How Yara International brought significant efficiency to their investigations

Striving for climate neutrality and a nature-positive future, Yara operates in over 60 countries, supported by a team dedicated to upholding the highest conduct standards globally. A key priority for the organisation is fostering an ethical business culture. In pursuit of enhancing their internal reporting system for investigations, Yara partnered with SpeakUp in 2016, introducing their Ethics Hotline, now a cornerstone of their ethics and compliance strategy.

In late 2023, arising from the need to manage cases in a simplified manner, Yara adopted SpeakUp's next-gen whistleblowing software, with an integrated case management system. We explored Yara International's journey making significant efficiency gains by talking to Daniel R. Roland III, Head of Investigations, who leads the company's global investigations.

The challenge: detangling the administrative web

Like many organisations, Yara encountered a substantial administrative hurdle. Considering the intricate demands of managing investigations, the question arose: How can Ethics & Compliance streamline internal investigations and integrate actions, including retaliation monitoring, to ensure focused attention on each case?

For Yara, seeking an integrated internal reporting/case management solution was more than merely replacing outdated tools; it was about discovering a dependable and proficient system capable of simplifying administrative tasks, and in turn, facilitating more efficient investigation processes.

“My job came to a point where I was spending a lot of time clicking, saving on SharePoint, Excel etc. Excessive admin work was taking me away from what matters: overseeing thorough, efficient, and effective investigations. We needed to minimise distractions to maintain our high standards.”

An added challenge they faced was managing the sheer volume of communication. Daniel mentions, his team supporting investigations is spread out globally, and they were inundated with emails, overwhelmed by the need to keep track of numerous folders and reminders. In addition, complying with records retention and GDPR was also a challenge since records & Information resided in different repositories.

Behind the choice to introduce a streamlined case management software

Initially, the focus was on SharePoint integrations, but the need for a comprehensive and integrated case management system became apparent. They sought for a case management system that, in short, does it all – reduce hours spent on administrative work, simplify the process to handle cases, adhere to compliance, confidentiality and manage resulting actions from cases.

By the end of 2023, SpeakUp’s next gen whistleblowing platform was adopted within their ethics and compliance program for its simplicity and ability to address their specific needs.

“We felt that a SharePoint site with workflows, approvals, and notifications would have been great. But then, SpeakUp offered something that fit our needs perfectly.”

SpeakUp platform’s case management system was a key factor in alleviating the administrative burden, allowing for more flexibility and customisation capabilities.

Transforming administrative nightmares into efficiency

“SpeakUp has solved the administrative nightmare.”

Right from the get-go after implementing SpeakUp, Daniel experienced a profound improvement in managing investigations:

Time reduction in administrative work

The integration of reporting and case management reduced the time spent on administrative tasks, consolidating multiple databases into a single, user-friendly platform.

Overview of communication

The platform facilitated better tracking and communication among the global team, reducing the reliance on emails and disparate files.

Far more efficient report handling

SpeakUp enabled a more efficient process for handling reports, disciplinary actions, and proactive retaliation monitoring, all within one tool.

Finding a partner that simply fits your needs

The successful partnership between Yara and SpeakUp since 2016 magnifies one thing: when organisations share the same vision for ethical integrity, where a robust reporting culture is of utmost priority, we can better solve challenges and unburden cumbersome processes. As Daniel aptly puts it,

“Why explore something outside when you have an excellent partner offering something that fits your needs?”

As Head of Investigations, Daniel expresses that he doesn’t have one hesitation in using the SpeakUp software himself for reporting. To close things off, Daniel shared advice on organisations who are on the lookout for an internal reporting software.

“I would recommend SpeakUp to any organisation seeking to cut down administrative workload and benefit from a user-friendly case management tool with easily customisable fields, while not compromising on confidentiality, privacy and overall compliance.”