Flat Rock Executives to Unveil Genu to European Audience

Posted on 05/30/12

Flat Rock Founder and Chairman Chris Hoyer will speak at the Sixth Annual European GRC Summit, in Copenhagen, Denmark June 6th and 7th. Also presenting at this year’s Governance, Risk Management and Compliance conference will be Flat Rock President of Services Frank Hailstones.

The focus of their presentations will be Genu-- the groundbreaking, new software just unveiled to the public in May. Genu is a cloud-based, investigative management system that provides a revolutionary way to capture knowledge, collaborate with colleagues, keep track of developments, and prepare a winning presentation.

Hoyer will tell the story of Genu’s development which started more than 25 years ago while he was running a United States prosecutor’s office in Tampa, Florida. Overseeing investigations with the FBI that sometimes took years, it drove him crazy to see 1000’s and 1000’s of documents, charts, audio tapes, and spreadsheets, etc., shoved into boxes and forgotten over the period of a long investigation. He figured there had to be a better way, and he was going to find it. Genu is the culmination of that effort. Hoyer will recount the colorful journey that ultimately produced Genu.

Hailstones is an industry expert on auditing and anti-fraud technology. Before joining Flat Rock, he worked at PricewaterhouseCoopers for nearly 20 years in Audit and Risk Management. He will discuss how Genu can help the Audit and Forensic Accounting market.

The annual Copenhagen Compliance Conference focuses on these key issues:

“… how management can implement initiatives that are aimed at improving transparency, mitigating systemic risk and protecting stakeholders against the many abuses that fundamentally will affect the way in which the company operates.”

This respected annual event brings together the industry's most experienced keynote speakers and panelists from 11 countries to discuss the latest techniques and equipment to ensure best practices and optimal risk management. For more information visit the conference website.

Flat Rock Founder to Speak at Legal Tech 2012

Posted on 05/15/12

Flat Rock Founder and Chairman Chris Hoyer will launch Genu, the company's new knowledge management software, at Legal Tech West Coast 2012. Hoyer will tell the story of his journey from federal prosecutor to civil litigator to software designer and how his obsession with technology and powerful, effective investigations made it possible to create this breakthrough product.

Hoyer's quest began more than 25 years ago to create the perfect computer based system, to help his lawyers organize, collaborate and develop strong narratives to win their cases. He cracked the code on success and will explain how his colorful career offered inspiration along the way.

From running an undercover bar with the FBI to infiltrate an organized crime ring... to being one of the only law firms in the country with a fully operational TV studio and media team, Hoyer has always worked on another level, and Genu is no different. He's taken old fashioned case management into a new era where binders and boxes of documents are replaced by the iPad.

Hoyer originally developed this software to help his own office, but is now sharing it with the legal community. Attendees will learn about his revolutionary process to make the narrative, not documents, king in your cases.

Join Hoyer for his presentation at Legal Tech West Coat 2012 , one of the most important legal technology events of the year. He will speak at 10:30am Pacific time, on Tuesday, May 22, 2012, at the Westin Bonaventure Hotel in Los Angeles. Always sharp and unpredictable, Hoyer's presentation is sure to be a highlight of this year's conference.

From Prosecutor to Tech Guru

Posted on 04/10/12

Chris Hoyer, Senior Partner - James, Hoyer, Newcomer & Smiljanich, P.A.

Chris Hoyer is well known for his years as a federal and state prosecutor and civil litigator, but what many don't know is that he's also a cutting edge software designer. That lesser known talent of the James Hoyer Law Firm Founding Partner is being touted on the national stage in the March/April 2012 issue of the American Bar Association's GP SOLO Magazine.

In the article "Making Magic with Courtroom Technology," author Kathleen Balthrop Havener describes the magical possibilities that technology can unleash for lawyers in their office and in the courtroom. She describes a "wizard world" that connects all the attorneys in a firm, whether they're in the office or on the road. Through one integrated system, they can collaborate in real-time, easily access and edit all documents online, and even extract and tag nuggets of knowledge from research to be quickly retrieved later.

As Balthrop Havener reveals in the article, this is no longer imaginary. It's real, and it's the brainchild of Chris Hoyer. She writes:

In researching this article, I visited Chris Hoyer at the 16-lawyer Tampa, Florida, firm of James, Hoyer, Newcomer & Smiljanich, P.A., where Hoyer has implemented his own proprietary system of integrated technologies. I watched as Hoyer showed me what his system can do, and I watched him perform all the tasks described in this article.

Hoyer has been designing software for 25 years, ever since his days running a prosecutor's office. Now, he's put that skill to work for fellow attorneys by creating a revolutionary, new, cloud-based software called Genu. It's a state of the art system created by a lawyer, for lawyers.

Flat Rock CEO Speaks at IRE

Posted on 06/10/11

Investigative Reporters & Editors Get Tips on Uncovering Fraud

Orlando, FL – Flat Rock Forensics CEO Chris Hoyer shared his expertise as a civil litigator and former federal and state prosecutor with some of the country's best journalists at this year's annual Investigative Reporters & Editors Conference in Orlando.

Hoyer has spent almost 40 years specializing in cases of fraud and corruption. His colorful career has taken him from the courtroom to Hollywood. As a former federal and state prosecutor and member of the US Justice Department Organized Crime Task Force, he handled several high profile cases, including an undercover operation which became the basis for the mob movie "Donnie Brasco."

At IRE, Hoyer talked about his many roles over the years, always centered on fighting fraud. "I've morphed a lot, just being that nosey, pesky, annoying guy who hates people who get way with cheating," he said.

Today, Hoyer's role has morphed into the leader of an elite investigative company which mines and manages knowledge for clients in government, business and academia. He explained how new technology can take investigations to another level, but made it clear that old-fashioned, time-tested techniques cannot be discarded.

"Don't rely only on the internet or databases. You've got to pick up the phone and talk to people to find what you need," he said.

Hoyer also described new software developed by Flat Rock Forensics which can manage in-depth investigations by journalists. The KRADE system eliminates the all-too-common practice in complex investigations of "Find it. Save it. Forget it."

The massive amount of information uncovered in investigations that take months or even years can be overwhelming. KRADE is a revolutionary way to deal with that problem. It creates an easy to use organic system where "knowledge" is extracted from information as it comes in, while it's still fresh in your mind. You no longer have the burden of putting your story all together at the end. The KRADE system allows you to write it as you go, always updating and improving it with the best, most compelling information.

Whether it's documents, charts, interview summaries, audio and video recordings or any other piece of information, KRADE provides a simple tool to capture key information and organize it with everything else you have, while always retaining the ability to go back and review the original source.

Hoyer calls it a "game changer" in the management of investigations.

Flat Rock Unveils KRADE

Posted on 04/05/11

Revolutionary Knowledge Management Software

Tampa, FL – Flat Rock Forensics today announced the development of a new software solution for managing investigations. KRADE is a revolutionary system which uses an intuitive approach to extract and save "knowledge" from the massive amounts of information that comprise in-depth investigations.

KRADE stands for Knowledge Retention And Display Engine, and it does just that. It retains the knowledge you want to remember and displays it in a simple format for your review. It eliminates the all too common practice in complex investigations of "Find it. Save it. Forget it." KRADE gives users the ability to capture and organize key information from its source as it comes in while it's still fresh in your mind, rather than just saving it in a repository for review later.

Reams of documents, charts, interview summaries and audio & video recordings can be debilitating when it comes time to put a report, case or story together. With the KRADE system, you put your story together as you go, rather than waiting until the end, while always retaining the ability to review original source information at the touch of a finger.

Multiple investigators working on the same project are instantly able to stay up to date on the latest, best information uncovered. KRADE gives managers immediate access to the knowledge a team is developing to make sure the investigation is on the right track.

Flat Rock Forensics is developing multiple formats for the KRADE system tailoring it to the unique needs of several different industries, including:

• Legal case management
• Government investigations
• Academic research
• Journalism research

The Flat Rock team provides unique expertise in developing this software. The company's principals carry broad credentials in managing investigations in government, business, journalism and academic arenas. They know what's needed. They know what works, because they've been there. Leading Flat Rock's innovation is CEO Chris Hoyer, an expert in complex litigation, a former federal and state prosecutor, campaign manager and software designer.

"I've been conducting and supervising investigations for almost 40 years and what becomes most challenging is remembering all you've learned over two, three, four or five years. KRADE solves that problem. It's almost the opposite of all systems out there today that simply store information. KRADE actually keeps track of knowledge. It's never been done before, and it's a game changer." said Hoyer.

The new KRADE software system will be available to the public in early 2012.

Flat Rock Systems Launched

Posted on 02/21/11

Groundbreaking Investigation Management

Tampa, FL – Flat Rock Forensics, announces the launch of an elite investigative company which mines and manages knowledge. Flat Rock conducts and consults on investigations for government agencies and private clients.

Using Flat Rock's proprietary software, a unique and diverse group of professionals craft custom solutions for these select public and private clients. Information is transformed into knowledge, whether managing, conducting or consulting on complex investigations or research projects.

The principals of the company have broad experience across a wide range of industries:

• Legal analysis
• Private investigation
• Government management
• Financial analysis
• Risk assessment
• National Security & Intelligence
• Software development
• Journalism research
• Academic research

Attorney Chris Hoyer is the CEO of Flat Rock Forensics. As a former federal and state prosecutor, civil litigator, campaign manager and software designer, Hoyer's eclectic leadership brings together a uniquely, talented group of professionals.

Partners in Flat Rock Forensics include: Frank Hailstones, corporate governance expert, former Senior Partner of PricewaterhouseCoopers in the United Kingdom; Heather Anderson, systems engineering expert, former Director of Strategic Integration at the Department of Defense; Carol Haave, national security strategist, former Deputy Undersecretary of Defense for Counterintelligence & Security, former Assistant Secretary for International Affairs at the Department of Homeland Security; Jaya Prakash Rao, information technology executive with large corporations and venture-backed start-ups, including Oracle, ArcSight, Corio; Attorney Edie Curry, anti-fraud expert, former Capital One attorney, former Assistant Treasurer Nestle; Terrance Chu, financial and commercial law, compliance and privacy expert, former in-house counsel Bank of America and JPMorgan Chase; Attorney John Newcomer, False Claims Act and Complex Fraud Litigation expert; Jim Ross, former Investigative Journalist, Florida Attorney General's Office Economic Crimes Investigator and Certified Fraud Examiner.

The Next Generation of Investigative Case Management: Genu

Posted on 08/11/11

Challenges of Complex Investigations

Three critical, interlinked elements can make or break a complex investigation: the length of time it takes, the huge volume of data, and an investigator's ability to remember all that he's learned. These challenges are magnified when investigators come an go during long-term investigation, when multiple agencies become involved, and when the subject matter concerns complex financial instruments of such modern scandals as Enron and WorldCom.

Even the most talented investigative teams can be overcome by the avalanche of knowledge that is our electronic world. The Internet is at once a blessing and a curse for investigations. So much more can be found, but the sheer volume can bury an investigator. As YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, instant messages, e-mail, mobile audio/video recordings, and blogs have become indispensable, the amount of discoverable electronic information has increased exponentially.

Too much knowledge can be as debilitating as too little. An investigator does not have a prayer of remembering – much less finding again – a nugget of information that may not have seemed relevant when uncovered years earlier among the hundreds of interviews and millions of pages of information that make up a long-term, complex investigation. Similarly, senior managers have no hope of properly leading an investigation when they have to wait until final reports are complete to determine whether additional steps must be taken or items reworked.

Genu is the Solution

This is why Genu was developed. Genu is a knowledge management system that organizes and displays what investigators know and how they know it.

Genu was made by practitioners for practitioners. Genu's developers have decades of collective expertise in private, state, and federal investigations. The vision for Genu is to enable attorneys, investigators, and other knowledge workers to more effectively collaborate and utilize organizational knowledge with the support of an organic knowledge management framework.

In Genu, the investigator captures key knowledge from source material while it is "fresh." Genu's innovative software features organize the knowledge by issue and provide the tools to display it in the ever-growing narrative with links to the original source material. The investigator's entire team sees the information as it is inputted so that they can collaborate with each other on every unit of knowledge. The narrative's caretaker then incorporates the knowledge into the story with a link to the original material. This way, the information is properly processed at the outset so that years down the road, it's not only easy to find, but also easy to understand its import. Genu thus eliminates the common practice: "Find it. Save it. Forget it."

The proper processing of knowledge will save you time and money. For example, a securities investigation may rely on public information culled from filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. These filings fill hundreds of single-spaced, double-sided pages with innocuous information. But sometimes an essential nugget may be found in a single line or in just a few paragraphs. An investigator may spend an entire day or days reading the dense filings and jot down a note about the essential information. If that note isn't properly stored, the pertinent page flagged, and the importance reduced to a report, then the entire day(s) of reading will be lost when that piece of information is buried but needed years down the road. Without Genu, you are forced to pay a team member to duplicate this work and come up with the knowledge that you should already have.

Collaborate with Anyone

Genu provides invaluable collaborative features that allow investigators to invite associates, witnesses, regulators, or even the investigatory targets in to see their project. Genu's customization tools allow administrators to dictate exactly what a user can see. For example, an investigator can allow a regulator to see the entire project when collaborating on a common goal. On the other hand, the investigator may determine that an internal or external user should only be granted permission to see just one section of a project, or even one page of a project.

Similar collaborative tools are extremely cost-prohibitive and require the installation and maintenance of cumbersome software. Genu provides the collaborative features as part of the product. Since it is a product made by investigators for investigators, it provides the type of collaborative tools needed to advance a project and the necessary security so that the investigator can rest-assured that their entire file isn't being opened to the world if they need portions kept confidential.

Take Control of Investigations

Since Genu allows all project members to review what's important as it's uncovered and analyzed, managers can take advantage of this real-time activity to constantly refocus and redirect investigative resources. As the investigatory narrative develops with links to the supportive material, managers know after a few clicks of a mouse whether the investigation is going down the right road or whether it needs to explore other options. All that's needed is an internet connection to access the secure website.

Such real-time management of investigations is vital in a world where investigatory workloads have escalated to the point that simply keeping track of things is paramount. In 2008, the offices of 93 U.S. attorneys opened "matters for investigation" involving 178,570 suspects. Two years earlier, assistant state attorneys reported closing an average of 90 felony cases each. On the civil side, millions of cases are filed each year, many of which are complex cases – like the Lehman Brothers collapse and the Madoff Ponzi Scheme – that are labor and document intensive.

A few years ago, the production of documents in one complex case might have filled hundreds of banker's boxes. Today, that same amount of data is stored on a single hard drive. But as the cost of storage falls, the cost of reviewing the data rises. For example, it costs only $1 to store a gigabyte of data, but reviewing the same information can easily exceed $30,000.

These overwhelming workloads challenge senior managers responsible for deciding whether to curtail an investigation or to re-direct their teams. Using traditional case management systems, it's not until everything is complete before an audit or other "back-end" review identifies where the investigators need to circle back. The cost of rework can be considerable – costing as much as 15 percent of the total engagement. Further, final reports may go through multiple re-writes during which information is lost or misinterpreted before the senior manager sees it.

Genu sidesteps these issues by giving the senior managers access to the "final" report as it grows organically during the investigation. These reports integrate the best evidence, whether it's social media, images, or audio and video recordings. With just a click. every member of the project team can hear or see what's important and take immediate action.

The ability to review in real-time fosters efficiency. The senior managers do not need to organize conference calls or meetings that pull team members from their duties. Instead, the senior manager can observe the day-to-day progress of the investigators without interrupting their workflow.

Genu in a Nutshell

As explained above, Genu solves the daunting challenge of retrieving knowledge and making sense of it. Here's how Genu does it in a nutshell:

• Manage all kinds of files under one roof. All documents, video, audio and other evidence, whatever the format, are kept in one place. The documentation gathered at any site can be viewed and annotated from anywhere in the world.
• Organize evidence. Evidence is linked to the pertinent issues and projects for easy retrieval. Using a feature called the "Recommender," Genu suggests related material located in other investigative files to prevent duplicity of work and create evidentiary relationships.
• Collaborate with anyone. Investigators can invite internal and external users to take part in a portion of or all of their projects. The permissions settings are so granular that administrators can dictate whether an internal or external user can see an entire project, a section of a project, or a page of a project.
• Check on projects and team members in real-time. Everybody working an investigation – auditors, clients, and law enforcement – can see what others are doing, what has been learned, and what still needs to be learned. Managers can redirect resources midstream.
• Distill knowledge. Complex information can be boiled down, not only to its essence, but to its relevance. While the information is "fresh," the investigator extracts salient points and organizes the "knowledge" by issue to make searches effective and easy.
• Create a multi-media narrative. Advanced knowledge display tools allow for the incorporation of video, audio, and images into a project to persuasively tell the investigation's story.

The Case for Smarter Hiring

Posted on 08/12/11

A vexing problem facing government employers and commercial partners is vetting new hires to make sure they qualify for national security clearance or meet government checks, required for everything from banking to finance to insurance.

Public and private employers face competing requirements: determining whether that new hire is who he says and accomplishing that while not violating employee privacy. It's daunting and costly, particularly where national security is involved.

Last year, for example, the Department of Defense spent $218.7 million on security clearance investigations. Private contractors spent hundreds of millions more paying new hires with the hope that they'll measure up to government standards.

The costs of these background investigations are rising 5% a year. Clearances themselves are still taking months to complete. All the while, private contractors are paying new hires with the hope that they'll pass muster. Screening is less complex but just as difficult for commercial employers, who must sift through the vast data store now available on potential employees.

The burden is growing with new federal regulations governing individual privacy, discrimination and the Fair Credit Reporting Act.

Flat Rock Systems has developed a solution to make the process efficient, reliable and cost-effective. Called SCORE, this new data product leverages the full breadth of commercially available, personal data. Its underlying algorithms link data and behavior and note anomalies. The system handles tens of thousands of applications a day and returns results overnight.

Consider an employer selecting from 10 job applicants.

SCORE evaluates them and ranks the likelihood of each meeting the standard for a security clearance. Maybe the Risk Report finds that three of the 10 would not qualify for government work because:

• One applicant has dual citizenship, making him ineligible for a clearance.
• The second has credit issues that make him high risk.
• The third has a pattern of writing bad checks that make him high risk.

SCORE goes beyond that, giving context to whatever is uncovered. The "Risk Score" reflects not only the impact of whatever is uncovered but its relative weight in the person's profile, the reliability of the data and other factors.

It also educates the employer on the type and level of risk each individual represents when exposed to critical, sensitive positions. Someone might be low risk in general but a poor risk for handling cash. Someone else might be fine handling cash but can't get clearance because he has active ties to a foreign government.

The realities of today's world make this patent-pending tool invaluable:

• Budgetary constraints. With government budgets tight, contractors feel the pain. Companies can't afford to keep skilled workers idle while waiting a long time to get security clearance. SCORE expedites the process.
• Resume fraud. The Society of Human Resources Managers estimates that more than half of job applications include false information. In a survey of 2.6 million job applicants, 44% lied about their work experience, 23% fabricated credentials, 41% lied about their education.
• Changing demographics. Second generation and naturalized U.S. citizens with deep connections to their native countries have become common in U.S. technical disciplines. Those with conflicting loyalties between countries are seen as higher risk.

SCORE differs from many commercial data based background investigation products in that whatever SCORE uncovers is shown to the subject before the employer sees it, giving the subject the opportunity to address errors or omissions.

It is not only a pre-screen tool. SCORE "Continuous Evaluation" detects and follows up on evidence indicating that cleared individuals may have become unacceptable to hold a sensitive position. An employer can track recent changes to an employee's file and the impact on his risk score, as well as supporting documentation.

The product can be tailored to a client's needs and adapted to meet the ever-changing government requirements to obtain security clearances and pass trustworthiness checks.