JH blog 07
(EASy Bottle-5, Bottle Service-2)
EASy Bottle: Luxury Minus Liability
Many high-end nightclubs, bars and lounges like to offer Bottle Service as a luxurious, relaxing way for patrons to enjoy their time at the establishment. Keeping bottles of liquor at the table where the patrons are seated creates the sense of a high-end atmosphere and a convenience for paying customers and even staff. However, if you own, operate, or are employed with one of these establishments you know the liability issues that come with offering this service. If you are concerned about liability and local or state regulations and laws, the EASy Bottle is likely the solution to your problems.
Most states strictly prohibit customers from pouring their own drinks at any establishment that serves alcohol, and with good reason. If you let patrons of your establishment serve themselves you would be running a gauntlet of liability risks. Are your patrons over-serving themselves? Consequences of over-serving include all sorts of things; medical issues, aggression and fighting, general destruction of property, and leaving your establishment too intoxicated to drive. One over-served person jeopardizes your entire base of customers and employees for the night. Another liability is the potential for underage drinking. Who is getting served alcohol? Has a minor slipped in with a group and began drinking from their bottles? I don’t even have to go over all of the liability issues involved with having intoxicated minors drinking at your establishment, but one of them would be the possibility of losing your liquor license. Out of control guests are definitely not going to contribute to the high-end atmosphere that you are trying to foster. So how does one offer the luxury of Bottle Service while not worrying about state and local laws and liability issues? The EASy Bottle is the most simple and effective solution.
The EASy Bottle is a form of bottle lock, that when applied to liquor bottles, prevents anyone who does not have a key from pouring any drinks. This allows your servers to help all of your guests and reduce liability, all while maintaining the luxurious feel of having bottles and mixers at the tables. The reusable caps are easily applied to the bottle and are simple for servers to use in a fast-paced environment. The four-pronged opening key comes standard on a retractable clip, which can be placed on essentially any type of clothing, allowing for fast and easy access to the key when there is a need to pour beverages.
At first glance it may seem like too much trouble to lock your bottles, and some may think this will create too much of an inconvenience for the patrons who you are serving. A keen manager, however, will quickly see bottle locks as a customer service opportunity. Locked bottles creates a strong need for high-level service. Servers can push guest service to a new level by frequently checking on patrons, and in turn, sell more products. It also gives them the opportunity to discuss different liquors and upgrades to the guests and generate a base of customers that will frequent your establishment. Reducing liability for the business you are operating is absolutely crucial in this day and age, but we all know the only way to thrive in business is to create return customers. When a business is known for having issues with out-of -control guests, over-serving, serving minors, etc., it can drive away the higher-paying customer you are trying to acquire and maintain.
Equipping your liquors with the EASy Bottle not only mitigates your chances of loss, but can also create a finer atmosphere and space for the customers that you need to maintain your business.
For more information on EASy Bottles, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547
Many high-end nightclubs, bars and lounges like to offer Bottle Service as a luxurious, relaxing way for patrons to enjoy their time at the establishment. Keeping bottles of liquor at the table where the patrons are seated creates the sense of a high-end atmosphere and a convenience for paying customers and even staff. However, if you own, operate, or are employed with one of these establishments you know the liability issues that come with offering this service. If you are concerned about liability and local or state regulations and laws, the EASy Bottle is likely the solution to your problems.
Most states strictly prohibit customers from pouring their own drinks at any establishment that serves alcohol, and with good reason. If you let patrons of your establishment serve themselves you would be running a gauntlet of liability risks. Are your patrons over-serving themselves? Consequences of over-serving include all sorts of things; medical issues, aggression and fighting, general destruction of property, and leaving your establishment too intoxicated to drive. One over-served person jeopardizes your entire base of customers and employees for the night. Another liability is the potential for underage drinking. Who is getting served alcohol? Has a minor slipped in with a group and began drinking from their bottles? I don’t even have to go over all of the liability issues involved with having intoxicated minors drinking at your establishment, but one of them would be the possibility of losing your liquor license. Out of control guests are definitely not going to contribute to the high-end atmosphere that you are trying to foster. So how does one offer the luxury of Bottle Service while not worrying about state and local laws and liability issues? The EASy Bottle is the most simple and effective solution.
The EASy Bottle is a form of bottle lock, that when applied to liquor bottles, prevents anyone who does not have a key from pouring any drinks. This allows your servers to help all of your guests and reduce liability, all while maintaining the luxurious feel of having bottles and mixers at the tables. The reusable caps are easily applied to the bottle and are simple for servers to use in a fast-paced environment. The four-pronged opening key comes standard on a retractable clip, which can be placed on essentially any type of clothing, allowing for fast and easy access to the key when there is a need to pour beverages.
At first glance it may seem like too much trouble to lock your bottles, and some may think this will create too much of an inconvenience for the patrons who you are serving. A keen manager, however, will quickly see bottle locks as a customer service opportunity. Locked bottles creates a strong need for high-level service. Servers can push guest service to a new level by frequently checking on patrons, and in turn, sell more products. It also gives them the opportunity to discuss different liquors and upgrades to the guests and generate a base of customers that will frequent your establishment. Reducing liability for the business you are operating is absolutely crucial in this day and age, but we all know the only way to thrive in business is to create return customers. When a business is known for having issues with out-of -control guests, over-serving, serving minors, etc., it can drive away the higher-paying customer you are trying to acquire and maintain.
Equipping your liquors with the EASy Bottle not only mitigates your chances of loss, but can also create a finer atmosphere and space for the customers that you need to maintain your business.
For more information on EASy Bottles, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547
Retail anti-theft devices-5 WC blog 80
Prevent shoplifting-3
Are Your Alpha Hard Tags Used To Their Full Potential?
Retailers are constantly protecting their stores against theft and fraud by focusing much of their resources to prevent shoplifting. When I look back on my many years in the Loss Prevention field, I can reflect on how much of our retail anti-theft devices were geared to stop shoplifters. What I don’t see enough of is a focus on preventing internal theft. Here is what I mean; when you enter most national chain stores today you walk through electronic article surveillance antennas. You may look up and see yourself on a public view camera and monitor as you stop to pick up a shopping cart. It is possible you are greeted or at least acknowledged by some type of door greeter or security personnel. As you shop you find that many items are protected with anti-theft devices such as Alpha Spider Wrap and other Alpha hard tags. Even when an employee greets you in a department it is, in part, to make potential shoplifters aware that someone knows they are in the area. While retail anti-theft devices may prevent some internal theft, most retailers use them to prevent shoplifting. So, even if all of a store’s shoplifting prevention strategies work perfectly and all shoplifting is eliminated, only about 40 – 45 percent of losses are stopped. That store will still experience approximately 45 percent of the remaining shortage due to internal theft. My point is I don’t believe stores use their protection devices to their maximum effectiveness.
I cannot recall in my experiences ever seeing loading dock doors or vendor entrance doors protected with electronic article surveillance antennas. Rarely have I seen employee entrances protected with EAS antennas. I have also seen stores where complacency has set in and when an employee is exiting through the main doors where EAS antennas are located, if the alarm goes off, no one pays too much attention. My concern with backroom areas and vendor doors is that your vendors and employees go in and out and if someone is dishonest, it is the perfect location to take out merchandise that is protected with retail anti-theft devices. An employee can leave stolen merchandise outside and have it picked up by a friend. A vendor could be taking out boxes and have merchandise hidden. How thorough are your loading dock procedures in checking on vendors when they leave your store?
Alpha hard tags are available to protect nearly any type of merchandise. Alpha has retail anti-theft devices for clothing, electronics, health and beauty products, eyewear and even the hang tags for peg hook merchandise. Many of these devices are tamper proof and all will work with a store EAS system. They have little value to a store if there is no EAS antenna at a door to sound an alarm if a device is walked out through that door. This is where I believe stores do themselves a disservice by failing to protect even the backdoors and employee entrances with EAS antennas. If almost half of your store losses are due to employee theft, wouldn’t it make sense to protect those doors used primarily by employees?
You may be thinking to yourself, “Why do I need to spend money on antennas for my back doors? Only my managers can open it and we have policies that don’t allow the door to be left unattended.” I would point out that in my nearly 20 years of Loss Prevention experience I have seen countless violations of security procedures. There are always justifications such as, “We are supposed to keep the compactor locked, but a manager doesn’t have time to come back here every time someone needs to throw something out.” Or, “We don’t allow employees to use the vendor door to go outside for smoke breaks.” Yet during overnight surveillances of overnight teams I would see exactly these violations. It’s always easy to say a policy prevents dishonesty but oddly enough, I rarely found that dishonest employees were entirely concerned about following policies. You may think employee package checks are thorough or back doors are always monitored when opened but I can assure you a dishonest employee could be getting merchandise out and you would not know it. Alpha hard tags would activate antennas at those doors if employees or vendors were sneaking merchandise out, whether the merchandise is hidden or not.
Don’t allow your retail anti-theft devices to be used at only fifty percent of their potential. Prevent shoplifting AND employee theft at the same time. Secure ALL of your doors with EAS antennas and protect all of your products with Alpha products and watch your shrinkage shrink!
For more information on retail anti-theft devices, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547
Retailers are constantly protecting their stores against theft and fraud by focusing much of their resources to prevent shoplifting. When I look back on my many years in the Loss Prevention field, I can reflect on how much of our retail anti-theft devices were geared to stop shoplifters. What I don’t see enough of is a focus on preventing internal theft. Here is what I mean; when you enter most national chain stores today you walk through electronic article surveillance antennas. You may look up and see yourself on a public view camera and monitor as you stop to pick up a shopping cart. It is possible you are greeted or at least acknowledged by some type of door greeter or security personnel. As you shop you find that many items are protected with anti-theft devices such as Alpha Spider Wrap and other Alpha hard tags. Even when an employee greets you in a department it is, in part, to make potential shoplifters aware that someone knows they are in the area. While retail anti-theft devices may prevent some internal theft, most retailers use them to prevent shoplifting. So, even if all of a store’s shoplifting prevention strategies work perfectly and all shoplifting is eliminated, only about 40 – 45 percent of losses are stopped. That store will still experience approximately 45 percent of the remaining shortage due to internal theft. My point is I don’t believe stores use their protection devices to their maximum effectiveness.
I cannot recall in my experiences ever seeing loading dock doors or vendor entrance doors protected with electronic article surveillance antennas. Rarely have I seen employee entrances protected with EAS antennas. I have also seen stores where complacency has set in and when an employee is exiting through the main doors where EAS antennas are located, if the alarm goes off, no one pays too much attention. My concern with backroom areas and vendor doors is that your vendors and employees go in and out and if someone is dishonest, it is the perfect location to take out merchandise that is protected with retail anti-theft devices. An employee can leave stolen merchandise outside and have it picked up by a friend. A vendor could be taking out boxes and have merchandise hidden. How thorough are your loading dock procedures in checking on vendors when they leave your store?
Alpha hard tags are available to protect nearly any type of merchandise. Alpha has retail anti-theft devices for clothing, electronics, health and beauty products, eyewear and even the hang tags for peg hook merchandise. Many of these devices are tamper proof and all will work with a store EAS system. They have little value to a store if there is no EAS antenna at a door to sound an alarm if a device is walked out through that door. This is where I believe stores do themselves a disservice by failing to protect even the backdoors and employee entrances with EAS antennas. If almost half of your store losses are due to employee theft, wouldn’t it make sense to protect those doors used primarily by employees?
You may be thinking to yourself, “Why do I need to spend money on antennas for my back doors? Only my managers can open it and we have policies that don’t allow the door to be left unattended.” I would point out that in my nearly 20 years of Loss Prevention experience I have seen countless violations of security procedures. There are always justifications such as, “We are supposed to keep the compactor locked, but a manager doesn’t have time to come back here every time someone needs to throw something out.” Or, “We don’t allow employees to use the vendor door to go outside for smoke breaks.” Yet during overnight surveillances of overnight teams I would see exactly these violations. It’s always easy to say a policy prevents dishonesty but oddly enough, I rarely found that dishonest employees were entirely concerned about following policies. You may think employee package checks are thorough or back doors are always monitored when opened but I can assure you a dishonest employee could be getting merchandise out and you would not know it. Alpha hard tags would activate antennas at those doors if employees or vendors were sneaking merchandise out, whether the merchandise is hidden or not.
Don’t allow your retail anti-theft devices to be used at only fifty percent of their potential. Prevent shoplifting AND employee theft at the same time. Secure ALL of your doors with EAS antennas and protect all of your products with Alpha products and watch your shrinkage shrink!
For more information on retail anti-theft devices, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547
THE GREAT DEBATE – CHECKPOINT SYSTEMS
I often hear the same questions from managers. “Should I used a hard tag, or label to secure product x?” Sometimes it is a no brainer depending on the item in question. The greatest debate I have internally is on securing apparel merchandise. What is more effective, a checkpoint tag, or a checkpoint label?
Remember that I am only speaking to apparel in this instance. For me, personally, I always go with the checkpoint tag. I can easily apply/remove the tag to whatever I want. I can recycle them in store and I can always “up” the level of security on certain high risk items by using something like an ink tag. It’s cost effective since I don’t have to keep re-ordering supplies, since we just reuse them in the store. I find that the hard tag is more visible, which provides a better deterrent to would-be thieves. The hard tags also come in a variety of shapes, sizes and colors, meaning I can always find a solution that blends in with the store merchandising plan.
Checkpoint labels are great in their own respect as well. One thing the tags can’t do is be priced and marked with a barcode. This ability, when paired with source tagging, really can help the store cut down on overhead costs. I can also covertly place labels on product, like inside the pockets of denim jeans, or under the brim of a hat.
The draw back on the Checkpoint tags is that if you’re not careful, you can wind up damaging the garment. If you have lazy employees who are careless, you will have some very unhappy customers. A thief with a descent set of pliers can easily defeat the tags if given enough opportunity. The tags are also very visible. While this has never been an issue for me, I know some retailers don’t like to have visible security measures, as they feel as it detracts from their branding and image.
Likewise, with Checkpoint labels, there are some points to consider as well. If a thief spots the tag, it can be removed rather easily. Unlike hard tags, they cannot be recycled in store. I’ve never had this be an issue for me, but for a smaller store it could be something to consider. The labels, however are a great “gateway” device into the world of physical security measures. For some stores, the labels alone will dry up most of their thefts. If they don’t, you can always look to upgrade to a different tool for any specific problems you may be having.
It is important for you, as a retailer to secure your apparel merchandise. Clothing is a magnet for thieves and if you’re un-protected, you will likely be seen as a soft target. While I don’t think there is a right or wrong answer to the proper tagging of clothing, I think any good manager will see that a good product protection strategy would include both types of tags. You may get into a situation where a hard tag may not be appropriate, or won’t make sense. Likewise for a soft tag. That shouldn’t mean that the product goes unprotected, though. You have to do what makes sense in your store, for the specific merchandise that you carry. I hope you’ve found these points to be helpful as you continue to build your protection strategy and seek to eliminate losses caused by external theft.
For more information about Checkpoint Systems, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547
I often hear the same questions from managers. “Should I used a hard tag, or label to secure product x?” Sometimes it is a no brainer depending on the item in question. The greatest debate I have internally is on securing apparel merchandise. What is more effective, a checkpoint tag, or a checkpoint label?
Remember that I am only speaking to apparel in this instance. For me, personally, I always go with the checkpoint tag. I can easily apply/remove the tag to whatever I want. I can recycle them in store and I can always “up” the level of security on certain high risk items by using something like an ink tag. It’s cost effective since I don’t have to keep re-ordering supplies, since we just reuse them in the store. I find that the hard tag is more visible, which provides a better deterrent to would-be thieves. The hard tags also come in a variety of shapes, sizes and colors, meaning I can always find a solution that blends in with the store merchandising plan.
Checkpoint labels are great in their own respect as well. One thing the tags can’t do is be priced and marked with a barcode. This ability, when paired with source tagging, really can help the store cut down on overhead costs. I can also covertly place labels on product, like inside the pockets of denim jeans, or under the brim of a hat.
The draw back on the Checkpoint tags is that if you’re not careful, you can wind up damaging the garment. If you have lazy employees who are careless, you will have some very unhappy customers. A thief with a descent set of pliers can easily defeat the tags if given enough opportunity. The tags are also very visible. While this has never been an issue for me, I know some retailers don’t like to have visible security measures, as they feel as it detracts from their branding and image.
Likewise, with Checkpoint labels, there are some points to consider as well. If a thief spots the tag, it can be removed rather easily. Unlike hard tags, they cannot be recycled in store. I’ve never had this be an issue for me, but for a smaller store it could be something to consider. The labels, however are a great “gateway” device into the world of physical security measures. For some stores, the labels alone will dry up most of their thefts. If they don’t, you can always look to upgrade to a different tool for any specific problems you may be having.
It is important for you, as a retailer to secure your apparel merchandise. Clothing is a magnet for thieves and if you’re un-protected, you will likely be seen as a soft target. While I don’t think there is a right or wrong answer to the proper tagging of clothing, I think any good manager will see that a good product protection strategy would include both types of tags. You may get into a situation where a hard tag may not be appropriate, or won’t make sense. Likewise for a soft tag. That shouldn’t mean that the product goes unprotected, though. You have to do what makes sense in your store, for the specific merchandise that you carry. I hope you’ve found these points to be helpful as you continue to build your protection strategy and seek to eliminate losses caused by external theft.
For more information about Checkpoint Systems, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547
RWHBLOG19
Shoplifting Overtakes Internal Theft: Leverage Alpha Keepers To Prevent Shoplifting
Shoplifting overtakes internal theft! Those are the headlines across loss prevention circles these days as it is the first time in many years that the greatest loss for retailers is attributed to shoplifting rather than internal theft. If that isn’t reason enough to make retailers stay up at night, one can always look at the loss prevention news sources and see how prevalent organized retail crime (ORC) has become. It was enough to worry about the kids in the neighborhood wanting to get their hands on the new game system release and selecting your store to do their shoplifting. Now you have to worry about an organized gang of criminals who do not just want one of your products, but want a large number of your products and will be fairly brazen and cunning to get their hands on them. To some extent we have always had ORC with the “Travelers” hitting stores across the country in large numbers for years. We have had criminal enterprises striving to get their hands on precursors for illicit drug manufacturing. Now we have to prevent shoplifting of all types of merchandise from razor blades to Microsoft Surface. We have to find new ways to prevent shoplifting through new retail anti-theft devices.
I can recall Travelers coming through town and going into stores in groups, keeping sales staff and clerks busy while the members of their family pushed racks of clothes out the door into a waiting van. More recently, I can recall a shoplifter coming into the store and taking 10 or 12 flash drives off the hooks and concealing them to go into the restroom and remove the EAS tags. We have also seen multiple shoplifters come into one of the stores in my area and remove the game from the game system case and leave the store with multiple games. The same thing has happened with music CDs more than once.
A company I worked for had a zero tolerance approach towards theft and fought back hard to protect their merchandise—much like we all should in light of those new statistics about shoplifting. To prevent shoplifting of their merchandise they partnered with a leader in the industry: Alpha Products, a division of Checkpoint Systems. Alpha keepers were used on merchandise that was determined to be high risk. These hardened alarmed polycarbonate cases provide the highest level of security in retail anti-theft devices. The cases require a special magnetic key to open and will activate EAS (electronic article surveillance) alarms when the shoplifter tries to leave with the merchandise without going through your checkout. These hardened Alpha keepers allow you to display your merchandise with no difficulty on hooks or on shelves with complete visibility of the product while still ensuring no one can tamper with the merchandise and open the packaging to remove the product. Basically, it also means that shoplifters can look but not touch!
Alpha keepers are available in a variety of sizes and different designs for specific products, including razor blades, infant formula, electronics, CDs, DVDs, games, fragrances, and health and beauty products to name a few. They are reusable with your cashier removing the keeper from the merchandise at checkout and recycling it back to place on other merchandise.
With shoplifting being our number one potential loss causing event, we need to ensure that we are not making it easy for shoplifters to leave with our merchandise. Utilize retail anti-theft devices to their maximum advantage and prevent shoplifting – be it by the neighborhood youth or by the professional organized retail criminal.
For more information on Alpha Keepers, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547.
Shoplifting overtakes internal theft! Those are the headlines across loss prevention circles these days as it is the first time in many years that the greatest loss for retailers is attributed to shoplifting rather than internal theft. If that isn’t reason enough to make retailers stay up at night, one can always look at the loss prevention news sources and see how prevalent organized retail crime (ORC) has become. It was enough to worry about the kids in the neighborhood wanting to get their hands on the new game system release and selecting your store to do their shoplifting. Now you have to worry about an organized gang of criminals who do not just want one of your products, but want a large number of your products and will be fairly brazen and cunning to get their hands on them. To some extent we have always had ORC with the “Travelers” hitting stores across the country in large numbers for years. We have had criminal enterprises striving to get their hands on precursors for illicit drug manufacturing. Now we have to prevent shoplifting of all types of merchandise from razor blades to Microsoft Surface. We have to find new ways to prevent shoplifting through new retail anti-theft devices.
I can recall Travelers coming through town and going into stores in groups, keeping sales staff and clerks busy while the members of their family pushed racks of clothes out the door into a waiting van. More recently, I can recall a shoplifter coming into the store and taking 10 or 12 flash drives off the hooks and concealing them to go into the restroom and remove the EAS tags. We have also seen multiple shoplifters come into one of the stores in my area and remove the game from the game system case and leave the store with multiple games. The same thing has happened with music CDs more than once.
A company I worked for had a zero tolerance approach towards theft and fought back hard to protect their merchandise—much like we all should in light of those new statistics about shoplifting. To prevent shoplifting of their merchandise they partnered with a leader in the industry: Alpha Products, a division of Checkpoint Systems. Alpha keepers were used on merchandise that was determined to be high risk. These hardened alarmed polycarbonate cases provide the highest level of security in retail anti-theft devices. The cases require a special magnetic key to open and will activate EAS (electronic article surveillance) alarms when the shoplifter tries to leave with the merchandise without going through your checkout. These hardened Alpha keepers allow you to display your merchandise with no difficulty on hooks or on shelves with complete visibility of the product while still ensuring no one can tamper with the merchandise and open the packaging to remove the product. Basically, it also means that shoplifters can look but not touch!
Alpha keepers are available in a variety of sizes and different designs for specific products, including razor blades, infant formula, electronics, CDs, DVDs, games, fragrances, and health and beauty products to name a few. They are reusable with your cashier removing the keeper from the merchandise at checkout and recycling it back to place on other merchandise.
With shoplifting being our number one potential loss causing event, we need to ensure that we are not making it easy for shoplifters to leave with our merchandise. Utilize retail anti-theft devices to their maximum advantage and prevent shoplifting – be it by the neighborhood youth or by the professional organized retail criminal.
For more information on Alpha Keepers, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547
BG Check Company-3 , Employee BG Check-1 , Pre-Employment Screening-2
The Cost Of Background Checks
Some businesses choose not to perform any employee background checks on their potential candidates. They call the former employers that are listed, and perhaps the lineup of references given, and make their decision based on this. This could be perfectly fine, except for the fact that people will and do lie on their resumes every day. They exaggerate their previous work experience, or they fail to list specific employers because they did not leave that job on good terms. They claim to have never been terminated from any previous job, but truthfully, they’ve only listed the few they left from voluntarily. Don’t even get me started on references. Unless they are willing to just hand you their cell phone and let you randomly call their contacts, those hand-picked people they give you have most likely already been coached on what to tell you. You need the assistance of a proper background check company to really verify all the information this person has provided. When you look at all the costs associated with running a small business, paying for a quality pre-employment screening is well worth the investment.
I was talking to a friend that runs a small chain of convenience stores and here are a few of her hiring horror stories:
*A store kept getting broken into during the middle of the night. The criminal kept using the landscaping stones around the parking lot to break the glass out of the front door. Then they would go in and steal cartons of cigarettes from behind the counter. They seemed to know exactly how much time they had to get in and get out before the alarm would sound and alert the authorities. It turned out to be an employee that knew the alarm would activate in forty-five seconds, so he knew how quick he needed to be.
*My friend got an anonymous phone call tipping her off that an employee was selling boxes of merchandise out the back door of the store. They were supposedly selling some damaged products and some overstock items just to get it out of the store, but the employee was pocketing the money.
*One day she was on her way in early to complete some paperwork at one of the stores and came up on a guy on a bicycle. As she drove past him, she noticed he had a plastic bag with her store’s logo on it. When she arrived at the store, she found the back door had been jimmied open. Then it dawned on her that guy she saw was a new clerk that they had hired.
When she looks back at all the time and money spent on dealing with these internal theft issues, she wonders why it took so long to decide to start using a background check company to weed out these people. No matter how good they are at storytelling, a pre-employment screening will tell you the truth about a possible job candidate. Employee background checks are worth the cost when you consider what you could be paying for later if they turn out to be a crook. They could lie about their education level, their job experience, the reason they left former employers, and more. These could factor in to your decision on who to hire for your opening. It would be terribly wrong to hire someone based on the wrong data, and overlook a more qualified person that told the truth. People can fool you in an interview, but they can’t fool a background check company.
For more information on background checks, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547
Some businesses choose not to perform any employee background checks on their potential candidates. They call the former employers that are listed, and perhaps the lineup of references given, and make their decision based on this. This could be perfectly fine, except for the fact that people will and do lie on their resumes every day. They exaggerate their previous work experience, or they fail to list specific employers because they did not leave that job on good terms. They claim to have never been terminated from any previous job, but truthfully, they’ve only listed the few they left from voluntarily. Don’t even get me started on references. Unless they are willing to just hand you their cell phone and let you randomly call their contacts, those hand-picked people they give you have most likely already been coached on what to tell you. You need the assistance of a proper background check company to really verify all the information this person has provided. When you look at all the costs associated with running a small business, paying for a quality pre-employment screening is well worth the investment.
I was talking to a friend that runs a small chain of convenience stores and here are a few of her hiring horror stories:
*A store kept getting broken into during the middle of the night. The criminal kept using the landscaping stones around the parking lot to break the glass out of the front door. Then they would go in and steal cartons of cigarettes from behind the counter. They seemed to know exactly how much time they had to get in and get out before the alarm would sound and alert the authorities. It turned out to be an employee that knew the alarm would activate in forty-five seconds, so he knew how quick he needed to be.
*My friend got an anonymous phone call tipping her off that an employee was selling boxes of merchandise out the back door of the store. They were supposedly selling some damaged products and some overstock items just to get it out of the store, but the employee was pocketing the money.
*One day she was on her way in early to complete some paperwork at one of the stores and came up on a guy on a bicycle. As she drove past him, she noticed he had a plastic bag with her store’s logo on it. When she arrived at the store, she found the back door had been jimmied open. Then it dawned on her that guy she saw was a new clerk that they had hired.
When she looks back at all the time and money spent on dealing with these internal theft issues, she wonders why it took so long to decide to start using a background check company to weed out these people. No matter how good they are at storytelling, a pre-employment screening will tell you the truth about a possible job candidate. Employee background checks are worth the cost when you consider what you could be paying for later if they turn out to be a crook. They could lie about their education level, their job experience, the reason they left former employers, and more. These could factor in to your decision on who to hire for your opening. It would be terribly wrong to hire someone based on the wrong data, and overlook a more qualified person that told the truth. People can fool you in an interview, but they can’t fool a background check company.
For more information on background checks, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547
