Download our free eBook to learn how case management software makes managing hotline tips easier, faster and more in sync with your code of conduct.

1. Establish a Culture of Ethics

If you want your employees to report breaches of ethics, you first have to establish a culture of ethics in your workplace. Developing strong policies is the first step.

Write a Code of Conduct with ethics in mind, and then create ethics and compliance policies that support that CoC and the company culture you want to promote. Be sure to include anti-retaliation commitments to ensure employees feel safe using your ethics hotline.

Regular training on these policies sets expectations for employees to uphold and keeps the company culture of ethics at the front of their minds.

Setting the tone at the top is essential to getting every employee on board with your workplace ethics culture. Employees are more likely to support these ethics developments if executives write the CoC and design the ethics and compliance hotline. When the C-suite commits to transparency and fairness, other employees will follow suit.

RELATED: How to Introduce an Ethics Hotline System into Your Company

2. Promote Your Ethics Hotline Often

There is no point in implementing an ethics hotline if no one is going to use it. Communicating the hotline regularly and through various methods reminds employees that it exists and how to use it.

When your ethics hotline goes live, train employees on your Code of Conduct, such as your organization's ethics and compliance policies. Be sure to iInclude thorough instructions on how to use the new tool. At the end of the training session, every employee should know:

• How to identify an ethics breach
• How to use the ethics hotline
• What to expect after submitting a tip and how to track it

Knowing exactly what to report (and how) ensures your employees won't abuse your ethics hotline or fail to report breaches.

Sometimes employees forget training the minute they leave the meeting room. That's why consistent messaging about the hotline is key. Hang posters in common spaces, include mentions of the ethics hotline in your newsletter, and discuss the results of the reporting mechanism at quarterly meetings. Employees are more likely to use the ethics hotline if it is made easily accessible to them.

To catch every possible tip, make your ethics hotline available to vendors, and  clients, and employees. This builds strong relationships and increases the likelihood of detecting ethics breaches.

Consistent communication about your hotline can boost the number of tips. Hang this poster in a common space as a visual reminder.

3. Guarantee Confidentiality

Employees often hesitate to use an ethics hotline primarily because they fear retaliation or negative consequences. Whether it is because they are afraid their coworkers will call them a snitch or are worried they could face retribution from their employer, employees want assurance of confidentiality when submitting reports.

In addition to using a confidential, secure platform for your ethics hotline, include the option for reporters to remain anonymous. Discussing sensitive topics like ethics breaches may make employees uncomfortable, so giving them the right to remain anonymous makes them more likely to report potential wrongdoing.

Communicating your organization's commitment to preventing retaliation will also likely increase reports on your ethics hotline. Employees don't want to get in trouble with their employer for doing the right thing.

David Reischer, attorney and CEO of LegalAdvice.com, says that "It is always a good idea to emphasize that a whistleblower is not hurting the company by reporting any wrongful behavior but rather are acting morally and legally. If there is a reward or compensation for calling the hotline, then that fact should be promoted too."

4. Create Multiple Reporting Methods

Offering multiple reporting avenues for your ethics hotline increases the chance that employees will actually use it. A dedicated phone line, webform, email or even paper forms give employees the choice of how to submit tips. Based on their location, age, position in the organization and an array of other factors, employees have different preferences for reporting methods. Covering all the options ensures you won't miss a tip due to employee discomfort.

In order to get the most out of the data you collect via your ethics hotline, collaboration across departments is imperative. Human resources, IT and ethics and compliance officers must work together to decide how to receive, record and manage hotline reports.

5. Manage Your Ethics Hotline with a Third Party

Designing and implementing an ethics hotline can be a challenge. Using a third-party case management system makes it easy to capture every tip, create cases surrounding the investigations if needed, and perform risk assessments. An external ethics hotline is not only secure but also saves you money, as it does not require an internal IT staff to manage it.

"By outsourcing your hotline to an independent third party, you guarantee confidentiality and anonymity, which in turn encourages your employees to avail of the system," says Ollie Smith, CEO of the UK's Energy Seek. He also believes that "hotlines create an open, non-retaliatory and more productive workplace."

Case IQ's case management software helps you leverage your ethics hot line data to manage risk. Learn more here.

An ethics hotline that is not communicated well or implemented improperly may go unused or abused. Regularly evaluating, testing and auditing your reporting mechanism ensures it is operating efficiently and as intended.