TL;DR: Deb Muller, HR Acuity’s CEO, shares that reputational risk drops and employee experience rises when ER leaders set clear expectations before issues occur and use a consistent, protocol-driven investigation process. Teach managers what to do and what not to do, show employees what to expect and follow standard checklists so every case is handled fairly and transparently.
Video Transcript:
[0:00] So how can employee relations leaders help protect the reputational risk of an organization and really improve the employee experience? I think you have to look at it in a couple of ways. Employee relations gets involved when something goes wrong. That’s not really a negative thing, but when things deviate from the norm—an employee behaves differently from what’s expected, from policy, guidelines or their performance roadmap—we step in. How do we reduce risk and improve that experience?
[0:30] Managers face the first line of issues. A recent survey showed the majority of employees go to their managers when something goes wrong. Managers want to help, so they may start their own investigation, which you don’t want them to do. Set expectations: Things will go wrong—it’s when, not if. Here’s your role, when you come to HR, what you do, what you don’t do, what you say to the employee. Be clear—never assume people know.
[1:15] Employees usually know they can go to a manager, HR or a hotline, but many still stay silent because they don’t know what to expect—that’s scary. They’ve heard horror stories about HR not believing them. If they don’t know the process, most will stay quiet, tolerate the issue, move to another company or simply leave. We need them to come forward, so we must tell them exactly what to expect.
[2:00] Once an allegation is raised, reduce risk through consistency. Consistency of process drives consistency of results—just be consistent. In our interview guide within the HR Acuity platform, we have protocols, a checklist anyone can use even in a small company. When I sit with a witness or complainant I explain: “John, thanks for coming forward. We take these issues seriously, so we have standard processes and protocols everyone goes through. I want you to know what to expect, and what we expect from you.” I cover note-taking, confidentiality, our non-retaliation policy—everything.
[2:45] Simply having a clear process shows the company cares: It invested time to ensure consistency. Process matters—use it, drive consistency, ensure neutrality. Make sure the investigator can review facts with clear eyes and reach a reasonable conclusion based on the conversations. Make sure that’s there.
