8/10/2015

THE INVESTIGATIVE INTERVIEW METHOD (I2M)

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA AUGUST 4, 2015

YOUR SPEAKER

Gene Ferraro, CPP, CFE, PCI, SPHR, is currently the

Chief Ethics Officer of Convercent, Inc. and the
Chief Executive of ForensicPathways, Inc. He has
been involved in the study of organizational culture,
governance and compliance for more than 30 years.
He is the author of 15 books and frequently speaks
and trains on the topics of complex corporate
investigations, culture management and unethical
behavior in the workplace.
Gene is a graduate of the Naval Justice School and
a former Marine Corps Naval Aviator. He is board
certified in both Security Management and Human
Resources Management. He has been a member of
ASIS International since 1987.

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OUR AGENDA
Q&A

investigative interviewing

trends

legal aspects

overcoming denials

KNOWLEDGE CHECK

The purpose of interviewing suspected

wrong-doers is to?
a. obtain an admission
b.obtain the other side of the story
c. learn who else was involved

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KNOWLEDGE CHECK

Which burden of proof must be achieved in

order to justify the discipline of an employee
working in the private sector?
a. beyond a reasonable doubt
b.preponderance of the evidence
c. good faith investigation, reasonable
conclusion

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KNOWLEDGE CHECK

Investigative notes are considered?

a. admissible even when unreadable
b.admissible only if signed by the note-taker
c. rarely admissible and as such, they are not
necessary to retain

KNOWLEDGE CHECK

During an interview, threatening a suspect

with criminal prosecution is?
a. often appropriate but should be used only
in special circumstances
b.unlawful
c. should not be used unless approved by
management and criminal prosecution is
actually possible

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KNOWLEDGE CHECK

By what means is most fraud detected?

a. mistake
b.external audit
c. tip

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SIGNIFICANT TRENDS

greater use of technology

demand for better quality and larger
quantities of evidence
testimony corroborated with physical
evidence
higher burden of proof

COMMON MISTAKES

failure to identify objectives

allowing bias to influence our approach and outcomes
inadequate documentation

Intake

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SEVEN PHASES OF INVESTIGATION

assessment
preparation and planning
information gathering

verification and analysis

decision making
disbursement of disciplinary or corrective action (when
appropriate)
prevention and education

PREPARATION

arrange seating so that subject sits closest to the door

place witness so as to be out of view of the subject
remove knickknacks and other distractions
remove any unnecessary chairs or items on which to sit
close blinds, shades and other window coverings

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STATE YOUR PURPOSE

As you know, this organization has had a long standing policy

addressing employee dishonest in the workplace. Sometime
ago, it came to the attention of management here at this store that
that policy had been possibly violated. First, human resources
received anonymous reports that something was going on. Then,
several employees came forward and made complaints. One of
those employees went so far as to submit their complaint in writing.
As such, management decided to undertake a formal investigation.
Today I am going to share with you some of the things we learned
during that investigation.

STATE YOUR PURPOSE

As you know, this organization has had a long standing policy

addressing harassment and improper behavior in the
workplace. Sometime ago, it came to the attention of management
here at this store that that policy had been possibly violated. First,
human resources received anonymous reports that something was
going on. Then, several employees came forward and made
complaints. One of those employees went so far as to submit their
complaint in writing. As such, management decided to undertake a
formal investigation. Today I am going to share with you some of
the things we learned during that investigation.

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THE TWO COMMITMENTS

honest and truthful with me

honest and truthful with the organization

Intake

DESCRIBING THE INVESTIGATION

Let me begin by sharing with you a little bit about how an investigation of this type is conducted.
Effectively, we have only six methods of investigation available to us. The first method is something we
call physical surveillance. Physical surveillance is nothing more than watching people, places, and things.
In this particular case, early on we discovered...(a few hints are dropped and the other methods explained
with more hints).

Using one or more of these methods, we learned of your involvement. Today, what we hope to accomplish
is find out why and how you became involved. Because we already know (add qualifier if necessary) what
took place, what I hope to learn and share with management is why you ______________.

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REVEALING PROOF (IF NECESSARY)

SEEK THE ADMISSION

When did you first realize (become aware) of

When was the first time you had an opportunity to
When was the first time you
When was the last time you
How many times did you...

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DEVELOPING THE ADMISSION

Taking office supplies is something everybody does. When was the last
time you took some _______home?

It is not uncommon for employees to borrow things from work. One of the
more common things weve learned that employees borrow around here is
________. What was the smallest thing you ever borrowed from work?

Would I be truthful if I told management that the smallest thing you have
ever taken without permission was a _______?

BODY LANGUAGE

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BODY LANGUAGE

BODY LANGUAGE

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BODY LANGUAGE

BODY LANGUAGE

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BODY LANGUAGE

OVERCOMING DENIALS

reject denial
return to the two commitments
overcome fear
provide opportunity to be honest
make an appeal

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OVERCOMING DENIALS DO NOT

reject denial
return to the two commitments
overcome fear
provide opportunity to be honest
make an appeal

lie or deceive
exaggerate your proof
embellish
misrepresent your authority
show anger or frustration

WRITTEN STATEMENT

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NEW ASIS-ANSI INVESTIGATIONS STANDARD

standards are tools

serve as collection of best practices
voluntary and market driven
developed in committees, balanced and open
formulated by consensus

Intake

PROCESS DRIVEN DEVELOPMENT

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QUESTIONS

WHO WE ARE

Convercent brings culture and compliance together

in the first integrated cloud application so that
companies can promote the good and manage the
bad in an intelligent and productive way. Hundreds
of companies rely on Convercent to systematically
align corporate values with individual behavior to
create thriving, productive and compliant cultures of
engaged, high-performing employees.

Learn more at convercent.com

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