Get Started with Investigative Case Management
Learning Objectives
After completing this unit, you’ll be able to:
- Discuss investigative cases in the public sector.
- Explore common agency and constituent challenges related to justice and investigative cases.
- Summarize the benefits of Investigative Case Management.
- Describe the main categories of objects in the Investigative Case Management data model.
Before You Start
Before you start this module, make sure you complete the following content. The work you do here builds on the concepts and work you do in that content.
Also, consider completing the following recommended content.
Investigations in the Public Sector
Trench coats. Magnifying glasses. Dimly lit offices. When you think of investigations, perhaps you imagine these common portrayals from movies and TV.
In reality, investigations take on many forms and serve several purposes in the public sector, beyond chasing down notorious gangsters. Regulatory bodies, grantors, social care administrators, and even HR departments conduct investigations to protect the safety and wellbeing of constituents and to ensure compliance with important laws and regulations. By identifying and addressing violations and crimes, agencies maintain the integrity of public systems and community trust.
Here are some examples of how agencies use investigations to protect constituent safety and public resources.
So, we've busted the Hollywood myth: Real-life investigations serve the public in more ways than one. Depending on the case, government agencies tackle anything from onsite inspections to gathering evidence to participating in legal proceedings. That means lots of moving parts, lots of people, and you guessed it, lots of challenges.
Challenges with Investigations
Managing investigative cases involves many obstacles, which depend on the specific context of the case and the requirements of the responsible organization or agency.
Long Resolution Times
The first challenge is time. Many investigations entail time-sensitive components, such as statutes of limitations or the need to collect evidence before it becomes irrelevant. The more complex the case, the more difficult it is to ensure efficient, prompt, and thorough investigations. Lengthy resolution times make way for an ever-increasing backlog of unresolved cases.
Case Complexity
Investigations often mean loads of administrative work, extensive documentation, and large volumes of data. Case managers must track intricate relationships between people, assets, locations, and even other cases. Add to this a multitude of stakeholders, including victims, witnesses, defendants, and teams of experts, who all play unique roles in the investigation.
Data Management
Agencies must collect and analyze large amounts of evidence, following strict compliance at every step. Without a comprehensive view of case-related records, case managers struggle to find the information they need when they need it. This disorganized data can also lead to breaches of compliance, which can threaten the validity of the investigation and lead to costly fines or penalty fees.
Information Sharing
Investigations typically require collaboration between several agencies and stakeholders, who must share evidence and sensitive case information securely and confidentially. This data can live in disconnected formats and systems, which makes it resource-intensive to access and share. Disparate data also prohibits a comprehensive view of cases.
Technology
Specialized software, such as platforms and analytics tools, are typically too expensive and do little to meet the specific intricacies of investigation procedures. Implementing and integrating these tools is usually too complex or disruptive for most agencies.
Lack of Expertise
Agencies can lack the means to implement standards for compliance, such as formal assessment protocols, or to provide timely recommendations, guidance, and support to investigators. Instead, they must rely on skilled and knowledgeable personnel, who can be difficult to recruit and retain due to staffing challenges.
Constituent Impact
In many communities, constituents have no way to communicate the issues they face with public-sector agencies or to secure adequate legal representation. Due to the agency challenges you just learned about, constituents must endure long completion times for cases. Any errors in agency recordkeeping or improper handling of evidence during investigations can lead to unjust results for constituents and an erosion of public trust.
To overcome these challenges, agencies need a comprehensive solution that combines technology and workflows designed specifically for conducting thorough, efficient, and compliant investigations.
Investigative Case Management
Investigative Case Management with Public Sector Solutions empowers government agencies to collaboratively manage all the workflows and data associated with civil and criminal proceedings, appeals, mediation, and arbitration. With a unified system and tools for streamlining common tasks, you can efficiently and accurately administer the legal process from complaint to case to resolution.
In this module, you take a tour of the Investigative Case Management data model and explore the objects that power the solution.
Here are the ways that Investigative Case Management sets up your agency for success.
Improve Accuracy and Thoroughness
Use a dedicated data model to organize case information, and enhance the accuracy of investigations. Keep reliable records of events, infractions, participants, evidence, and results. And use advanced search capabilities to retrieve information in real time.
Navigate Complexity and High Case Volumes
Use a single, unified view to track all of the people, entities, relationships, and documentation related to each investigative case.
The Casework Overview tab of the case record shows all the records related to the case and important relationships.
Automate workflows and use intuitive navigation and tools to reduce the burden of administrative tasks.
Reinforce Evidence-Based Decisions
Simplify evidence capture, and create a chain of custody for digital evidence to maintain security and confidentiality.
Use the Custody Items tab of the case record to view a comprehensive list of evidence during the case and quickly add new custody items.
Securely transmit detailed case information with authorized parties, and manage notes, interviews, and documents with efficiency.
Reduce Time to Resolution
Easily collaborate and share case information with stakeholders inside and outside your agency. Reduce follow-ups, errors, and process gaps with guided flows, automated task assignments, and proactive risk assessments.
With Investigative Case Management, you can take the roadblocks, inefficiencies, and guesswork out of your agency’s investigative and judicial operations.
Investigative Case Management Objects
You’re now ready to learn more about the Investigative Case Management data model. By discovering the purpose of each object and the important relationships between them, you can improve your agency’s investigations.
We’ve broken down the data model objects into a handful of categories. This table describes the purpose of each object category.
Category |
Description |
|---|---|
Regulatory Framework |
Record information about regulatory information, including regulatory codes, violations, and enforcement actions. |
Complaint and Case |
Register reported issues in the community and resulting cases. |
Participants |
Track the people involved in complaints, cases, and case proceedings. |
Evidence |
Store details about custody items, chain of custody, and associated violations. |
Case Proceeding |
Record information about case proceedings, infractions, and results. |
Along the way, you also explore some of the powerful Public Sector Solutions features that speed up common investigative processes and information management, such as dynamic assessments, interaction summaries, and the Casework Overview screen.
Crime Fighting in Cosville
The City of Cosville is evaluating operations to improve crime investigations, such as misuse of public funds, and to ensure compliance and enforce different types of regulations. Tishon, the Cosville Salesforce admin, is setting up Investigative Case Management in the agency org to enhance and speed up investigative processes.
Follow along with Tishon and the Cosville team as they explore the Investigative Case Management data model and manage a case of reported fraud at a local company.
While investigations do not always feature a fedora-wearing detective trudging through a dark alley, these types of cases serve the public in countless ways. With Investigative Case Management, you transform your agency’s systems and workflows so you can conduct detailed investigations with speed and precision.
In the next unit, you review the objects for building a regulatory framework and managing complaints and cases.