New technology intended to enhance police interview training and operational police interviews will be trialled at the Charles Sturt University (CSU) Australian Graduate School of Policing and Security.

The TILES™ System of Interview Management is a cloud-based investigative interview planning tool created by Mr Daren Jay, the subject coordinator of the investigative interviewing subject at the Australian Graduate School of Policing and Security.

The tool re-engineers the way in which law enforcement and other investigative professionals plan, conduct, and evaluate interviews with witnesses, victims and suspects.

"Planning for a forensic interview is a complex task for even the most experienced interviewer," Mr Jay said. "An interview plan must be prepared which takes into account the available evidence and the wider context of the investigation. Tactical considerations need to be set against strategic objectives and the whole plan needs to respond to the ever-changing flow of conversation.

"Traditionally, interviewers have managed within the limitations of the linear written interview plan which offers little flexibility and can quickly become redundant."

Mr Jay was appointed as a lecturer in policing with CSU in 2008, following a career with the British Army's Special Investigation Branch of the Royal Military Police. After four years teaching CSU's investigative interviewing subject, Mr Jay set about developing a world-first technology to bring efficiencies into the interview room.

The TILES™ technology is ready for use as a blended learning tool to assist CSU students to plan, conduct, and evaluate mock interviews. Early student feedback has been particularly encouraging, with visual learners responding to the technology very well.

"I've always thought that teaching interview strategies without this technology is like teaching a student to play chess without a chessboard present in the classroom," Mr Jay said.

"I'm really excited about the pedagogic value offered to students through the TILES™ system technology, and I'm really looking forward to using it in the classroom and adding value to the students' learning experience."

The commercial version of the TILES™ system was released as a cloud-based 'Software as a Service' (SaaS) solution in February 2015 and is already receiving positive feedback within the industry.

Head of the CSU Australian Graduate School of Policing and Security, Associate Professor Nick O'Brien, said, "We're delighted to trial this innovative technology in our subjects. If this tool is successful, I envisage it will be of great assistance to investigators worldwide who have to interview suspects or witnesses."