So you want to be an Interrogator?



Posted: Friday, June 29, 2007

by Bill Urban
Corporate Combat, Inc

You can read everything ever written about interrogation and never become proficient at "the gentle art of interviewing." Why? Because you must be honest about your strengths and weaknesses and fix what needs fixing. What works for you? Is it your 'style' or personality? Is it the way you carry yourself-the confidence you exude? Think of hit show American Idol. There are those who can sing and those who cannot; but the latter will die trying-while most of us die laughing. 10,000 contestants can sing the same song, but only a handful can make it "sound" right. Even those "Dawgs" who make it to Hollywood need to rehearse and work on their craft. Some can sing it, while others can "deliver" it. When you interrogate a suspect you must deliver it. You cannot just puke the lyrics and hope to get results! Regurgitating the 'memorized' good guy-bad guy stuff has a poor chance of being effective. Suspects are not idiots-in fact many of those involved in theft and fraud are far above average intellectually and many have genius-level street smarts, so your first rule should be to never underestimate your opponent. Dishonest employees are watching TV; going to movies; reading books and learning the 'routine' of today's interrogators. The Internet is full of anti-interrogation tips for the bad guy. A few clicks and the dishonest employee can access a buffet of avoidance techniques. Dishonest people can see through the memorized 'one-liners' and analogies and metaphors and can roadmap where you are taking them. They smell your BS (Bad Scripts). There are no secret words, (well, there are a few but if we told you they would no longer be secret) but there are effective strategies that will give you the advantage over the bad guy. Take note of what works for you and hone those skills.

It takes 4 to 5 years of consistent training to earn a black belt in karate-unless you order one from a catalog along with a "how to" video. The only good a "store bought" one will do is hold up your pants! There are no "store bought" remedies to honing a skill or teaching you the art of discipline. To become a proficient interrogator (or to earn a Black Belt) takes discipline-and lots of it! Corporate Combat, Inc. has had applicants tell us in interviews that they have achieved a high success rate in obtaining confessions from those they have interviewed. When asked, one said, "I have interrogated 25 suspects and I was able to get 11 of them to confess and put it in writing!" He was excited. That's a success rate of 44? Somewhere along the line he stopped taking note of his strengths and weaknesses. He was displaying a "black belt" attitude about his skill level, while his actual results were at a "white belt" level.

Much like discipline teaches children self-control, discipline similarly gets us to the gym three or four days a week or out for a walk even when it's raining. It's what prompts us to reach for the fruit instead of cake... what has us dialing our parents or children every week even when we're busy... what reminds us to be a loving spouse whether we feel like it or not. In short, personal discipline is what we must practice to make our dreams a reality and what gets us out of making excuses for what we "should have done" once and for all.

Our culture is complaint-focused instead of solution and action focused, which keeps people from dealing with personal issues in any kind of concrete way. People whine and complain about problems or behaviors, but they don't energize themselves to correct them. Instead they listen to other people whine and complain and together they commiserate on how hard it all is. Separate yourself from those who are not disciplined enough to succeed. Read the books, go to the seminars, but remember that once you leave the classroom, stop the tape, put down the book, that it is YOU that must perform.

Author: William H Urban, CEO/CFE
Bill can be reached at 763-572-1234
Out-state callers: 1-800-825-5572

His company websites are: www.CorporateCombat.com and www.PreventLoss.com
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