Eli Makus Joins Faculty for AWI Advanced Seminar for Workplace Investigators
Senior Partner Eli Makus recently presented at the 2026 Association of Workplace Investigators (AWI) Advanced Seminar for Workplace Investigators, leading a two-day training session on April 16–17 in Marina del Rey, California.More About the Training:
Each workplace investigation has its own challenges, requiring investigators to make difficult decisions, both factually and procedurally. The Advanced Seminar for Workplace Investigators is a dynamic and immersive program specifically designed for seasoned workplace investigators. While new concepts and information will be presented in a lecture format, this program offers collaborative learning through interactive large and small group discussions. Attendees will learn from both the presenters and their peers as we work together to wrestle with the issues that keep us up late at night.Learning Objectives:
Apply advanced, trauma-informed and neuro-affirming interviewing techniques to elicit reliable, detailed evidence from complainants, respondents, and witnesses with trauma histories, mental health conditions, or neurodivergent communication styles—without compromising neutrality, due process, or evidentiary rigor.
Integrate cultural competency and implicit-bias awareness into investigative decision-making in order to more accurately assess credibility, interpret behavior, and avoid analytical errors that can undermine findings in cross-cultural and high-stakes investigations.
Synthesize complex evidence in high-conflict, high-emotion investigations by integrating trauma dynamics, cultural context, and divergent communication styles into a coherent, legally defensible analytical framework that separates impact from intent, perception from fact, and narrative from proof.
Produce and defend investigation reports that withstand expert scrutiny and deposition attack, including crafting precise factual findings, well-reasoned analyses, and clear credibility determinations—and effectively explaining and defending methodology, judgment calls, and conclusions in depositions.
Faculty
Britt-Marie Cole-Johnson, AWI-CH, Robinson+Cole
Daphne Pierre Bishop, AWI-CH, Bishop Workplace Investigations
Hugh Gardner, AWI-CH, Lockheed Martin
Karen Kramer, AWI-CH, Kramer Workplace Investigations
DD Madden, AWI-CH, DocuSign
Eli Makus, AWI-CH, Van Dermyden Makus
Reuben Mjaanes, AWI-CH, Medtronic
Liz Rooney, AWI-CH, Investigations Law Group, LLC
Christina (Tina) J. Ro-Connolly, AWI-CH, Oppenheimer Investigations Group LLP
Keith Rohman, AWI-CH, Public Interest Investigations, Inc.
