Security & Risk Management Seminar

Interviewing: Getting The Right Information From Cooperative People

Presentation Abstract

So -- you think that you're a good interviewer? Or -- you can't understand why people won't answer your questions? Most people learn to interview through social interaction. Family, friends, social and workplace settings provide casual and informal environments where participants can develop and test their communication skills. These settings simply aren't the best places to learn about the craft and science of interviewing. An investigator who has developed the required planning, focus, communication and information processing skillset naturally becomes an effective interviewer and generally achieves superior results. An investigator who doesn't develop this skillset is doomed to achieve mediocre results -- while he/she wastes significant institution resources.

Every investigation contains an interview. Each new day offers opportunities for dozens of interviews. An interview is a meeting with a victim, witness or informant to discuss issues or to receive information. An interview is also a conversation with a goal: to gather information while positively influencing another person's behavior. This presentation focuses upon the interviewing process involved with resolving security-related issues and introduces participants to the concepts and practical applications of basic and strategic interview methodology. The presentation also introduces the most simple and effective techniques for gathering and validating information from cooperative sources such as victims, witnesses and informants -- and from often uncooperative sources such as hostile witnesses and suspects.

The presentation provides a logical and strategic model to help participants understand the true scope of the communication process regarding both criminal and non-criminal events that may occur within your institution. By understanding the cause and effect relationship between an investigator's strategy and the investigative result, participants may design and implement a standardized, institution-wide interviewing process.

The presentation is designed especially for those people who are responsible for investigating and documenting events for financial institutions: compliance officers, human resource specialists, security officers, auditors and operations managers. You will also benefit if you are responsible for or assist with conducting operational reviews, investigations and training employees. And while the focus is security-related, the information may easily be adapted to train any employee about the interviewing process. Customer contact personnel -- particularly those employees who are responsible for frontline operations -- receive a significant benefit.

Presentation Topics

l   Questions To Answer Before Interviewing

l   Motives For Cooperating During An Interview

l   Factors Likely To Affect Witness Perception & Memory

l   Initial Approach & Preparation

l   Making Personal Contact

l   Establishing The Setting

l   Establishing Rapport

l   Recording The Interview

l   Establishing Control

l   Initial Questioning Techniques

l   Focused Questioning Techniques

l   Precise Questioning Techniques

l   Gathering Additional Leads

l   Ending Personal Contact

l   Establishing Follow-Up Tasks

Presentation Objectives

This presentation is designed to help you:

l   Conduct an initial and continuing assessment of the institution's interviewing practices

l   Determine if your interviewing practices are appropriate and effective

l   Determine the most effective types of interview training for employees at all levels -- with an emphasis upon the security function

l   Identify employee classifications that should receive different levels of interview training, including members of the audit, human resources and security functions

l   Identify policies, procedures and training techniques that should be retained, modified or eliminated

l   Make recommendations that will likely enhance investigative successes

l   Gain the necessary support from your Board of Directors, other department managers and staff

l   Prepare the tools that both the institution and the interviewer may use to defend themselves in the event of a legal action

Presentation Audience

l   Security Officers

l   Auditors

l   Human Resources Managers

l   Training Managers

l   Compliance Officers

l   Retail Operations Managers

Presentation Tools

l   Workbook text

l   PowerPoint slides

Last updated on January 28, 2011