the four values of workplace investigations
Most of the time I’m pretty good at navigating grey, complex situations, but whenever I find myself struggling, I look to my personal values to guide me:
Truth: Tell the truth. Even when it’s hard. Even when it’s uncomfortable.
Trust: Be someone that people can trust and respect. Trust is the foundation of all relationships.
Kindness: Choose kindness, compassion and empathy, first.
These personal values help to guide me in my workplace investigation practice too. As a workplace investigator, my role is to uncover the truth of “what happened”. The importance of building trust in a workplace investigation can’t be underestimated. To get the parties to trust and respect me, I have to demonstrate competence and confidence, act fairly and neutrally, and share information transparently, to the extent possible. And lastly, in order to build trust and relationships during a workplace investigation, it’s important that I treat people as people (not just as a process) and that means leading with kindness, compassion and empathy.
As a workplace investigator, I know that the integrity of the workplace investigation process itself is often as important as the findings of the investigation. While I can’t always anticipate the twists and turns of an investigation (because they are rarely linear), I do use the following four professional values to guide me through planning and conducting every workplace investigation that I undertake:
1. Fairness
One of my most significant responsibilities as a workplace investigator is to be the gatekeeper of fairness for the complainant (the person filing the complaint) and the respondent (the person accused of misconduct). This means ensuring and balancing fairness for both parties throughout the investigation process, while taking the unique circumstances of each investigation into consideration. So, what does fairness look like in practice? To me, it means:
giving both parties sufficient advance notice of investigation interviews
providing the respondent with the relevant information (i.e. who filed the complaint, a summary of the allegations against them, etc.) in advance of the investigation interview so they can be adequately prepared for the meeting
giving both parties the opportunity to share their versions of the events, to fully respond to any allegations or counter-allegations (even if that means meeting with them more than once)
interviewing witnesses identified by both the complainant and the respondent who may be able to corroborate their versions of events
disclosing any evidence against them and allowing them the opportunity to respond wholly
offering support resources (such as an Employee Assistance Program) to both parties.
ensuring that I am seen by both parties as objective, neutral and unbiased, to the extent possible.
2. Thoroughness
As a workplace investigator, my primary objective is to determine “what happened”. In order to do this - determine findings and come to a supported conclusion - I must investigate the complaint or allegations fully and thoroughly. Thorough means:
ensuring that the investigation process is broad enough that I’m able to develop a clear understanding of what happened (or what likely happened) but narrow enough so that I’m not interviewing not every single employee in the organization
gathering and reviewing all relevant policies, information and documents prior to the investigation and throughout the investigation process
taking meticulous notes during the interviews conducted with the parties [complainant(s), respondent(s) and witness(es)]
thoughtfully and diligently examining and evaluating any evidence gathered through the investigation process
3. Timeliness
As much as possible, I try to conduct workplace investigations in a timely manner because:
significant delays in the investigation can affect the parties’ - complainant(s), respondent(s) and witness(es) - ability and capacity to recall details about specific events that may be critical to the investigation
workplace investigations are stressful and emotionally taxing for all the parties, so the sooner I can close off an investigation and come to a clear conclusion, the better it is for everyone involved
a swift response by the organization demonstrates how committed managers and leaders are to creating a healthy and safe work environment for employees
While a timely investigation is always the goal, there are many factors that can affect the timeliness of the investigation including: the availability of the parties [complainant(s), respondent(s) and witness(es)], the complexity of the investigation, the number of allegations and/or the number of witnesses that need to be interviewed.
4. Confidentiality
During the investigation process and where possible, I make every effort to preserve the confidentiality of the parties and the process. If confidentiality is not protected, the integrity of the investigation process can be compromised, the reputations of the parties can be ruined and the work environment can become increasingly toxic. When I conduct investigations, I ensure that I clearly outline expectations of confidentiality in writing to all participants in the process. Such expectations may include not discussing the fact that the investigation is taking place, that they are participating in the investigation, the specific allegations, the questions they’re asked, their answers and/or any evidence that they provide. As well, I ensure that I clearly articulate the consequences for not adhering to the confidentiality expectations, both during the investigation and after the investigation has concluded.
These four professional values work together and need to be balanced for a workplace investigation to be effective. No one value is more important than another. For example, I don’t prioritize timeliness over thoroughness because it creates a risk of a rushed approach, which could result in missed critical information. In the same way, confidentiality should not override fairness. For example, if I agree to allow the complainant’s identity to remain anonymous, this would compromise the respondent’s value of fairness to know the allegations against them and to be afforded the opportunity to respond fully.
I’m someone who takes great pride in the reputation that I’ve built as a workplace investigator. I’m not just known for what I do, but also how I do it, and this requires me to be mindful of and guided by my personal and professional values for every investigation that I undertake. I’m constantly scrutinizing my next steps, the questions that I ask, the findings and conclusions that I inevitably arrive at, and how I treat people through the process to ensure that I am conducting workplace investigations with integrity and compassion. And so far, they haven’t steered me wrong.
July 2, 2020
Saira Gangji is an independent licensed Workplace Investigator at hrology in Calgary, AB. She investigates allegations of discrimination and human rights, harassment, violence and misconduct in the workplace. For more information about hrology and our process, see the work with me page.