Golf & Investigation: Learning the Foundation

INTERVIEW WITH JONATHAN DAVISON 

Managing Director, Forensic Interview Solutions (FIS) Limited in New Zealand and upcoming instructor for the upcoming courses Conducting Internal Investigations in Auckland and Professional Interviewing Skills in Sydney

Jonathan Davison has more than 12 years of investigation and interview experience as a detective with the Greater Manchester Police. He specializes in the forensic application of the “science of interviewing” in the workplace to improve investigative decision-making, efficacy and quality.

Neither of these ACFE courses has been taught in the region before. Why do you think these topics are valuable for anti-fraud professionals in Australia and New Zealand?

These courses cover the basic skills for those involved in a fraud investigation. It’s extremely valuable for people all over the world, no matter where you are located, to have these basic skills. These are the core foundations on how to conduct an investigation and how to conduct an interview. In my experience, many professionals aren’t being trained to the extent they fully need to be for conducting an investigation from beginning to end. It is one thing to think you can investigate a fraud, but it is quite another to actually do it. It is like learning how to play golf. You can go out to the driving range and practice, but you don’t really have the foundational skills on how to do it the best way. These courses teach those skills.

Who would you recommend take these courses, and what do you hope they walk away with?

These courses are designed for a broad range of positions. This could be anyone from human resources to investigation; anyone that is involved in or could be involved in a fraud investigation. I am hoping for attendees to walk away motivated and with really tangible, practical skills they can begin using immediately.

What current trends do you think fraud examiners face that are distinct to their regions?

I think we are all seeing that fraud is not just a simple case anymore. It is global and it crosses different cultures and countries. Add to that, the technology is getting more complicated. Anyone that has access to a computer and a keyboard can commit fraud. We have to remember that it may not always be about obtaining a confession from people. A trend we are seeing is that we are not getting admissions right away or at all. It is about the whole investigation coming together and the search for truth. You don’t always need the magical words of, “I did it” if you have the evidence and a good product. I like to tell people that you are creating a product to sell to the jury, and you want to make a strong, quality product. 

Read more about Conducting Internal Investigations and Professional Interviewing Skills.