Starting a successful business requires hard work and sacrifice. Unfortunately, many people won’t hesitate to take advantage of your success and steal what you’ve labored so hard for. If you don’t actively protect your business from theft, your business will suffer.
Even if your business is small, it’s still a target for theft. Here are some tips on how to protect your business from theft:
Carry out a risk assessment
Thieves will always seek out the easiest opportunities to take what they want. Make sure that you’re not leaving any open doors for them to walk through. Performing a risk assessment or audit of your business will help you identify weaknesses in your security and improve areas.
Limit access to your business
Warehouse security is essential to protect your business from theft. Therefore, you should only give your employees and business partners access if it is really essential. If they need to access those areas, they should use a smart card or passcode access to keep unwanted individuals out.
Smart cards are physical tokens that use a password or personal identification number (PIN) to unlock a device. When you turn the card on, it will prompt you for the PIN or password. This type of security is simple and can be installed quickly, even on old equipment.
Protect yourself and staff
Make sure that you and your staff are aware of the risks that they face when accessing your business. If security badges are necessary for access to certain parts of your business, then make sure that the badge is a simple design, easy to read, and difficult to duplicate.
Keep your staff updated with training on how to respond and react in emergency situations. If a thief enters the business and there is an emergency situation, where would you go? Who would help you? These types of questions can be a real inconvenience if not handled properly.
Prevent employee theft
How would you know if your employees are stealing from you? It’s a difficult question to answer. Most employees have access to several areas in your business. How can you know who is stealing from you?
Your first line of defense is to have robust employment policies. For example, you should always take up references on potential employees from their previous employer and make sure the reference is genuine. Follow consistent policies on anyone you find stealing. You may have to be prepared to support prosecution.
Educate employees on security issues
Displaying security signs around your building and office is a great way to show that you’re serious about preventing theft in your office. It’s also something that some thieves are likely to notice, so this is a great way for them to know that there are surveillance cameras installed. Provide them with IT training to avoid cyber attacks in your networks
Keep valuable products safe at all times
When transporting valuable products, make sure that they are properly insured with adequate security measures to protect them against theft or damage while they’re en route. Some industries use armored vehicles and guards to transport products, while other businesses may use simple protective measures like using different delivery routes.
It’s important to be aware of the risks to your business and take every precaution that you can. Prevention is far better than seeking a cure. By doing so, you’ll be able to protect your precious business and deliver maximum value to your customers.
