Business Plan 2020-21

The SFO’s purpose is to investigate and, where appropriate, prosecute the top-tier of serious complex fraud, bribery and corruption cases.

Our goal is to achieve this by delivering at pace, with a keen focus on our operations and people. We will make best use of the full range of investigative tools available to us as we enhance our ability to tackle ever-increasing volumes of digital material. We continue to develop and strengthen our relationships with key partners to deliver justice more effectively.

This Business Plan for 2020-21 focuses on the priorities that will enable us to realise our vision as set out in our three-year Strategic Plan. Our priorities span four key areas: Operations, People, Stakeholders and Technology. Since I started as Director, I have championed the need for cooperation with our partners both in the UK and internationally. We have achieved significant success from this increased cooperation; it therefore continues to be a priority in our Business Plan. We will work hand in hand with our partners at home and abroad to promote and uphold the rule of law.

Effective investigation and prosecution is at our core. We are working to embed the right culture to enhance delivery and collaboration across the lifecycle of our operations. We will seek to further develop our intelligence capability that underpins our work with partners to identify emerging criminal trends that allow us to stay ahead of the game. We will make the best use of our digital tools and available technology to deliver at pace whilst maintaining high quality in our work. In this way, we will generate public confidence in our work and provide a positive and supportive experience for complainants, victims and witnesses throughout.

We are committed to our people and will build on the solid foundation built during the first year of our culture change programme. We remain determined to making the SFO a diverse, inclusive, excellent place to work. We will focus on developing our people by applying an organisation-wide resourcing model based on the array of talents possessed by our staff. Our use of technology supports everything we do. We will work within government parameters to consolidate our technology so that it provides the strongest possible foundation to enhance our work.

We face an exponentially increasing quantity of digital material each year, as well as ever-complex criminality. This is why the quality of our systems and technology is so critical to delivering efficiency and pace in our work. We will continue to collaborate with others to secure results. The SFO has highly effective working relationships with its partners. This is important now, more than ever, as we approach the end of the UK/EU transition period. Our cooperative approach and professionalism is not just important to our casework; it is critical to all that we do. We have adjusted our ways of working in response to the current Covid-19 crisis but we remain operational and committed to delivering our mission.

Our global vision and the goal of excellence drive us forward as we strive to make the UK a high-risk place for the world’s most sophisticated criminals to operate.

As investigators and prosecutors we must dedicate ourselves to doing our part with excellence, and diligence, and a commitment to justice.

Lisa Osofsky

Director of the SFO

Core purpose, mission & values

The SFO’s purpose is to investigate and, where appropriate, prosecute the top-tier cases of serious complex fraud, bribery and corruption. We also recover the proceeds of those crimes we investigate and assist overseas jurisdictions in their investigations into serious or complex fraud, bribery and corruption.

As an organisation, our Mission is to:

• Deliver fair and effective justice through the independent investigation and prosecution of top tier crimes involving serious or complex fraud, bribery and corruption.
• Take on cases which call for the multi-disciplinary approach (the Roskill model) and legislative powers available to the SFO to reduce economic harm to UK plc.
• Uphold and promote the Rule of Law.
• Put victims and witnesses at the heart of every case.

How will the SFO achieve this?

Our Strategic Objectives reflect our commitment to deliver fair and effective justice.

We will:

• Investigate and, if appropriate, prosecute serious or complex fraud, bribery and corruption cases fairly and effectively.
• Recover the proceeds of these serious or complex crimes fairly and effectively.
• Develop, and strengthen, constructive relationships with partners both in the UK and internationally.
• Build an effective and inclusive workforce, treating our staff fairly and with respect and dignity.
• Provide value for money in everything we do.

• Excellence: we strive for excellence in all that we do
• Integrity and professionalism: we make objective decisions whilst always mindful of quality and value for money
• Respect: we show respect to one another, to our external partners and to the wider public.
• Openness and transparency: we share information with each other and, where appropriate, others; explaining our decisions and learning from our mistakes

Operations People Stakeholders Technology

Airbus (Bribery & Corruption)

In January 2020, the SFO entered into a deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) with Airbus, in which Airbus agreed to pay €991m in profit disgorgement, fines and costs. The SFO’s DPA with Airbus is part of the world’s largest global resolution for bribery, with DPAs also agreed between Airbus and French and US authorities, totalling €3.6bn. This represented the culmination of dedicated international cooperation as a global company was held to account for long-running, complex and serious wrongdoing.

The record-breaking settlement is testament to the Director’s focus on close cooperation with our partners at home and abroad.

Anna Machkevitch (Section 2 powers)

In January 2020, the SFO secured a conviction against Anna Machkevitch for failing to comply with a Section 2 notice to disclose documents in respect of a company under investigation by the SFO. Machkevitch was not a suspect in the investigation, but her failure to comply with the lawful notice has resulted in a criminal conviction. This successful prosecution demonstrates the SFO’s commitment to use the full range of powers available to it and to take action against those who seek to obstruct our investigative efforts.

SFO Case Studies

Strubel and Saunders (Compensating Victims)

The SFO’s Proceeds of Crime and International Assistance division secured confiscation orders totalling over £7 million against two former executives of a company that had enticed individuals from within their community to invest in an electrical wholesale company. The fraudsters had claimed their company was a reputable supplier of electrical goods to hotel chains and the Olympic Village. The money from these confiscation orders represents the full realisable assets from their criminal benefit and will be used to compensate victims.

Solar Energy Savings confiscation (Proceeds of Crime)

The SFO’s Proceeds of Crime and International Assistance division secured over £840,000 for the victims of a solar panel fraud from four men who had been handed confiscation orders to pay back the proceeds of their crime or face additional time in prison. All of the money from the orders will be paid compensation to the victims. Six individuals were convicted in August 2018 in relation to the fraud that netted them over £17million, which funded an extravagant lifestyle, expensive cars and luxury overseas holidays.

We will focus our operations to ensure our cases progress at pace and apply our procedures, policies and processes consistently across the organisation, to deliver justice more efficiently. We will contribute to wider law enforcement efforts to identify and tackle persistent and emerging criminal threats to protect the public and the UK economy.

We will do this by:

1. Continuing to use the full range of technology and digital tools to aid case
progression.

2. Developing our intelligence capabilities alongside our law enforcement partners so we can anticipate, identify and adapt to new and emerging fraud and other economic crime trends

3. Further embedding collaborative working across the lifecycle of our cases.

4. Monitoring and ensuring consistency in the way we work.

Our Key Priorities for 2020–21

Operations

We will implement an organisational structure that enables strong and transparent leadership. We will deliver a workforce plan that meets our current and future requirements, incorporating both
resourcing and development needs. We will embark upon the second phase of our three-year culture change programme to make the SFO a truly inclusive and great place to work. We will do this by:

1. Building further on the significant investment in the training and development of our people, thereby improving our capacity and talent as an office.

2. Increasing the transparency of our decision-making and strengthening our communication at all levels on key issues.

3. Applying an organisation wide resourcing model that recognises and utilises the array of talent and skills we have. This also includes ensuring the correct balance of permanent and temporary staff, as well as staff on development programmes.

People 

Stakeholders

We will continue to build on our collaborative efforts through our engagement strategy with our key stakeholders and law  enforcement partners at home and across the world. We will continue to work with the Home Office and other partners to prepare for the end of the UK/EU transition period.

We will do this by:

1. Building on our relationships with key stakeholders across government including the National Economic Crime Centre, Crown Prosecution Service, criminal justice partners and law enforcement agencies in the UK and abroad.

2. Continuing to deliver the highest standards of care to victims and witnesses in our dealings with them.

3. Improving public confidence and understanding of the SFO’s role through communicating our work and strategy to key partners, stakeholders and parliamentarians.

4. Implementing our preparations for the end of the UK/EU transition period, across the range of possible outcomes scenarios, to ensure we continue to try to obtain evidence, support and other information for the successful delivery of our casework.

5. We will increase our contribution in support of the work to deliver the Government’s priorities and strategies on tackling economic crime, serious organised crime and anti-corruption.

We will strive to be ahead of the curve and apply industry standard technology to meet the increasing demand for smarter digital interaction between people, systems and information. We will
ensure all staff have the right training and access to maximise the benefits of the new technology we implement.

We will do this by:

1. Investing further in our digital and forensic capabilities.

2. Continuing to modernise our working practices through investment in improved technology, including delivering the rollout of the new Document Management System.

3. Managing, storing and utilising our data effectively and securely to maximise business and operational capability.

4. Reducing our carbon footprint and adopting sustainable ways of working where appropriate.

Technology

Struture

Strategic 

Annex: SFO strategic plan 2019–22

Our Mission

• To deliver fair and effective justice through the independent investigation and prosecution of top tier crimes involving serious or complex fraud, bribery and corruption.
• To take on cases which call for the multidisciplinary approach and legislative powers available to the SFO (the Roskill model) to reduce economic harm to UK Plc.
• To uphold and promote the Rule of Law.
• To put victims and witnesses at the heart of every case.

“Our global vision and the goal of excellence drive us forward as we strive to make the UK a high-risk place for the world’s most sophisticated criminals to operate.

Lisa Osofsky

Director of the SFO

Our Values

The SFO’s work is underpinned by the following values:

Integrity and professionalism: we make objective decisions whilst always being mindful of quality and value for money.

Respect: we show respect to one another, to our external colleagues and to the wider public.

Openness and transparency: we collaborate and share information with each other and, where appropriate, others, explaining our decisions and learning from our mistakes.

Excellence: we strive for excellence in all that we do.

Our Strategic Objectives

Our Strategic Objectives reflect our commitment to deliver fair and effective justice which calls for the multidisciplinary approach and legislative powers available to the SFO (the Roskill model). 

A. Investigate and, if appropriate, prosecute serious or complex fraud, bribery and corruption cases and associated money laundering fairly and effectively.

B. Recover the proceeds of serious or complex fraud fairly and effectively.

C. Develop, and strengthen, constructive relationships with partners both in the UK and internationally.

D. Provide value for money in everything we do.

Our Vision

We will deliver at pace and apply a creative and proactive approach to our criminal and asset recovery investigations. We will use the full toolkit of powers available and continue to make the case for reform to remove barriers to effectiveness.

We will develop new, and strengthen existing, relationships with our partners to deliver justice more efficiently.

We will embrace, exploit and be innovative with emerging technologies, and will continue to develop and motivate our workforce that fully reflects the diversity of skills and professions to deliver this vision.

Our Statement Of Principle

The Director may investigate any suspected offence which appears to her on reasonable grounds to involve serious or complex fraud.

In considering whether to authorise an investigation the Director will take into account the actual or intended harm that may be caused to:

• The public, or
• The reputation and integrity of the UK as an international financial centre, or
• The economy and prosperity of the UK
• and whether the complexity and nature of the suspected offence warrants the application of the SFO’s specialist skills, powers and capabilities to investigate and prosecute.

Delivering on the vision in the next 3 years we will:

Operations

• Successfully use the full range of investigative techniques to target crime in action.
• Anticipate and adapt to new and emerging criminal trends.
• Generate cases through proactive development of intelligence.
• Use the spectrum of tools available and consider all the appropriate legal mechanisms.
• To promote reform of the law where appropriate to acquire the tools necessary to deliver Our Mission.
• Influence corporate thinking to promote earlier identification of wrong doing, encourage greater cooperation and self-reports of criminal
  behaviour.

People

• Lead, empower and properly support all of our people.
• Embrace the diversity of our workforce and promote inclusivity.
• Create opportunities, improve capability and invest in our colleagues.
• Develop a permanent workforce that is diverse, flexible and able to respond to changing demands.
• Identify and seek to attract the most highly skilled, capable and motivated staff.
• Continuously improve on the civil service people survey engagement index and respond to issues identified therein.

Stakeholders

• Collaborate with the National Economic Crime Centre, and other law enforcement and intelligence partners at home and overseas.
• Increase engagement with our network of international partners by working closely with them to develop strong, supportive and constructive relationships.
• Work with the Court Service and other CJS partners to deliver a better service for all.
• Work with our Sponsoring department and other arms of government to meet wider strategic HMG objectives. 
• Inform, advise and contribute to relevant legislative reforms, government strategies, priorities and initiatives. 
• Enhance engagement with parliamentarians and senior Whitehall officials to build understanding of the work of the SFO and our role in tackling serious economic crime.

Technology

• Invest in emerging technologies and develop creative solutions.
• Deliver greater efficiency by exploiting machine learning technology.
• Enhance our digital forensic capabilities including upskilling our people, to reflect the changing landscape and technologies used by those engaged in serious economic crime.
• Use our systems and data to ensure our resources are deployed flexibly, effectively and in line with demand.