Tragic consequences have repercussions that reverberate throughout an organisation and any investigations have to be sensitively handled and with expertise.
Client
Financial Services Company
The Situation
A senior professional member of staff of took his own life in the course of disciplinary proceedings.
The organisation wanted an independent review of the circumstances to identify whether the case had been dealt with appropriately and proportionately under its procedures, whether they had got the balance right between welfare of the individual and the need to investigate serious allegations, and what was the learning for the future.
What We Did
We were appointed by the director of Human Resources and the Chief Executive to carry out an independent review. We interviewed a large number of senior personnel who had been involved with the case, the trade union representative of the deceased, and members of the deceased’s family.
The investigation called for sensitivity as well as forensic rigour.
Outcome
We delivered a report to the Chief Executive with a detailed chronology of events; an assessment of how the policies applied and the actions of the organisation compared with best practice in relation to disciplinary investigations involving personnel with mental health problems; and we identified some critical points where the organisation might have acted differently.
We made recommendations about training for managers and HR personnel and about changes in the disciplinary policy and processes to ensure that any similar case in future would be dealt with differently.
"A tough situation at a very sensitive time for all concerned. Axis managed to be both compassionate but thorough. They provided the necessary degree of detachment in an emotional atmosphere but at the same time were able to give a space for people to express themselves. Key changes were brought about in the company as a result to hopefully prevent anything like this from happening again." TG - Manager
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