Are you experiencing small business theft? Are your registers coming up short? Do you struggle to reconcile inventory? Did you recently have an office break in? If so, look for answers inside first.
I know what you’re thinking, your small business is like a family, employees would never steal from you. Statistics tell a different story. Over $50 billion is stolen by employees, which in turn causes one in three small business bankruptcies. Don’t believe that well how about this, over 73% of employees anonymously admit to stealing something from work. These mind blowing statistics are just the tip of the iceberg, but they tell a revealing story.
So what type of small business theft occurs? The time old tradition of larceny (taking cash or inventory) still tops the list, Other methods of small business theft include embezzlement, billing and payroll schemes, and don’t forget time and information theft. These last two are on the rise and require attention.
One of the top methods for dealing with small business theft is a video surveillance systems. Video surveillance systems consist of cameras, recorders and playback systems. Video surveillance systems address small business theft head on.
Monitoring Employees Reduces Small Business Theft
This first concept is really simple but powerful, if employees think you’re watching they are less likely to steal from you. It takes a truly brazen criminal to steal something right in front of someone watching. This is not your average employee.
A prominently placed video camera can be a powerful deterrent. Small business theft is often a crime of opportunity. It occurs because employees see something they want, no one is watching, and there is no chance of getting caught. Video cameras let employees know that someone is watching and significantly increase their odds of getting caught.
Video Surveillance Systems are a Top Investigative Tool
If a crime occurs video surveillance systems are one of the best investigative tools available. Today’s video systems capture full color HD images, which makes it much easier to identify criminals and prosecute crimes.
Modern video playback systems even have the ability to search for time codes and specific items or activities. This makes it easy to comb through hours of video to just the moment when the crime occurred.
Video Cameras Enable Remote Monitoring
Video systems aren’t just for going back after the fact. You can also monitor your workplace in real-time, from anywhere. Most high quality video surveillance systems offer applications for monitoring in real-time from any computer or smartphone. You just need network access and a password.
Call up one of your employees and ask them to stop doing something, or point out an item they don’t think you can see. From that point forward they’ll know someone could always be watching. This keeps employees on their best behavior, increases productivity and reduces small business theft. All this for just having video cameras present.
Video Surveillance Systems Aren’t Expensive
The cost of high quality video cameras and recorders has come down dramatically. These systems now utilize the same network infrastructure as the rest of your business. This has dramatically reduced the cost of video surveillance systems and made them affordable to small business.
So the real question is, can your small business afford to not address employee productivity and theft? To learn more please see our overview of Small Business Security Systems.
