Your CRM tracks cases. But is your tech stack built for investigations and briefs of evidence?

Many organisations rely on platforms like Salesforce, Microsoft Dynamics, or ServiceNow to manage cases and workflows. They log complaints, route referrals, track tasks, and measure turnaround times. On paper, everything looks under control.

But ask an investigator where the real work happens, and you’ll often hear a different story: shared drives, email chains, spreadsheets, Word briefs stitched together at the last minute, and evidence stored in ways that make legal teams nervous.

That’s the gap.

CRMs like Salesforce, Microsoft Dynamics and ServiceNow are built for service workflows — high-volume, predictable, rules-based processes. They are excellent at intake, triage and case administration. They give leaders visibility and help organisations move work efficiently.

Investigations are not that kind of work.

Investigations are messy, evolving and evidence-driven. They don’t follow neat linear paths. They involve testing hypotheses, managing sensitive material, building chronologies and aligning facts to legislative elements. This is done all under the expectation that decisions may be challenged in court, tribunals or public inquiries.

Even the best CRM starts to strain here. Not because it’s a bad system, but because it was never designed to:

• Structure and manage a legally defensible brief of evidence

• Support investigative planning, lines of enquiry, and hypothesis testing

• Maintain chain of custody and evidentiary integrity for large volumes of material

• Guide matters through enforcement pathways, from compliance to prosecution

Without these capabilities, investigators improvise. Work gets fragmented. Risk creeps in. Consistency and quality drop.

Forward-looking agencies aren’t replacing their CRM, they’re pairing it with a purpose-built investigative platform. The CRM handles intake, service workflows, and operational visibility. The investigative system becomes the engine room: managing evidence properly, structuring investigations, and building briefs that stand up to scrutiny.

It’s not about replacing what works. It’s about ensuring your most complex, high-stakes cases are supported by tools designed for the job.