1016 WBN_eBook

WAIKATO BUSINESS NEWS October/November 2016 13
Private investigations
MANAGEMENT AND HR
In my early years of working for a customer service organisation,
one of the tests we often faced was whether a disgruntled
customer was likely to complain and take that complaint to an
appearance on the Paul Holmes Show.
If they did, then we were
advised to act quickly to
resolve the matter and
an internal investigation was
quickly ensued.
Increasingly we are seeing
examples in the media
of sporting organisations
and other large organisations
being similarly held to
account for the conduct of
their employees. Often an
Keeping workers safe at the press of a button
There’s nothing worse
than needing help but
being unable to call
for it.
The next generation
of Motorola Solutions
MOTOTRBO two-way radios
has arrived at Waikato region
communications specialist,
Richardson Communications,
offering the latest functionality
to respond to workers
in need.
The MOTOTRBO
DP4000e Series radios offer
the latest in digital radio
technology and offer the
highest quality voice communications
that two-radios
are synonymous with. But
what sets these radios apart
incident has occurred that
requires a formal investigation
and the employer tries
to close ranks. This calls to
mind a line in the lyrics of
the famous Dire Straits song
“this is my investigation, not
a public inquiry”.
Often the employer will
express frustration at not
being able to go about their
business before bravely
- besides their high quality
build, ruggedness and performance
— are the advanced
safety features that can be
programmed.
A bright, orange button on
the top of the radio can be
pressed to alert fellow works
that you need help. Once
pressed, the radio’s microphone
will remain open,
allowing for hands free communication
to occur.
The built in GPS allows
the radio to be used with
tracking solutions and in the
event of an emergency will
allow for precise locationing
of the radio whether indoors
or outdoors.
Some smart, hands-free
safety features that take
advantage of inbuilt accelerometer
technology can take
these radios to the next level
in safety.
The user configurable Man
Down function alerts other
workers when a radio exceeds
a pre-set angle of fall. So in
the event that a worker falls,
the alarm process is triggered.
For those that work alone,
monitoring their status can be
achieved via the Lone Worker
function. This configurable
function monitors inactive
movement as well triggering
call and respond verification
to ensure that a worker is
safe.
“With safety of workers
attempting to deal with the
incident by conducting the
investigation themselves.
However, the reality of conducting
an internal investigation
behind closed doors in
an organisation seldom meets
with either the media’s expectation
and clamour for a news
story, or the organisation’s
ideal of preserving organisational
and employee confidentiality
while maintaining
positive public relations. The
issue can become even more
complex for an employer if
the police are required to also
conduct an investigation.
If as an employer you find
yourself faced with the prospect
of conducting an investigation
of a public nature,
or that you consider has the
potential to make headlines,
then there are a few key steps
that you should consider.
Ideally you would already
becoming a critical issue in
New Zealand, we are seeing a
rise in the investment in technology
that can help organisations
keep workers safe and
respond to workers that are
in need or require emergency
assistance. The DP4000e
Series offer solutions that
can fulfil their voice and
data communication needs
more than adequately, but
the emergency features add
that extra level of confidence
to organisations”, says
Mike Hyett from Richardson
Communications.
The MOTOTRBO
DP4000e Series radios are
built to perform, offering
long battery life and high
> BY GREG CATLEY
Human Resource Specialist, Everest Group Limited. Everest Group,
Creating Exceptional Workplaces, www.everestgroup.co.nz
have a policy in place for
conducting internal investigations.
Then your first step
is to carefully establish the
terms of the investigation
and share those with the key
stakeholders involved so that
all parties understand what
the process will be and the
timeline for conducting the
investigation.
The second is to engage
a qualified and independent
investigator to conduct the
investigation and in so doing
levels of audio, thanks to
noise-cancelling microphone
technology, and excellent
radio fleet management
with over-the-air software
updates.
Richardson Communications
have been in the business of
communications for 35 years
and have become a wellknown
name in the Waikato
region in a broad range of
industries from agriculture to
retail. Their expert advice is
the difference.
For more information on
the Motorola Solutions
MOTOTRBO DP4000e
Series, contact Richardson
Communications on 07 957
8191.
safeguard the integrity of the
process.
Your third step should
be to also engage a professional
communications and
media representative who
will co-ordinate the public or
client interface for the organisation
and thereby seek to
avoid, or at least minimise,
any potential for reputational
damage and loss of revenue
or sponsorship.
Often organisations look
at the expense of contracting
in such professionals, when
they should be more concerned
about the cost of not
obtaining the advice. I am
aware of one organisation
which sought advice and support
from both groups of professional
consultants and was
able to successfully mitigate
the cost for what might have
been otherwise a substantial
loss of reputation.
So as the songs goes,
“What have you got at the
end of the day? What have
you got to take away?” hopefully
not “a new set of lies”,
but adherence to a robust and
thorough process. It is a process
that will preserve the
organisation’s hard-earned
reputation with customers
and the public, a reputation
that means everything, as
some customer service driven
organisations have discovered
to their cost.
richardson
communications
“THE MOBILE RADIO SPECIALISTS”