brennan made in a recently published article:
https://ideasandanswers.com/top-4-secrets-of-a-successful-ethics-and-compliance-program/
“Hearing details of investigations allows [the Board] to better understand not only ‘what is really happening’ but also provides insights into how we as a company are dealing with the inevitable issues that arise.”
Make the time for investigations. Experienced investigators know how to conduct an efficient and defensible investigation without boiling the ocean. Train your investigators and set expectations for investigative procedures in your policies and procedures.
And one last thought to ponder – advancements in technology and AI may help us better detect risk and create more efficient investigative processes, but we still need human judgement and intervention. The robots can’t replace us (yet)! 🤓>🤖
