ASIS International recently published tips on how to conduct sensitive interviews with empathy while remaining professional, based on insights from a veteran investigator.

Scot Walker, PCI, previously served in the U.S. military as an investigator, where he interviewed individuals on many sensitive or potentially upsetting subjects, before becoming a private investigator with his own firm, Walker & Associates.

He emphasized that, first and foremost, investigators should be focused on fact-finding, while also recognizing that individuals they are interviewing may have been victimized and experienced trauma. Other tips guide how to set up an interview room, how to be more patient and empathetic, and how to avoid judgement.

Access the full interview in ASIS’s publication, Security Management.