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Why investigation management is ready for prime time

Tom Spadafore, CEO, VANTOS

More than ever, businesses around the globe are experiencing a rising volume of insider and outsider fraud and misconduct. Some crimes embody all of the intrigue and complexity of a John Grisham novel, while others are more of the Dilbert variety. But with today’s mandates for airtight regulatory compliance and stringent oversight, it has become imperative for enterprises to manage both types of investigations with the same approach and attention to detail.

The stakes are high. A mishandled investigation – or even one seemingly routine incident left unattended in the growing backlog of investigations – can have cataclysmic results.

The average large organization today manages hundreds of physical and digital investigations per year at a cost in the hundreds of millions of dollars, not counting the cost of settlements or fines. It is not uncommon for such a company to have as many as 20 investigators on staff – VANTOS has worked with a large financial institution that employs more than two hundred investigators. Clearly, the larger the staff and the greater the number of investigations, the more opportunities there are for inconsistencies and human error, ultimately resulting in lost time and money.

Compounding this issue is that many organizations still rely on antiquated tools and techniques. Even companies that have deployed point solutions still often find themselves at the mercy of pen, paper and spreadsheets. By relying on manual approaches, organizations find themselves reactive and off-balance, unable to scale and streamline their efforts to tackle the mounting backlog of investigations. Instead, each investigation remains a silo of activity with results shaped by investigator bias, potentially rendering even a seemingly minor, isolated incident into an enterprise-threatening catastrophe.

The good news is that there is a better way. Any investigation can be automated to execute faster, more consistently and more successfully. By optimizing the organization’s limited resources and driving consistency with automated investigative processes, the time and cost of investigation management is significantly reduced; ultimately driving better business outcomes.

So the next time your team is grappling with theft, ask your investigators what steps they are taking to ensure that their investigation management process can withstand rigorous auditability, vigorous legal attacks and stringent regulatory scrutiny.

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