Internal Investigations
Confidentially investigate internal matters including bribery and corruption and internal fraud. Polonious’ detailed and ISO27001 compliant security ensures that you can thoroughly investigate sensitive internal matters while protecting the identity of anyone involved as long as required.
Full audit trails mean you can demonstrate your commitment to integrity and honesty in your dealings, while flexible workflows can deal with the complexity and open ended nature of internal cases. Detailed reporting allows you to identify trends and hotspots so you can proactively close security gaps.
Key Benefits
Deep and detailed security configuration ensuring internal investigations are highly confidential.
Adaptable workflows ensure rigor and audit transparency while handling complex, open ended investigations.
All documents, communications, video and digital evidence stored securely to evidentiary standards.
Application Highlights
You benefit from using Polonious in so many ways…
More than any other factor, the ability to configure a case management solution to reflect your business process gives you a competitive and organizational advantage.
Faster turnaround times. By allowing users to focus on their core responsibilities and not administration and reporting, they are freed up to work the case and complete it in a timely manner.
Ease of navigation, offering easy to use person, organisation and entity searching, case filtering and deep data and document search functionality users can easily find critical information or cases and take action.
Instant overview of case statuses. Via the dashboard, users immediately get a view of their cases with statuses and key dates identified.
Instant updates. Managers in the office can access the newly added data at the press of a button and share it with internal or external clients.
Reduced administrative effort. Typically Polonious reduces case administration from 10 to 25%.
Guided behaviour via configuration of available actions makes it easy for users to understand what they should do next. Users can easily add updates and enter text, change statuses, upload documents or media, check off completed actions, record relevant metrics like case time, travel time, expenses or mileage traveled, proof entries made by others, record complaints or use the log entry as a basis to create a report.
Available anywhere, anytime, online or offline. Users in the field can update case information directly with any device that can run a browser or the ios or android application then sync back to Polonious when they next have access to the Internet.
Automated case reports. In many cases the reports can be completely automated using data, documents and images added during the investigation process.
Less is more. Users only see the parts of the system relevant to their involvement and only cases that they need to see. Once logged in, the user’s view of the world is dependent on many factors including their role in relation to a case such as as a specialist, supplier/vendor, staff member, manager or auditor, the current status of the case and the business units or organisations they are attached to.
Automated updates keep interested parties aware of the progress of their cases via status updates, emails or text (SMS) messages.
Everything You Need To Conduct Thorough Internal Investigations
Whether your internal investigations are of a minor or severe nature, you need to have the tools and processes to conduct thorough inquiries that address the issue while simultaneously protecting the identities of those involved. Polonious is passionate about helping businesses carry out efficient, simplified internal investigations, so we have developed a short guide outlining what you will need to conduct a best practice internal investigations process.
When should you conduct internal investigations?
An internal investigation is warranted when credible information comes to light that an employee has committed wrongdoing, workplace misconduct, or had a lapse in ethical judgment. Some examples of grounds to conduct internal investigations include;
- Fraud
- Sexual harassment
- Absenteeism/chronic lateness
- Failure to meet performance standards
- Negligence
- Theft
- Endangering the health and safety of colleagues, employees, clients, or the general public
- Harassment or bullying (both online and in the workplace)
How to plan effective internal investigations
One of the first steps to a successful internal investigation is planning. There are many instances where poor planning on behalf of the organization led to the organization being held liable for employee misconduct. Hence, the investigation process and planning are essential. Here are a few tips on planning a thorough, comprehensive internal investigation.
- Ensure the right person is conducting the investigation. Your organization needs to put a fair and objective person in charge of internal investigations. This person may also have to employ different investigation techniques for various kinds of misconduct. The method used to investigate internal fraud in banks is very different from the methods used to investigate absenteeism, so you need to enlist someone who understands both.
- Have strict confidentiality measures in place. Every aspect of an internal investigation should be kept private and confidential. We maintain confidentiality to protect all involved identities, give investigators the best chance of success in their inquiries, prevent any attempts to undermine, cover-up, sabotage the investigation, and avoid retaliation against your organization.
- Create a checklist. Before you begin the investigation, create a comprehensive list outlining the steps needed to conduct a thorough inquiry. Follow it strictly to make sure you don’t overlook any necessary measures or obligations.
- Understand your organization’s role in the investigation. You need to make sure you have read up on your obligations and the legalities with which you need to comply. Understanding your organization’s role will help you avoid liability for any misconduct and allow the investigation to run far more smoothly.
Polonious System’s tips to conducting proactive internal investigations
Rather than waiting for potential issues to arise, your organization should be looking for opportunities to make proactive improvements and adjustments to prevent the need for future internal investigations.
- Act early. Whether you are conducting insurance investigations or internal bank fraud, you need to begin the process as soon as you are aware of the allegations. Begin reviewing CCTV footage, collecting statements from reporters (the person making the report), subjects (the person whom the report is made against), and witnesses, and compiling information pertinent to the case.
- Use the right tools for the job. It’s one thing to act and investigate situations as employees report them, but it is another entirely to see potential issues before they arise. Polonious offers you the tools to conduct audits and regular reporting, allowing you to identify trends and red flags early so you can proactively close your security gaps. It also demonstrates your business’s commitment to integrity and honesty to your employees and your stakeholders.
- Keep striving to improve. The moment you recognize areas and opportunities to improve policies, make sure you do so. The best proactive measure you can take is implementing more comprehensive policies to protect your employees and your organization from misconduct and internal fraud.
If you need to conduct internal investigations, Polonious Systems can help
Since 2005, Polonious Systems have provided scalable workflow management and risk assessment software to businesses of all shapes and sizes. We are committed to staying ahead of technological advancements and providing advice and support with IT capabilities across insurance investigation, banking, private investigations, and education. We are renowned for our wealth of experience, professional conduct, and willingness to support our clients comprehensively. If you are looking for software to assist with internal investigations, contact the Polonious Systems team and find out what we can do for you.
