Investigations fail at the start, not the end. The first interview happens before anyone defines the allegation, video gets overwritten during week two, the accused hears the whole case before the witnesses do, and three months later nobody can explain the timeline. Courts don't require perfect investigations — they require prompt, thorough, impartial ones, and all three qualities are set at the planning stage.
This template makes the plan explicit: a one-sentence allegation statement that controls scope, a witness list with interview order and rationale, an evidence preservation table with dates, a milestone timeline, the confidentiality script, and a report outline that keeps findings separate from discipline recommendations.
Who should use this investigation toolkit
- HR professionals opening a harassment or misconduct investigation
- Owners and executives who must investigate without in-house HR
- Municipal and nonprofit leaders whose investigations face records requests
- Anyone deciding between an internal and outside investigator
What it helps prevent
- Investigations that expand or shrink based on what's convenient
- Key witnesses interviewed last — after they've compared stories
- Evidence lost because nobody preserved it in week one
- Conclusions that outrun the allegation actually investigated
- Reports that can't explain why the investigation took three months
What’s inside
- Part 1 — Allegation Statement
- Part 2 — Scope
- Part 3 — Witness List
- Part 4 — Evidence List and Preservation
- Part 5 — Interview Order
- Part 6 — Timeline
- Part 7 — Confidentiality Reminder
- Part 8 — Report Outline
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Faulkner HR Solutions helps Texas employers, nonprofits, municipalities, and growing businesses fix the people systems behind recurring workplace problems. If this resource raised a risk flag, do not guess your way through the next step.