While networking and making connections are an important aspect of business, and we like to think we can trust the people we work and partner with, that isn't always the case. That is where Ken Donaldson can help. Donaldson makes his living by giving people the tool they need to prove they are telling the truth. He is a private polygraph operator who offers testing to people seeking the truth for everything from cheating spouses to drug-free body building competitions to employee theft.

Ken is one of a handful of private polygraph operators in Canada. Together with his wife Lesley, he owns ITR ("Is That Right?") Polygraph based out of NABI's Campbell Centre. When he started his business in 2003, he was living in St. Albert and wanted a location close to home so he chose to set-up in St. Albert. He moved into Campbell Centre when it opened in 2008; the location worked well for him - he could rent office space to conduct his polygraph examinations and use the shared boardroom space to meet with clients to first go over questions. They have been working out of an office on the second floor ever since, though at times people question why they don't have a store front location. Lesley explained that in their business they need to have the utmost discretion.

Donaldson's work includes testing for employers trying to deal with theft, insurance companies investigating fraud, and drug screening for athletic competitions. He is also hired by people wanting to test their spouses for infidelity or addiction issues, and counsellors use it to test whether their clients are telling the truth.

Before the lie detector test is administered, Ken and Lesley sit with clients to decide what questions will be asked. The wording of the questions is critical to ensure that the right information is tested. As Ken points out, you can't ask someone if they have ever stolen from their employee, because we have all ended up with pens taken from work at home.

"We all steal from our employers," Ken said. "It is the level of theft that we measure and what employers are worried about. We ask about whether they have stolen $20, $50 or $100".

Once the questions are determined, the subject is led to the Polygraph Examination office. The subject is asked a series of ten questions, three separate times in order to obtain accurate data to render an opinion. 

A polygraph machine measures changes in heartbeat, blood volume and galvanic skin response (the activity of sweat glands in the fingertips) while the subject answers a series of questions. Based on the body's response to the different questions, the examiner gets a reading on when the subject is being truthful or deceptive. 

The results aren't always easy to share and Ken said it isn't always a fun job but he likes it when he gets to help people prove they are telling the truth and when he sees a change in behaviour because of the test.

One company who uses the services of ITR Inc. who has seen an improvement in behaviour for their Vanity Cup Walleye Tournament. The annual fishing competition, with prizes totalling over $300,000, tests their prize winners to ensure they followed the rules of the competition. They have been doing so for five years now and have found the amount of illegal bait they find when conducting their boat searches has reduced significantly because people know that they will be caught on the lie detector if they try to cheat.