The Anatomy of Investigative Failures – and How to Prevent Them
Even the most accomplished investigators sometimes get it wrong …
…. And this is what you can do about it to help protect you, and your organisation !
It’s a well-known fact – every year many organisations
- reach inconclusive findings as a result of poor investigative process (not a lack of evidence)
- lose employment tribunals when they are poorly prepared
- suffer unnecessary regulatory enforcement actions and civil litigation because the investigation that followed was flawed.
Whether poorly scoped, using compromised or incorrect evidence, applying bias during interviews and/or producing Investigation Reports which don’t hold up to scrutiny, the failures are not a result of being able to uncover the truth, it was in “the process”.
The Association of Corporate Investigators has spent years reviewing investigations in every possible sector that went wrong: cases where reporters and whistleblowers weren’t taken seriously, where regulatory interventions exposed procedural gaps, and where the investigative process itself became the liability.
This unique and unrivalled programme distils that hard-won experience into two intensive, practical sessions designed to make your investigations defensible, proportionate, and fit for purpose.
Who This Programme Is For
This training is built for the professionals who are called upon to investigate, or support / advise / audit / challenge related cases into workplace and corporate misconduct:
- In-house investigators and compliance professionals who need clearly defined, structured, repeatable frameworks they can deploy under pressure
- HR professionals who often manage grievances alongside investigations together with disciplinary processes and sensitive workplace matters where procedural fairness is non-negotiable
- Lawyers and legal advisers supporting investigations or anticipating litigation, regulatory scrutiny, or tribunal challenge
- Auditors and risk professionals assessing the quality, assurance and integrity of investigative processes within their organisations
- Senior Leaders and Decision-Makers who are required to understand and navigate through investigation reports, recommendations and actions (and challenging where required to do so)
What the Programme Covers
Across two 90-minute online modules, you’ll work through the full lifecycle of a corporate investigation, from the moment a complaint lands on your desk to the final report, with a consistent focus on where things go wrong and how to stop them.
Module 1: The Foundations: Triage, Scoping and Evidence
Monday, 11th May 2026
10:00 – 11:30 UK time
The earliest decisions in an investigation are often the most consequential. This module examines the critical phase between receiving an allegation and triaging / assessing concerns before committing to a course of action. It also examines why mistakes made here tend to increase significant risks throughout the entire investigation process.
You’ll explore how to conduct effective triage, scope an investigation proportionately, and establish an audit trail that will withstand challenge. We examine the most common evidence-handling failures, including poor preservation, chain of custody gaps, and digital evidence pitfalls. We look at planning tools and risk assessment frameworks that keep investigations on track from day one.
Module 2: Interviews, Reports and Regulatory Scrutiny
Monday, 18th May
10:00 – 11:30 UK time
An investigation is only as strong as its conclusions, and conclusions are only as strong as the evidence and reasoning that support them. This module focuses on the stages where investigations most frequently unravel: the interviews conducted at every stage of an investigation through to the final investigation report, recommendations and actions.
Participants work through structured interviewing techniques, explore common failures in questioning and note-taking, and examine what fair, legally sound interview practice actually looks like. The module closes with a forensic look at investigative reports, including what regulators, tribunals, and legal teams look for, and how to produce findings that are clear, supported, and defensible.
How the Programme is Delivered
This is a working programme, not a series of lectures. Insightful and inspirational thought leadership across both modules means that you’ll engage with:
- Case studies drawn from real investigative failures across sectors
- Scenario based learning which replicate the pressure of live investigations
- Practical and helpful tools including investigation planning templates, scoping frameworks, interview checklists, and report structures aligned with regulatory and tribunal expectations
- Workshop exercises many of which are built around the ACi GIR Corporate Investigators Handbook, key principles and applicable ISO frameworks.
The format is deliberately interactive. You’ll leave with tools and techniques you can put to work immediately.
What You’ll Take Away
By the end of both modules, participants will have a better understanding of how to:
- Triage and scope investigations proportionately, reducing the risk of scope creep and missed issues
- Gather, preserve, and document evidence to a standard that withstands legal and regulatory challenge
- Conduct structured, fair, and legally defensible interviews
- Produce clear investigative reports that support robust decision-making and survive internal and external scrutiny
- Identify the warning signs of an investigation that is going off the rails and intervene before the damage is done
Why the ACi
The Association of Corporate Investigators occupies a distinctive position: reviewing not just how investigations should be conducted, but studying in detail the cases where they weren’t. That insight into regulatory failure, whistleblower mismanagement, and procedural collapse is what makes this programme different from standard investigative training. It is built on what actually goes wrong.
Places are limited. This programme is suited to in-house delivery for teams as well as open enrolment for individual practitioners.
Tickets: £349
ACi Members: 314.10