The Science of Workplace Investigations™ Training

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  • Individual Online Course
Overview
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Presenter
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Clear Law’s Clients for Investigations Training Include:

The Science of Workplace Investigations™

When investigating a “he said/she said” case of sexual harassment or other alleged misconduct, are you using scientifically-validated methods to interview witnesses, assess their credibility, and reach a defensible conclusion?

Join organizations such as Google, the EEOC, FedEx, the United Nations, and the World Bank and train your internal investigators with the latest research-based investigation techniques. This seminar can be delivered on-site at your location, using webcast technology, or a combination of both.

Workplace investigators often receive training on “best practices” for investigations. Unfortunately, over the past 15 years, scientists have found that much of the conventional wisdom on how to effectively interview witnesses and determine truthfulness is wrong. At the same time, courts have found companies liable for using scientifically unproven interviewing and other investigative techniques in workplace investigations.

This seminar, taught by former U.S. Department of Justice attorney Michael Johnson, reviews hundreds of research studies that scientists have conducted on how to best interview witnesses and assess credibility. He will teach you how to apply these scientifically-validated methods to your investigations and by examining videos and case studies you will learn:
  • How to utilize the “Cognitive Interview,” which is the most widely researched interviewing technique in the world
  • How many common beliefs about spotting deception are incorrect
  • How to apply research-based methods for detecting signs of deception and truthfulness
  • The legal requirements for workplace investigations
  • A 6-step process for writing clear and concise investigative reports

Agenda

Overview
Workplace investigators often receive training on “best practices” for investigations. Unfortunately, over the past 15 years, scientists have found that much of the conventional wisdom on how to effectively interview witnesses and determine truthfulness is wrong. At the same time, courts have found companies liable for using scientifically unproven interviewing and other investigative techniques in workplace investigations.
 
This seminar, taught by former U.S. Department of Justice attorney Michael Johnson, reviews hundreds of research studies that scientists have conducted on how to best interview witnesses and assess credibility. He will teach you how to apply these scientifically-validated methods to your investigations and by examining videos and case studies you will learn:
  • How to utilize the “Cognitive Interview,” which is the most widely researched interviewing technique in the world
  • How many common beliefs about spotting deception are incorrect
  • How to apply research-based methods for detecting signs of deception and truthfulness
  • The legal requirements for workplace investigations
  • A 6-step process for writing clear and concise investigative reports
Advanced Interviewing Techniques
Applying the latest research related to investigative interviewing, this section of the training covers:
  • How to use a journalistic instead of a prosecutorial interview style
  • How to use the “Funnel Method” to gather all relevant information from each witness
  • How to utilize the “Cognitive Interview,” which is the most widely researched interviewing technique in the world
  • How to use, in certain cases, advanced questioning techniques proven to make it easier to differentiate between truthful and deceptive responses, such as:
    • Asking the person to draw the event
    • Asking the person to tell you what happened in reverse order
    • Asking unexpected questions
  • Why you should never reveal to a witness that you do not believe him or her until the end of the interview (or a subsequent interview)
  • How to respectfully challenge a witness whose answers contradict other witnesses or the evidence
Examining Credibility
Scientists have found that most stereotypical beliefs about deception are incorrect. For example, liars are NOT more likely to avoid eye contact or appear fidgety. In this section of the course, you will examine numerous videos and transcripts to learn what are accurate and inaccurate cues to deception and truthfulness. In this section you will:
  1. Test your ability to spot deception or truthfulness by watching a video of a suspect interview.
  2. Learn how to strategically approach “he said/she said” cases or cases where there are no eyewitnesses.
  3. Learn which cues to deception have been scientifically validated and which are based on myth.
  4. Learn why cues related to “cognitive effort” are much more predictive of deception than cues related to nervousness.
  5. Learn cues to deception and truthfulness related to verbal content and verbal style.
  6. Learn linguistic cues to deception and truthfulness.
  7. Learn the few non-verbal cues that are associated with deception
Legal Requirements of Workplace Investigations
In this section, you will analyze several case studies and will receive step-by-step guidance on how to handle difficult legal and practical dilemmas that investigators often face. At the end of this section, you will be able to answer the following questions:
  1. How many investigators should be present during an investigative interview?
  2. What do I do if an employee refuses to be interviewed or otherwise cooperate?
  3. What should I do if the accused brings an attorney, co-worker, or friend to the investigative interview?
  4. Under what circumstances should I reveal the names of witnesses?
  5. What are the factors to consider in imposing discipline?
Writing Investigative Reports
After learning researched-based methods for handling interviews and investigations, this section will introduce you to important documentation and reporting principles. Among other things, you will learn:
  1. How to use the investigative report to plan and continually update your investigation strategy
  2. What to include and not include in the report to ensure that it is legally defensible
  3. How to best document facts and credibility determinations
  4. How to maintain attorney-client privilege, where applicable
  5. How to overcome “writer’s block” to greatly increase the speed at which you write
  6. How to write a report that is not only comprehensive but also clear and concise
Role-Play Exercises

In the two-day course, attendees will also participate in two role-play exercises where each person gets to practice the interviewing and other investigation techniques learned in the course.

Presenter

Former U.S. Department of Justice lawyer Michael Johnson presents the seminar. Michael, a graduate of Harvard Law School, was the lead attorney on one DOJ’s first class action style sexual harassment cases. He has provided investigations training for organizations around the world, including Google, the EEOC, FedEx, the United Nations, and the World Bank.

  • CEO of Clear Law Institute.
  • Has served as an expert witness in cases challenging the adequacy of employer investigations.
  • His investigative approach has been featured in articles in the Wall Street Journal and New Yorker magazine.
  • Graduate of Duke University and Harvard Law School.

Clients

Companies
Education
Government
Healthcare
International
Legal

Testimonials

“Clear Law Institute recently delivered The Science of Workplace Investigations to our core investigations staff. The training, which was delivered by Michael Johnson, was outstanding. Without exception, Michael has been excellent throughout the entire process and received extremely high ratings from participants on class evaluations. The training content was so popular that our staff requested additional training from the Clear Law Institute, which we are looking forward to diving into after the new year.”
 

–Jesse Dauphinee, Global Head of Training, Citi Security & Investigative Services

“The investigations training for our HR and global corporate security teams was current, well-paced, relevant to what we see in the workplace, and beneficial to all team members regardless of prior investigative experience. Further, the training was interactive and more informal, which resonated well with our team. Michael Johnson is an excellent presenter—both knowledgeable and engaging—and kept the attention of the online global audience. I highly recommend Michael Johnson and Clear Law Institute for investigation-related training.”
 

–Steven White, Xerox Corporate Security

Credit & Exam

Continuing Education Credits
Human Resources The course has been pre-approved for re-certification credit by SHRM and the Human Resources Certification Institute (HRCI).  
 
Lawyers Numerous state bar associations have approved the course for CLE credit. We will seek CLE credit in any state at no cost to the attendee.  
 
CCB Compliance Certifications (CCEP, CHC, CHRC) We believe this course is eligible for Compliance Continuing Education Credit. After completing the course, you will receive instructions for submitting the course to the Compliance Certification Board (CCB)®. This education activity has not been submitted to the CCB for review or approval of its educational content. Please contact [email protected] directly regarding the applications and documentation necessary to submit applicable compliance related education to CCB for their review.
Certificate Exam

For no additional cost, you will have the option to certify that you have learned to apply the most up-to-date research on investigative techniques by taking an online certificate exam after participating in the seminar.  The exam consists of 36 questions that cover the seminar content.  You may take the exam at your convenience after viewing the seminar videos.  You must correctly answer 80% or more of the questions to pass.  You may take the exam multiple times, if necessary, to pass.

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