Corporate Investigators
Corporate Investigation Service
A corporate investigation is a formal, independent process used to uncover misconduct, financial irregularities, or governance failures within an organisation. It provides a legally robust evidence base to protect reputation and ensure regulatory compliance.
As a corporate investigator we support organisations by managing commercial issues thoroughly and rapidly. We help businesses navigate through difficult situations and avoid incurring significant reputational damage.
We have a wealth of experience providing corporate investigation services to nationally known commercial and public sector organisations. We cover all areas including governance and due diligence, financial management, people issues and crisis management.
If you need advice or assistance with a corporate investigation, please book a free consultation or simply call us on 020 7494 5670 so we can confidentially discuss the issues affecting your organisation.
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Our Approach To Corporate Investigations
We focus on developing practicable solutions no matter how simple or complex the corporate investigation. Our experience as a workplace investigator means we have supported organisations with a wide variety of sensitive issues, so we understand the importance of always providing an authoritative and independent analysis of the facts.
Our findings and conclusions will be backed up by recommendations that address the key issues. We use our Verita operating framework to manage every investigation.
If necessary, we will mobilise quickly, and within 24 hours can make an initial assessment of a client’s issues, develop terms of reference and appoint an investigation team. By choosing Verita as your corporate investigator you can be sure that the quality of our impartial reports will allow you to resolve difficult issues and present an opportunity for real development.
Case Study
Verita was commissioned by the group general counsel of G4S Plc on behalf of the CSR committee of the G4S board to conduct an independent investigation.
This high profile governance review sought to understand the extent and root causes of the matters highlighted in a BBC Panorama programme dealing with the treatment of detainees at Brook House immigration removal centre.
The investigation examined G4S’s management, operational and staffing arrangements and the practices and behaviours of G4S’s staff. We made recommendations on our findings which included cultural issues which heightened the risk of incidents of inappropriate or abusive behaviour towards staff, and staffing issues which had a detrimental effect on both staff and detainees.
Our 6-Step Approach To Independent Corporate Investigations
Our investigative approach at Verita follows the same key steps below to ensure we take a comprehensive, consistent and managed approach to delivering the best outputs for our clients.
- Initial assessment and clarify scope and terms of reference
- Select the investigation team (or solo investigator)
- Gather, record and evaluate the evidence
- Analysis and impartial reporting
- Make recommendations for remediation (if required)
- Report the outcomes
Corporate Investigation Reports
At Verita we ensure that all our written work is of the highest quality, and we deliver corporate investigation reports that are clear, logical and easy to follow. We clearly distinguish between evidence and opinions and ensure that our conclusions and recommendations flow from the facts we find. Our recommendations are practical and proportionate.
Every report will include:
- a description of the methodology that we followed
- a summary of evidence collected
- a set of findings about the issues set out in the terms of reference
- a set of conclusions based on the evidence
- recommendations (where appropriate) for the client
We expect all our reports to be scrutinised by a wide range of stakeholders and they are written with this in mind. We have strong quality assurance systems that ensure our corporate investigations and reports are fair, balanced and able to withstand challenge should it occur.
Service Standards
By choosing Verita to investigate, you can expect to receive the following:
- Rigorous analysis and diagnostic skills
- Rapid investigations
- Clear understanding of clients’ needs
- Consistent and expert reporting
- Tailored to requirements whether small and simple or large and complex
- High quality investigators
- Option to add subject-matter experts
- Specialist skills in many areas
We are experienced corporate investigators able to deploy, where necessary, specialist barristers with extensive expertise in communication and crisis management, legal, regulatory, whistleblowing and employment. So, you can be sure the service you receive will be trustworthy, authoritative and thorough, allowing you to confidently manage the issue and move forward.
When should a company hire an independent corporate investigator?
An independent corporate investigation is best suited to organisations that have to show their customers, directors, staff and external authorities that an issue is being taken seriously, and dealt with properly.
Some businesses try to conduct their own investigations. However, quite often this can lead to conflicts of interest between various parties with different agendas, or an inadequate following of internal investigation best practices. It is therefore advisable to seek independent support from an established corporate investigator like Verita.
Leading independent corporate investigation companies have a team of senior, high-calibre individuals with exceptional credentials. At Verita, each of our team members has an impressive track record of getting to the bottom of complex issues and delivering evidence-based reports capable of withstanding challenges.
Commercial and Corporate Investigators UK
Corporate investigators usually determine whether people in a business or a corporation, including employees, management or indeed third parties, have committed any serious wrongdoing. Any serious corporate issue needs a thorough investigation to fully understand:
- exactly what happened
- who or what caused the issue
- why it happened
- how to resolve it and ensure it doesn’t happen again in the future
- who might be liable and whether is the organisation is at risk because of i
The types of commercial and corporate investigations Verita can deliver include the following:
- Employee investigations
- Governance and due diligence investigations
- Crisis management assessments
What are the types of corporate investigations?
Employee investigations for corporate companies
We provide corporate investigation services for UK businesses, having conducted many investigations where people issues have been central to the issues affecting the company. We are often engaged to investigate the most serious of cases, especially when internal efforts to address the issues have failed.
These investigations have included serious employee misconduct, whistle-blowing and poor performance. We also deal with cases involving business ethics such as widespread bullying and harassment, race and sex discrimination. We are increasingly involved in organisation-wide investigations into toxic workplace culture where our independence often allows us to see more clearly the underlying causes of poor culture.
Our investigative experience also enables us to help businesses develop internal corporate investigation best practices based on the issues raised and the evidence uncovered during our investigation.
Corporate governance and due diligence investigations
We have investigated governance concerns including misrepresentation of performance information, regulatory breaches, conflicts of interest, poor service delivery and matters concerning the leadership of an organisation.
Recent high-profile investigations include our work for the global board of G4S into BBC Panorama’s expose of Brook House immigration removal centre and for NHS England into serious conflicts of interest among the leadership of a public body, including a non-executive director. A major university appointed us to examine why and how they granted and then withdrew degree-awarding status to a small arts school.
In many of these cases our clients have wanted a rigorous and thorough independent assessment of the circumstances, accompanied by practical and workable suggestions for improvement. They also want to be able to publish our independent report.
Our due diligence work includes assessing quality of care and safety for private equity firms wanting to buy health and education establishments. Our detailed work carried out in advance of a transaction being completed includes assessing the organisation’s internal papers, external audits and reviews of the business and oral evidence against our clinical governance assessment tool.
In this way, our benchmarking process can identify issues with efficiency, performance and safety as well as provide a ‘line in the sand’ against which to assess the impact of changes to the service.
Corporate crisis management assessments
As a corporate investigator we can help achieve a resolution for organisational crises resulting from, for example, a sudden service failure or a damaging news story. Commissioning an independent assessment of the facts provides a board and leadership team with the time and space to manage the crisis and media and take control of the situation. Critically, it provides you with an independent report which you can publish and share with interested parties at a time of your choosing.
We have senior staff who can advise you about commissioning and conducting a corporate investigation during a crisis and who will provide you with the confidence to take control of a testing and potentially damaging situation.
Key Team Members & Associates
Ed Marsden
Ed Marsden has a clinical background in general and psychiatric nursing and NHS management. He has worked for the National Audit Office, the Department of Health and the West Kent Health Authority where he was director of performance management.
He combines his responsibilities as Verita’s founder with an active role in leading complex consultancy and investigations. He worked with Kate Lampard to provide independent oversight of the 40 or so investigations carried out by the NHS into allegations about Jimmy Savile.
He was appointed by the global board of G4S PLC to investigate the concerns raised by BBC Panorama in their programme about Brook House immigration removal centre at Gatwick airport. Recent work has included leading a review of patient safety at Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children, and investigating the work-related death of an NHS manager.
Peter Killwick
Peter has worked in consulting covering a variety of strategic and operational issues in a wide range of sectors including healthcare, automotive, financial services, manufacturing, retail, telecommunications and government.
He has extensive experience of conducting complex investigations, including cases involving allegations raised by whistle-blowers.
Steven Webb
Stephen is a board-level communications advisor with over 20 years of experience and a successful track record of leadership, delivery and innovation in demanding corporate affairs roles.
Recent work includes advising clients, including a major charity, about the impact of stories in the national media. He specialises in providing senior level corporate communication and engagement services to clients, including private sector consultancies and service-provider organisations.
Corporate investigation FAQs
A corporate investigation is a formal inquiry into potential wrongdoing within a business entity. This covers a broad spectrum, including financial fraud, bribery and corruption (UK Bribery Act), data breaches, supply chain malpractice, and senior-level misconduct. Verita provides an independent, multidisciplinary team to establish facts and protect the organisation’s reputation.
Internal investigations into corporate wrongdoing often face bias or internal political pressure. Using an external investigator who understands complex regulatory frameworks ensures findings are impartial and strictly based on evidence. An external investigator can also work alongside legal counsel to ensure sensitive findings are impartial and protected.
The primary output is a Comprehensive Investigation Report. This document outlines the scope, the methodology used, a detailed chronology of events, and a summary of findings. Where requested, we also provide a “Lessons Learned” report to help strengthen internal controls and prevent recurrence.
All our investigations are conducted in strict accordance with UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018. We ensure that evidence gathering is proportionate, legal, and handles “Special Category Data” with the highest levels of security and confidentiality.
Corporate Investigation Insights
Find out more
For information on our tailored corporate investigation services, please contact Verita founder Ed Marsden via email at [email protected] or on 020 7494 5670