If you suspect there may be a conflict of interest concerning one of your employees, THSS can undertake discreet and focused investigations to establish the veracity of such claims. Allegations and rumours of this type can be draining in terms of both resources and internal morale. To alleviate these concerns, it is imperative to appoint an independent agency to review and investigate claims or allegations of conflicts of interest.
The structure of these investigations varies from measures such as scanning databases, interviewing personnel, reviewing company records and undertaking surveillance; through to the forensic examination of computers, email servers and mobile phones. The information is gathered, analysed and correlated before being presented in a comprehensive and unbiased report which aims to help with your commercial decision regarding internal action, as well as supporting the evaluation of damage or losses sustained by the business.
Do you have reason to suspect one of your employees or managers of dishonest or improper behaviour? The term, ‘employee misconduct’ can be applied to several scenarios, and whether the activity is criminal or non-criminal, it will often contravene the internal policies or codes of conduct of your organisation. Many of us worry about improper behaviour affecting productivity during working hours, however recognising misconduct outside of hours at social events and training can also be your responsibility.
Employee Misconduct may come to your attention during an audit or via management oversight, however it can also be brought to light through customer or client complaints, which may be a great deal more damaging to your reputation.
Dealing with Employee and Workplace Misconduct in a prompt, impartial and confidential manner not only ensures that both the complainant and the alleged perpetrator fully understand the process, but also demonstrates that your organisation does not tolerate such behaviour. The higher the alleged perpetrator is in seniority, the more important it is to be transparent and follow procedures, as the incident is likely to become common knowledge amongst employees.
Few organisations have an Employee Misconduct response system in place on how to handle such issues; and as a result, their investigations can be haphazard and counter-productive. Moreover, failure to have an Employee Misconduct system in place means there is lack of communication with employees as to their responsibilities to the company plus the consequences of failing to comply with the rules of the organisation. By appointing an external agency, you can ensure that your response system is easy to communicate as it is structured in a relevant, transparent and fair manner.
Most organisations will occasionally experience incidents that require investigating the actions of employees or contractors, such as breach of company policies, negligence of duty, misuse of computer systems, misconduct, bullying, harassment, safety breaches or other issues.
These issues can occur at all levels of staff, management and external contractors. Although such incidents are quite common, many organisations don’t realise that a person’s actions can be reconstructed in detail using digital artefacts from a wide range of data sources.
A forensic approach is important to ensure evidence is properly secured and thoroughly analysed, leading to a conclusive investigation. Findings also need to be described in clear and simple terms, to precisely convey what level of proof the evidence provides.
Contact Us
To discuss Conflicts of Interest on a confidential basis, call us on (03) 5518 2906 or send an email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
