Whistleblowing
Fraud, corruption, unethical behaviour, compliance violations are a major risk for any company. Encouraging employees or third parties to speak up is an important factor in combating misconduct within a company.
What is a whistleblowing hotline?
Internal reporting systems ("whistleblowing hotlines") allow employees or third parties to report suspicions about alleged misconduct and ethical violations within a company.
Even though there is no legal obligation regarding whistleblowing in Switzerland, the provision of an internal reporting system is recommended. It contributes to risk minimisation and trust building and allows managers to address grievances at an early stage. By establishing an internal whistleblowing system, the risk of both financial and reputational damage can be reduced. Furthermore, a corresponding system is part of "good governance".
New EU whistleblower protection directive affects Swiss companies
Swiss companies with branches in the EU and employing at least 50 people there will be affected by the EU directive and will have to set up a whistleblowing hotline.
Our whistleblowing services
We develop a whistleblowing system adapted to your needs and help you implement the legal requirements, including the following services:
- Implementation of the leading reporting system (24/7 accessibility, anonymity and end-to-end encryption guaranteed and available in all languages) or evaluation of other providers.
- Assumption of the function of whistleblowing reporting office / confidential receipt of reports
- Review (plausibility check) and triage of incoming reports, incl. feedback to whistleblowers
- Clarification and investigation of the facts (e.g. through forensic interviews, eDiscovery or open-source intelligence)
- Drawing up internal company guidelines on the subject of whistleblowing and/or compliance
- Training of internal managers on the topic of whistleblowing and compliance
Want to know more?
