Overview – Planning and Conducting an Investigation
A one-day practical, participative workshop designed to develop your managers’ skills by using easy-to-use, relatable techniques to plan and conduct a workplace investigation. We will follow a case study to demonstrate the practical effect of the techniques we explore.
Learning objectives
By attending the training, your managers will be able to:
- Describe their role as investigator and what their report is designed to deliver according to the legal framework (the law of unfair dismissal and the ACAS Code of Practice).
- Identify clearly the remit for an investigation and plan an investigation according to a technique.
- Prepare questions and conduct a meeting with a witness, probing to the extent needed in order to fulfil their remit.
- Construct an investigation report, describing the evidence gathered, the conclusions they have reached and recommendations in line with what is required by the legal framework.
See what a recent delegate had to say…
Course Overview
| Topic | Content |
|---|---|
| Introductions and Welcome | The objectives for the session |
| What are we aiming to achieve with our investigation? | The legal framework for an investigation • Your role as an investigator – separating this role from your ‘manager’ and ‘leader’ roles • Our right to manage disciplinaries and grievances • The legal framework for a fair dismissal using a flowchart technique • Explore further the ACAS code of practice ‘Whats’ and ‘Hows’ |
| Starting with the end in mind: The investigation report | Introduction to/overview of template report – what is it looking to achieve and why? Reaching conclusions and making recommendations – what’s the difference? |
| What is your remit? | Case study-based exercise to establish the investigator’s remit Knowing when to stop – the standard of proof. |
| Planning your investigation | Using a structure to plan your investigation Analysis of an initial instruction to carry out an investigation using the 3-part planning structure |
| Investigations ‘logistics’ | Inviting interviewees to meet you: In writing, or not? How much detail do you give – setting the ‘atmosphere’ for the meeting Who attends the meeting? What if an employee is suspended |
| Constructing your interviews plan | Introduction to a matrix tool |
| Planning your investigation meeting | Overview of the ‘opening’ and ‘closing’ of an investigation interview Setting expectations about confidentiality and follow-up meetings The role of a companion in an investigation meeting? |
| Questioning techniques for investigators | The role of the different types of questions Sandwich questioning technique and planning using the matrix |
| Managing your meeting | Planning for the unexpected! What to do if evidence or recollections don’t not tie up? – know when to stop! What to do with ‘I can’t remember’ |
| Reaching and recording your conclusions in your report | Conflict of evidence? How to get off the fence! How to phrase your conclusions What to recommend, and how to do it? |
| Key learning points from today | What’s stood out for you? and what will you do differently? |
| Close |
