Former Telstra chief executive officer Ziggy Switkowski, now the Chancellor of RMIT, will oversee the independent review, which has been commissioned by the club.
It comes three weeks after the club opened its doors to the AFL and ASADA amid concerns about the supplements program undertaken by the club in 2012.
Essendon chairman David Evans said the review had been initiated so the Bombers could "get to the heart of what happened" after becoming aware of "irregular practices" at the club.
He stressed the practices did not necessarily constitute any wrongdoing.
"I'm not making any assumptions at all. I'm just saying there's practices there that I, as chairman of the club, probably would like to see not happen at our club," Evans said.
"I want to make sure that we are able to give answers to our members about what happened and why, and to put in place any changes needed to ensure that this doesn't happen again."
Evans would not comment on whether the review would see jobs in jeopardy.
"I'm just not prepared to talk about individuals. There may be a day where I'm in a position to do that, but right now it is very important that I protect the integrity of the investigation and the review, and I don't compromise that," he said.
The Bombers expect to receive this report before the ASADA investigation into the supplements process is complete, with Evans conceding ASADA was likely to take "months not weeks" before revealing its findings.
Several industry experts called Essendon's governance processes into question as it emerged that the club's senior management might not have been entirely across all of aspects of its supplements program last year.
Andrew Garnham, a senior physician and sports science academic from Deakin University, will assist Switkowski.
Evans added that the review would start initially with Essendon's processes and procedures before examining practices at other clubs and in other sports.
"Dr. Switkowski will be given all the resources he needs to conduct this review, and the board will expect a report and recommendations," he said.
