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These days, the presence of an anonymous whistleblowing channel is an absolute must for all companies and organizations serious about fostering a positive working environment. Anonymous reporting allows employees, suppliers and other stakeholders to report unethical conduct as well as to suggest improvements to the working culture or to address other issues without fear of retaliation.  Establishing channels for anonymous reporting is not only important for your company culture and employee wellbeing, but it also ensures you are compliant with the EU Whistleblowing Directive or any other standards and certifications that apply to your operation.  Check out our article on standards and certification which require the introduction of a whistleblowing system. However, as you might expect, it is not always easy to encourage your employees or other stakeholders to report their suspicions or concerns about misconduct. Often this comes down to fear, be it the fear of retribution of some kind, such as missing out on a promotion or some other kind of discrimination, or simply the fear of causing a fuss in the workplace and being ostracized by their colleagues. Another major reason individuals are hesitant to report unethical conduct is a phenomenon called ‘The Onlooker Effect’, where people choose to take no action under the wrongful assumption that someone else will. You can read more about this in our blog article. The Benefits of Anonymous ReportingAnonymous reporting helps to create open communication, it provides a secure channel for employees to raise concerns or simply to request guidance or clarification on certain issues. Regarding misconduct, we know that 75% of employees prefer to share suspicions with an external party, rather than their superiors. The fear of retaliation mentioned above is a real factor here, with anonymous reporting representing an obvious solution. Implementing a whistleblowing platform in general, especially one which allows for anonymous reporting has some other significant benefits, such as protecting your organization’s reputation (since issues are addressed internally), saving the money lost to internal fraud (5% of total revenue, on average), reducing employee turnover, avoiding criminal liability, and ensuring organizations meet their legal responsibilities.  More on why it pays to introduce a whistleblowing system. Some real world examples…Let’s take a brief look at how anonymous reporting has led to improved workplace culture and a reduction in unethical behavior for some of our clients.  For instance, Industrial company AKKA reported back how FaceUp allows them to obtain more feedback and ideas from colleagues than was the case previously.  “We used to hold regular meetings, but no one raised anything. Now, before each event we invite employees to use FaceUp to tell us what’s on their mind. People really do send in questions.” Or take the case of Vitkovice Steel, where, just after introducing FaceUp, 70% of reports were anonymous, yet this actually decreased over time to 30%, since employees no longer felt that they needed to hide behind anonymity, thus demonstrating the improved workplace culture. Finally, the Brno Municipal Office found that, besides resolving a long-standing issue of workplace bullying which ended in the removal of the individual in question, introducing an anonymous whistleblowing platform even led to an increase in productivity. Read more from our clients. How to Encourage Anonymous ReportingEncouraging your employees to submit reports, even anonymously can sometimes be a challenge.  It is key to create a culture of trust and transparency in the workplace, which starts at the top. This includes behavior such as clear communication, being held accountable for your actions, doing what you say you’ll do, and fostering connection and collaboration between colleagues. When implementing an anonymous reporting channel, as part of a whistleblower platform or otherwise, it’s important to start with first of those behaviors: clear communication.  It is crucial to ‘launch’ your channel, making an announcement to colleagues and setting the guidelines for engaging with it.  Employees may need to be provided with training and education on how to use the system, and it is important to establish who is the individual or individuals in charge of receiving and investigating reports. More on how to effectively implement a whistleblowing platform. Why Introduce a Whistleblowing Platform?Whistleblowing platforms are a very effective tool for anonymous reporting due to the host of features that they come with.  Unlike telephone hotlines, email and physical trust boxes which are now a thing of the past, whistleblowing software offers a secure, encrypted way to anonymously report issues. Such platforms conform to the highest level of data protection, thus providing further reassurance to whistleblowers.  Whistleblowing platforms such as FaceUp are easy-to-use and can be customized to fit within your company’s existing brand guidelines. Such software can easily be integrated into existing solutions, such as HR programmes or your company website. Interested in learning more about how to go about implementing an anonymous whistleblowing platform in your organization? Get in touch with us today to arrange a free demo, or browse some of FaceUp’s features.

There are a variety of standards and certifications which your organization can apply to ensure that your workplace and processes are ethical, transparent and responsible. Many require or suggest the implementation of whistleblowing system, such as the following:  ISO 37301ISO 37301 was introduced by the International Organization for Standardization in April 2021 and sets out guidance on implementing a compliance management system (CMS). It is based on widely accepted principles of good governance, proportionality, transparency and sustainability. One of the key aims of ISO 37301 is to outline the best practice when implementing a whistleblowing policy. These include: Timely and thorough investigation of allegations or suspicions of misconduct.A visible and accessible whistleblowing system.Confidential, anonymous reporting channels.Impartial investigations of any reports of unethical conduct.Comprehensive documentation of reports made.Recording of any lessons learnt changes to the CMS.ISO 37001Published in 2016, ISO 37001 provides guidance and details requirements for the setup and maintenance of an anti-bribery system. ISO 37001 is designed to help combat instances of bribery in the public, private and nonprofit sectors, perpetrated by individuals within the organization, as well as those acting on its behalf, plus a host of other scenarios. ISO 37001 is only intended for use as part of an anti-bribery system, but its recommendations are deliberately generic as to be applicable for any nature of organization.  The introduction of a whistleblowing system in your organization is crucial for complying with ISO37001. Requirement no. 18 specifically calls for the implementation of a whistleblowing system: ‘Implement reporting (whistle-blowing) procedures which encourage and enable persons to report suspected bribery, or any violation of or weakness in the ABMS, to the compliance function or to appropriate personnel’. IATF 16949IATF 16949 is a standard published by the International Automotive Task Force (IATF) and the Technical Committee of ISO, to be used in the creation of a quality management system to allow for ongoing improvement in the automotive industry supply and assembly process. The standard was updated in 2016 to include a stipulation for a whistleblowing policy. The updated version states: ‘[Organizations] shall define and implement corporate responsibility policies, including at a minimum an anti-bribery policy, an employee code of conduct, and an ethics escalation (whistle-blowing) policy.’ TISAXTISAX (Trusted Information Security Assessment Exchange) stipulates the standards for information security management systems within the automotive industry and is now commonplace across Europe. Its requirements are very similar to ISO 27001, differing mainly in the fact that TISAX is designed specifically for the automotive industry, whereas ISO 27001 is a more generalized standard. ISO 27001 focuses on data security within an organization, TISAX secures data throughout the supply chain. SMETASMETA (Sedex Members Ethical Trade Audit) is not a standard as such, but an audit that your organization can request to help you understand labor, health and safety, environmental and ethical standards within your workplace. After the audit, organizations receive an action plan designed to help them take corrective steps. The audit comprises two mandatory pillars, Labor Standards and Healthy & Safety. The two non-compulsory pillars are Business Ethics and Environment.  Sedex recommends providing whistleblowing hotlines across your supply chain, particularly to combat modern slavery. Other standards and certificationsRead about other standards and certifications and how they relate to whistleblowing in our previous blog posts: Whistleblowing guidelines: what you need to know about ISO 37002Whistleblowing requirements and the SA8000How whistleblowing can help improve your company's ESG scoreGet in touch and see how FaceUp can meet your whistleblowing needs. 

Social Accountability International (SAI) is a global non-government organization that protects and advances human rights at work. The Library of Congress in the United States includes the SAI as one of the recommended organizations providing policies and guidelines for socially responsible companies. And GOV.UK, the official website of the UK government, mentions the SAI’s workplace certification, the SA8000 as one of two audits that can be used to combat modern slavery in government supply chains.     Benefits of getting an SA8000 certificateThe SA8000 certification measures organizational practices according to nine criteria: Child LabourForced or Compulsory Labour Health and SafetyFreedom of Association & Right to Collective BargainingDiscriminationDisciplinary PracticesWorking HoursRemunerationManagement System Organizations that apply for an SA8000 certificate signal to stakeholders and the public that they are committed to creating work environments that protect and promote human rights. Having an SA8000 certification also shows potential investors that your organization is a safe investment.  As ESG (Environmental, social, and corporate governance) investing becomes more prevalent, organizations are under increased pressure to ensure that they are above board and operating ethically. The SA8000 is one of the most well-known certifications for ensuring that commitment.    SA8000 whistleblowing requirementsThe SA8000 requires that a company has a written complaint system. This grievance process must be easily accessible, for employees and other interested parties to make complaints, comments, recommendations, or reports about the workplace or violations of SA8000 standards. The SA8000 also specifies that the complaint system must be unbiased, confidential, and non-retaliatory. Once a report is received, the organization needs to have a clearly outlined process for investigating and following up on complaints concerning the workplace or non-conformance to the SA8000 guidelines.  The results of the investigation and response must be freely available to all personnel and interested parties upon request. Finally, The SA8000 makes it clear that the organization can’t in any way punish, dismiss, or discriminate against a member of staff if they choose to make a complaint. Do you need an internal complaints system for the SA8000?FaceUp is an intuitive effective whistleblowing system that matches all of these requirements. FaceUp makes it easy to track reports and respond to issues quickly within your organization. Available in 113 languages, the platform takes minutes to integrate into your organization and makes collecting reports and responding to workplace issues much easier. Get in touch and see how FaceUp can meet your whistleblowing needs.