I am a senior manager in a large company. For obvious reasons I can't be too specific about details, but in general terms, here's my quandary.
The situation concerns Employee X, Employee Y and Company Z. Company Z is a preferred customer who who puts a lot of business our way and gets a special rate, one that is considerably lower than the standard charge. Each month, Employee X makes up the invoices for Company Z and sends them off for payment. It should be noted that the normal working relationship is directly between Employee X and Company Z. For months, since the inception of the business relationship, Employee X has been sending these invoices without the slightest problem.
At the end of last month, Employee X made up the invoices as usual and was about to send them off when they realized that Company Z had not sent a certain detail which needed to be included in the invoices. Employee X then phoned Company Z and asked that this detail be sent. This was on a Friday evening. Company Z replied that at that moment they were up to the eyeballs and could they scout out the detail and send it the following Monday. Employee X, knowing this to be a valued customer, said this would be perfectly fine. So far, so good.
Unfortunately, Employee X went on holiday that evening, so before leaving, approached Employee Y, and asked that they (Y) attach the detail to the invoices once Company Z sent it the following Monday and then send off the invoices as usual. Employee Y promised to do so.
On the Monday, while X was on holiday, Employee Y approached me with the invoices and said that they were for the full amount chargeable, not the special rate we give Company Z. This is a serious breach of working standards and upon Employee X's return, I was obliged to initiate an investigation, on foot of which a disciplinary hearing is now to take place.
Here's the problem. For reasons I can't go into (I don't want to post anything which may identify my company), in my own mind I have not the slightest doubt that Employee Y deliberately falsified the invoices after X had gone in order to drop X in the wotsit. It's easily done, since the invoices are done on a template on the computer and not generally downloaded to hard copy, but sent electronically. It would be no problem at all for Y to have simply changed the numbers on the computer. Unfortunately, I have not a shred of evidence that they actually did this, and while I would cheerfully drop Y off a very tall building, I am forced now to proceed with the disciplinary against X, since the only evidence at all are the invoices themselves. I intend to make it as quick and easy as I can, but I can think of no way to get around it.
My question is, how would you deal with Y? I obviously can't proceed against them though the disciplinary process, and if I start to make things difficult for them at work then I lay myself open to accusations of bullying. Short of watching them like a hawk watches a field mouse until they trip themselves up, is there anything else I can do?
The situation concerns Employee X, Employee Y and Company Z. Company Z is a preferred customer who who puts a lot of business our way and gets a special rate, one that is considerably lower than the standard charge. Each month, Employee X makes up the invoices for Company Z and sends them off for payment. It should be noted that the normal working relationship is directly between Employee X and Company Z. For months, since the inception of the business relationship, Employee X has been sending these invoices without the slightest problem.
At the end of last month, Employee X made up the invoices as usual and was about to send them off when they realized that Company Z had not sent a certain detail which needed to be included in the invoices. Employee X then phoned Company Z and asked that this detail be sent. This was on a Friday evening. Company Z replied that at that moment they were up to the eyeballs and could they scout out the detail and send it the following Monday. Employee X, knowing this to be a valued customer, said this would be perfectly fine. So far, so good.
Unfortunately, Employee X went on holiday that evening, so before leaving, approached Employee Y, and asked that they (Y) attach the detail to the invoices once Company Z sent it the following Monday and then send off the invoices as usual. Employee Y promised to do so.
On the Monday, while X was on holiday, Employee Y approached me with the invoices and said that they were for the full amount chargeable, not the special rate we give Company Z. This is a serious breach of working standards and upon Employee X's return, I was obliged to initiate an investigation, on foot of which a disciplinary hearing is now to take place.
Here's the problem. For reasons I can't go into (I don't want to post anything which may identify my company), in my own mind I have not the slightest doubt that Employee Y deliberately falsified the invoices after X had gone in order to drop X in the wotsit. It's easily done, since the invoices are done on a template on the computer and not generally downloaded to hard copy, but sent electronically. It would be no problem at all for Y to have simply changed the numbers on the computer. Unfortunately, I have not a shred of evidence that they actually did this, and while I would cheerfully drop Y off a very tall building, I am forced now to proceed with the disciplinary against X, since the only evidence at all are the invoices themselves. I intend to make it as quick and easy as I can, but I can think of no way to get around it.
My question is, how would you deal with Y? I obviously can't proceed against them though the disciplinary process, and if I start to make things difficult for them at work then I lay myself open to accusations of bullying. Short of watching them like a hawk watches a field mouse until they trip themselves up, is there anything else I can do?