Harvesting the Company Gripevine

"It depends on the mind-set from the top down," says Foster. "Organizations that see the greatest benefit [from reporting systems] really embrace the concept."

To aid in employee awareness, MySafeWorkplace offers marketing materials including posters, wallet cards and paycheck stuffers. "We like to explore with clients how they communicate employee benefits and leverage those channels," Foster explains.

Employees are right to be wary of companies that have access to reports and have deleted or altered those reports in the past. MySafeWorkplace eliminates this fear because it, rather than the company, receives the reports first. Information can be added to a report by someone else but never erased or ignored, making it impossible for an otherwise telling report to get watered down.

First-Call Foibles

Employee-hot line companies train their own employees to get as much as possible out of that all-important first email or phone call, which is often the only communication they will have with the reporter.

"But in a lot of cases, employees might not [initially] know what information is needed," explains Foster.

Using MySafeWorkplace, employees can post anonymously on message boards 24/7 for executive management eyes only. If more details are needed, management can submit questions to the reporter and create a dialogue in order to effectively recognize and respond to the issue at hand.

Because not every executive manager is well-versed in employment law or criminal science, MySafeWorkplace provides experts in various fields to answer questions and speculate about what a report may indicate, free of charge.

This consulting practice, which Foster claims is unique to his company, can also offer employees a vital third option between remaining anonymous and full disclosure.