RWHBLOG25
Target Harden Your Business With Alpha Hard Tags to Prevent Shoplifting
Shoplifting has long been a threat to retailers nationwide but never has it been considered as much as a threat as it is now. Recent studies having it overtaking internal theft as the greatest threat to retail businesses today. Part of that threat is from the growing concern with organized retail crime (ORC) which is targeting small shops as well as large businesses to effectuate their goals. This makes it more important than ever to do everything we can to prevent shoplifting from taking our merchandise. To that end, we have to consider ways in which we can “target harden” our merchandise and keep it out of the hands of organized crime as well as the everyday opportunistic shoplifter.
This has to be thought out clearly as the merchandise being targeted by organized crime is not much different than what the opportunistic shoplifter is trying to get his or her hands on. Everyone likes high-end electronics and all those sweet gadgets that our genius inventors are coming up with but everything from razor blades and eyeglasses to anything else you can hang on a hook is a potential target for shoplifting.
We are not alone in the fight, however. We have many technological partners who have been fighting right alongside of us to stop shoplifting. Electronic article surveillance (EAS), everyone will agree, was one of the greatest technological advances ever made on the behalf of retailers to help attack shoplifting. Checkpoint Systems has leveraged EAS technology in their systems to help us protect our merchandise. Their Alpha line of products is designed to protect this merchandise. The Alpha Jewel Lok is a specially designed EAS package that secures your jewelry and keeps it leaving from your store without being detected by your EAS system. Alpha has many other retail anti-theft devices that are designed for specific applications. The eyewear tag protects your high-end sunglasses as well as prescription and reading glasses which are an easy target of shoplifters due to their ease of concealability. The Alpha ink tag ensures that you clothing items stay in your store, are detected by your EAS system or as a last resort have no serviceability when the ink stains the garment when the supposedly successful shoplifter tries to remove the Alpha ink tag. There is also the Alpha hang tag that protects those razor blades and other merchandise that you hang on hooks. Checkpoint Systems and Alpha, have a retail anti-theft solution for about any product you want to protect.
All of these solutions help us keep our merchandise in our stores and out of the hands of the criminal enterprise member as well as that young teen who happened to see that cool piece of jewelry hanging from your jewelry rack and wants to help herself to it. Think about it. What else could you do? You could lock that piece of jewelry in the cabinet and get it out every time the customer wants to see it. Is that worth it for low cost or mid cost merchandise? The Alpha Jewel Lok will work to protect it without you having to go to the expense of that staff member opening and closing cabinets all day.
We could also do the same thing with those razorblades in order to prevent shoplifting. You could put them in that locking cabinet and have a staff member get it out each time the customer wanted to try to figure out which razor blade he needed for his razor. Instead you can put the blades on the rack with confidence and let the Alpha hang tag protect it.
Whether it is the Alpha jewel lok, the Alpha hang tag, the Alpha ink tag or another Alpha product, you have an electronic article surveillance partner out there to help you stop shoplifting. We need to leverage that partnership and ensure that we target harden, reducing the expense to our business and to pass on costs to the consumer. All the shrink losses in our business from internal theft, shoplifting, and pure loss need to be reduced but there is so much we can do to “target harden” our business and prevent shoplifting.
For more information on Alpha hard tags contact us or call 1.770.426.0547.
Shoplifting has long been a threat to retailers nationwide but never has it been considered as much as a threat as it is now. Recent studies having it overtaking internal theft as the greatest threat to retail businesses today. Part of that threat is from the growing concern with organized retail crime (ORC) which is targeting small shops as well as large businesses to effectuate their goals. This makes it more important than ever to do everything we can to prevent shoplifting from taking our merchandise. To that end, we have to consider ways in which we can “target harden” our merchandise and keep it out of the hands of organized crime as well as the everyday opportunistic shoplifter.
This has to be thought out clearly as the merchandise being targeted by organized crime is not much different than what the opportunistic shoplifter is trying to get his or her hands on. Everyone likes high-end electronics and all those sweet gadgets that our genius inventors are coming up with but everything from razor blades and eyeglasses to anything else you can hang on a hook is a potential target for shoplifting.
We are not alone in the fight, however. We have many technological partners who have been fighting right alongside of us to stop shoplifting. Electronic article surveillance (EAS), everyone will agree, was one of the greatest technological advances ever made on the behalf of retailers to help attack shoplifting. Checkpoint Systems has leveraged EAS technology in their systems to help us protect our merchandise. Their Alpha line of products is designed to protect this merchandise. The Alpha Jewel Lok is a specially designed EAS package that secures your jewelry and keeps it leaving from your store without being detected by your EAS system. Alpha has many other retail anti-theft devices that are designed for specific applications. The eyewear tag protects your high-end sunglasses as well as prescription and reading glasses which are an easy target of shoplifters due to their ease of concealability. The Alpha ink tag ensures that you clothing items stay in your store, are detected by your EAS system or as a last resort have no serviceability when the ink stains the garment when the supposedly successful shoplifter tries to remove the Alpha ink tag. There is also the Alpha hang tag that protects those razor blades and other merchandise that you hang on hooks. Checkpoint Systems and Alpha, have a retail anti-theft solution for about any product you want to protect.
All of these solutions help us keep our merchandise in our stores and out of the hands of the criminal enterprise member as well as that young teen who happened to see that cool piece of jewelry hanging from your jewelry rack and wants to help herself to it. Think about it. What else could you do? You could lock that piece of jewelry in the cabinet and get it out every time the customer wants to see it. Is that worth it for low cost or mid cost merchandise? The Alpha Jewel Lok will work to protect it without you having to go to the expense of that staff member opening and closing cabinets all day.
We could also do the same thing with those razorblades in order to prevent shoplifting. You could put them in that locking cabinet and have a staff member get it out each time the customer wanted to try to figure out which razor blade he needed for his razor. Instead you can put the blades on the rack with confidence and let the Alpha hang tag protect it.
Whether it is the Alpha jewel lok, the Alpha hang tag, the Alpha ink tag or another Alpha product, you have an electronic article surveillance partner out there to help you stop shoplifting. We need to leverage that partnership and ensure that we target harden, reducing the expense to our business and to pass on costs to the consumer. All the shrink losses in our business from internal theft, shoplifting, and pure loss need to be reduced but there is so much we can do to “target harden” our business and prevent shoplifting.
For more information on Alpha hard tags contact us or call 1.770.426.0547.
Classic N10-5 WC Blog 38
S3 key-5
Alpha Thunder Tag-5
The Classic N10 Antenna: Protecting Patient Privacy One i-Pad At A Time
If you work in or around a physician’s office or a medical practice you are surrounded by private medical files and patient information that has to remain secure. You are keenly aware of HIPAA Laws and the privacy rules that apply to the handling of client information. Not long ago I made a trip to a local minute clinic and had to electronically submit answers to a questionnaire before the visit with the nurse practitioner could take place. This was a change from the method of filling out what seemed like reams of paperwork in the past. In many practices, the use of laptops and even portable devices such as tablet’s and i-pads are becoming common place, removing the need for traditional patient charts and paper records. One of the benefits of the move towards mobile technology is the reduced risk of paper records getting lost, or misplaced. Let’s face it, some of the hand written notes are difficult to decipher and can be cause for misunderstanding or human error in transcribing those notes. The other side of the coin is the risk of theft of an i-pad or tablet from a medical office. The amount of information carried in a laptop of mobile device makes the loss or theft of one of these units far more risky than losing a single patient’s medical file. Electronic Article Surveillance technology is available to medical offices in order to secure their devices, among which is the Alpha Thunder Tag used in conjunction with the Classic N10 EAS antenna.
Some practices may be reluctant to invest in the EAS technology due to the size often associated with EAS antennas. Office space is not always large, and entry ways are sometimes just large enough to meet the requirements for wheelchairs to access the building. The concerns of staff are that the antennas may impede the access of patients trying to enter who may have to use some type of assistance to maneuver. The Classic N10 antenna is a slim, smaller, profile antenna that can provide the same level of security as their larger counterparts.
The Classic N10 antenna is more compact that the models normally seen when entering a retail business. They still provide the same benefits of the larger antennas, flashing LED lights for visual alerting staff and deterring theft. Audible signaling occurs when a breach takes place in the event someone were to attempt the theft of a tablet or i-pad secured with an Alpha Thunder Tag, in the case of a doctor’s office . An advantage the Classic N10 has over some previous models, is that it also has jammer detection, alerting staff if a jamming device may be in use to try to circumvent the EAS antenna.
Perhaps your office has a need to take a mobile device out of the office at some time. The Alpha Thunder Tag can be removed with the S3 key and XT detachers. These detachment keys can be ordered in counter locking versions that can prevent the keys themselves from being stolen. The base is secured to a countertop or under a counter out of view and the key is attached with a lanyard. The S3 locking counter key locks the detacher to the base until it is needed to remove an Alpha Thunder Tag from a laptop or mobile device. The alarmed S3 locking counter key has the same protection as the S3 locking counter key but the security of the device is taken a step further. If someone were to tamper with the lanyard on this version it will sound an alarm and alert staff to the potential attempted theft of the key. Maintaining the keys in a secure office space, off limits to visitors and non-staff personnel will provide additional safety measures to protect your devices and patient information.
A complete Electronic Article Surveillance system which includes the Classic N10 antenna, Alpha Thunder tags and an S3 key will protect your office the from laptop, i-pad and tablet thefts. Reduce your concerns over potential stolen patient information, look into how you can protect office mobile devices.
For more information on the Classic N10 antenna contact us or call 1.770.426.0547
If you work in or around a physician’s office or a medical practice you are surrounded by private medical files and patient information that has to remain secure. You are keenly aware of HIPAA Laws and the privacy rules that apply to the handling of client information. Not long ago I made a trip to a local minute clinic and had to electronically submit answers to a questionnaire before the visit with the nurse practitioner could take place. This was a change from the method of filling out what seemed like reams of paperwork in the past. In many practices, the use of laptops and even portable devices such as tablet’s and i-pads are becoming common place, removing the need for traditional patient charts and paper records. One of the benefits of the move towards mobile technology is the reduced risk of paper records getting lost, or misplaced. Let’s face it, some of the hand written notes are difficult to decipher and can be cause for misunderstanding or human error in transcribing those notes. The other side of the coin is the risk of theft of an i-pad or tablet from a medical office. The amount of information carried in a laptop of mobile device makes the loss or theft of one of these units far more risky than losing a single patient’s medical file. Electronic Article Surveillance technology is available to medical offices in order to secure their devices, among which is the Alpha Thunder Tag used in conjunction with the Classic N10 EAS antenna.
Some practices may be reluctant to invest in the EAS technology due to the size often associated with EAS antennas. Office space is not always large, and entry ways are sometimes just large enough to meet the requirements for wheelchairs to access the building. The concerns of staff are that the antennas may impede the access of patients trying to enter who may have to use some type of assistance to maneuver. The Classic N10 antenna is a slim, smaller, profile antenna that can provide the same level of security as their larger counterparts.
The Classic N10 antenna is more compact that the models normally seen when entering a retail business. They still provide the same benefits of the larger antennas, flashing LED lights for visual alerting staff and deterring theft. Audible signaling occurs when a breach takes place in the event someone were to attempt the theft of a tablet or i-pad secured with an Alpha Thunder Tag, in the case of a doctor’s office. An advantage the Classic N10 has over some previous models, is that it also has jammer detection, alerting staff if a jamming device may be in use to try to circumvent the EAS antenna.
Perhaps your office has a need to take a mobile device out of the office at some time. The Alpha Thunder Tag can be removed with the S3 key and XT detachers. These detachment keys can be ordered in counter locking versions that can prevent the keys themselves from being stolen. The base is secured to a countertop or under a counter out of view and the key is attached with a lanyard. The S3 locking counter key locks the detacher to the base until it is needed to remove an Alpha Thunder Tag from a laptop or mobile device. The alarmed S3 locking counter key has the same protection as the S3 locking counter key but the security of the device is taken a step further. If someone were to tamper with the lanyard on this version it will sound an alarm and alert staff to the potential attempted theft of the key. Maintaining the keys in a secure office space, off limits to visitors and non-staff personnel will provide additional safety measures to protect your devices and patient information.
A complete Electronic Article Surveillance system which includes the Classic N10 antenna, Alpha Thunder tags and an S3 key will protect your office the from laptop, i-pad and tablet thefts. Reduce your concerns over potential stolen patient information; look into how you can protect office mobile devices.
For more information on the Classic N10 antenna contact us or call 1.770.426.0547
Bottle Service- 3 , EASy Bottle-1 , Bottle Locks-1 , Nightclub-3
Fun Is In The Air
When going out for a night on the town with friends, most people are looking for a night of fun and relaxation. If they’re going to go out with a group to a bar or nightclub, one fantastic option many customers now look for is bottle service. A lot of places don’t consider offering this option, however, because they don’t know all the benefits it offers their customers. Many bar owners look at bottle service as high maintenance and they don’t think their patrons will buy in. If they would simply weigh the pros and cons of this big money maker, they would see that it is well worth it.
Bottle service means the group gets a specific table where they have guaranteed seats for the night. The catch for them is that they must purchase one or more bottles of high end liquor. These bottles mean big profits for the business and most likely, big tips for the waitress assigned to the table. The gratuity may be included in the price of the table for the night, but it is well worth it. They also get to have all the glasses and mixers readily available and their waitress will pour their drinks for them. Now, in many states it is illegal for people to pour their own drinks anyway, but if you think about it, that wouldn’t be a viable option anyway. As a nightclub owner or manager, you would never want your customers pouring and mixing their own concoctions. Every night you would have that one person in the group that would inevitably ruin the party for everyone else. They would pour their drinks super strong and they would become intoxicated way too fast.
You can’t just put the bottles on the tables though, and walk away. Rules are rules, but if the bottles were left unattended, trouble would ensue. You could buy expensive old fashioned tables that have locking compartments for the liquors, but that would eat into your profits. The better, smarter solution is to equip your wait staff with the EASy bottle system. This includes bottle locks that attach to almost any size liquor bottle and secures them shut. The waitress can monitor the number of drinks each person in the group is served and watch for anyone becoming intoxicated. It would be unethical and immoral, not to mention illegal, to continue to serve someone alcohol that is already drunk. With bottle service, that problem is much easier to control.
The cost of a DWI to a customer is huge. The fines, lawyer fees, increased cost of insurance, and any liability charges are just a few contributors. The bar or nightclub that served that person can be held equally financially responsible in many states, if it can be proven that your staff continued to serve them after they had too much to drink. When you add bottle service, it can also be seen as a service to your community. It’s not the same as donating time to adopt-a-highway, but it does show that your business cares about your patrons. If you are able to monitor and realize that someone has had too much, you can quickly and easily call a service provider to get them home safely.
When you consider the high profit margin of the top shelf liquor bottle sales and added customer safety, the benefits of offering bottle service are clear.
For more information about the benefits of Bottle Service, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547
When going out for a night on the town with friends, most people are looking for a night of fun and relaxation. If they’re going to go out with a group to a bar or nightclub, one fantastic option many customers now look for is bottle service. A lot of places don’t consider offering this option, however, because they don’t know all the benefits it offers their customers. Many bar owners look at bottle service as high maintenance and they don’t think their patrons will buy in. If they would simply weigh the pros and cons of this big money maker, they would see that it is well worth it.
Bottle service means the group gets a specific table where they have guaranteed seats for the night. The catch for them is that they must purchase one or more bottles of high end liquor. These bottles mean big profits for the business and most likely, big tips for the waitress assigned to the table. The gratuity may be included in the price of the table for the night, but it is well worth it. They also get to have all the glasses and mixers readily available and their waitress will pour their drinks for them. Now, in many states it is illegal for people to pour their own drinks anyway, but if you think about it, that wouldn’t be a viable option anyway. As a nightclub owner or manager, you would never want your customers pouring and mixing their own concoctions. Every night you would have that one person in the group that would inevitably ruin the party for everyone else. They would pour their drinks super strong and they would become intoxicated way too fast.
You can’t just put the bottles on the tables though, and walk away. Rules are rules, but if the bottles were left unattended, trouble would ensue. You could buy expensive old fashioned tables that have locking compartments for the liquors, but that would eat into your profits. The better, smarter solution is to equip your wait staff with the EASy bottle system. This includes bottle locks that attach to almost any size liquor bottle and secures them shut. The waitress can monitor the number of drinks each person in the group is served and watch for anyone becoming intoxicated. It would be unethical and immoral, not to mention illegal, to continue to serve someone alcohol that is already drunk. With bottle service, that problem is much easier to control.
The cost of a DWI to a customer is huge. The fines, lawyer fees, increased cost of insurance, and any liability charges are just a few contributors. The bar or nightclub that served that person can be held equally financially responsible in many states, if it can be proven that your staff continued to serve them after they had too much to drink. When you add bottle service, it can also be seen as a service to your community. It’s not the same as donating time to adopt-a-highway, but it does show that your business cares about your patrons. If you are able to monitor and realize that someone has had too much, you can quickly and easily call a service provider to get them home safely.
When you consider the high profit margin of the top shelf liquor bottle sales and added customer safety, the benefits of offering bottle service are clear.
For more information about the benefits of Bottle Service, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547
Alpha Keepers-6, Protect Health and Beauty Products-1, Prevent Shoplifting-1
Only Eight Miles Away
I work for a small retail pharmacy and I have recently been transferred to a different location. It’s only about eight miles from my previous store. I have a long list of stuff to correct in this store, but one of my blue chips is utilizing Alpha Keepers. I don’t know if it’s good or bad, but they have plenty of them already. In fact, this store has a multitude of sealed boxes of Alpha Keepers upstairs in their loft. I could build a small fort with them if I had the time. Instead, I’ve been bringing them downstairs and installing them in many areas I used at my previous store. I was in an inner city setting and now my store is out in the middle of nowhere. The store setting is completely different, but considering boosters are our primary problem, the targets will still be the same.
In our business, we must use Alpha Keepers to protect health and beauty products. It’s what we specialize in selling other than the prescription drugs we dispense, so it’s imperative to be in stock on the additional items our customers and patients may be in need of. We sell a lot of high retail stomach remedies and allergy medications that are very popular in the flea market setting. The boosters are hired by the flea market vendors to come in and steal specific items they want for their booths. They come in and wipe out entire sections of merchandise. Sometimes we are fortunate enough to recognize their huge shoplifter bags they carry, or we realize what they are up to before they are able to escape. More often, however, they come in and help themselves and create losses for the store. The boosters get away many more times than they are caught, and they are paid pennies on the dollar for the actual value of the stolen items. Yet, they keep coming back and keep stealing, taking the chances and hoping we don’t catch on. None of our stores are immune to boosters, so I was really stunned to see that this store was not using the tools, like the Alpha Keepers, that were so readily available to them.
The staff is not new and they all act as though they want to prevent shoplifting. I even found a note in the office that was written to the previous manager just a few weeks ago. The assistant had noticed that a certain cold medication was being stolen on a regular basis. She had a small stack of papers stapled together that were the records of what had been stolen in the last months. A box or two was listed on each sheet. But, other than the note, she had not acted on the issue she had discovered. So when we received a truck a couple days ago, when I got those items out of the delivery boxes, I immediately encased them in Alpha Keepers before displaying them on the shelves in the cough and cold section. I actually had to add them to that exact same item in my previous store. That specific medicine is popular among teens for abuse. Apparently, if you take enough of them the cough suppressant makes you high. I’ll never understand how someone decided to try to take enough cold medicine to get a buzz, but I’m nobody’s judge. I do know how to stop the theft of these particular boxes, and the answer is not hiding them behind the checkout counter. All I need to do is lock them into Alpha Keepers and they will remain on the shelf until sold to an honest customer.
For more information on what Alpha Keepers can do for you, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 or Preventshopliftingloss.net
I work for a small retail pharmacy and I have recently been transferred to a different location. It’s only about eight miles from my previous store. I have a long list of stuff to correct in this store, but one of my blue chips is utilizing Alpha Keepers. I don’t know if it’s good or bad, but they have plenty of them already. In fact, this store has a multitude of sealed boxes of Alpha Keepers upstairs in their loft. I could build a small fort with them if I had the time. Instead, I’ve been bringing them downstairs and installing them in many areas I used at my previous store. I was in an inner city setting and now my store is out in the middle of nowhere. The store setting is completely different, but considering boosters are our primary problem, the targets will still be the same.
In our business, we must use Alpha Keepers to protect health and beauty products. It’s what we specialize in selling other than the prescription drugs we dispense, so it’s imperative to be in stock on the additional items our customers and patients may be in need of. We sell a lot of high retail stomach remedies and allergy medications that are very popular in the flea market setting. The boosters are hired by the flea market vendors to come in and steal specific items they want for their booths. They come in and wipe out entire sections of merchandise. Sometimes we are fortunate enough to recognize their huge shoplifter bags they carry, or we realize what they are up to before they are able to escape. More often, however, they come in and help themselves and create losses for the store. The boosters get away many more times than they are caught, and they are paid pennies on the dollar for the actual value of the stolen items. Yet, they keep coming back and keep stealing, taking the chances and hoping we don’t catch on. None of our stores are immune to boosters, so I was really stunned to see that this store was not using the tools, like the Alpha Keepers, that were so readily available to them.
The staff is not new and they all act as though they want to prevent shoplifting. I even found a note in the office that was written to the previous manager just a few weeks ago. The assistant had noticed that a certain cold medication was being stolen on a regular basis. She had a small stack of papers stapled together that were the records of what had been stolen in the last months. A box or two was listed on each sheet. But, other than the note, she had not acted on the issue she had discovered. So when we received a truck a couple days ago, when I got those items out of the delivery boxes, I immediately encased them in Alpha Keepers before displaying them on the shelves in the cough and cold section. I actually had to add them to that exact same item in my previous store. That specific medicine is popular among teens for abuse. Apparently, if you take enough of them the cough suppressant makes you high. I’ll never understand how someone decided to try to take enough cold medicine to get a buzz, but I’m nobody’s judge. I do know how to stop the theft of these particular boxes, and the answer is not hiding them behind the checkout counter. All I need to do is lock them into Alpha Keepers and they will remain on the shelf until sold to an honest customer.
For more information on what Alpha Keepers can do for you, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 or Preventshopliftingloss.net
Employee Background Checks – 3 WC blog 07
pre-employment screening -4
The Hidden Costs Of Not Conducting Employee Background Checks
Have you ever had to let an employee go after they have been caught stealing, or lying about something they had omitted on an application? If you have had to let an employee go, have you ever asked yourself afterwards if there was something you should have caught on their application or during the interview process that could have prevented the hire in the first place? Even an experienced hiring manager can overlook information on an application that might have raised a red flag about an applicant. Employee Background Checks can be invaluable in making the right hiring decisions.
There are many reasons businesses have to fill positions, sometimes it is due to growth, which is the best of all reasons. Positions also open up because employees leave to seek opportunities elsewhere for personal reasons. Unfortunately, positions frequently open up due to an employee who has been caught stealing, violating company policy or for falsifying an application. Many times the employees in the last category could have been weeded out with a pre- employment screening. Thorough employee background checks can include such things as criminal background checks, employment credit checks, motor vehicle records and even sex offender registries. When a check confirms a problem exists, the hiring process can stop for that applicant and save a lot of problems for an employer down the road.
One of the commonly overlooked expenses of running a business is the hiring process. When an employer has to fill a position there is the expense of advertising, whether it is posted online or in a newspaper. Someone’s time is required to review applications and schedule interviews, using time that might be better spent elsewhere in a business. Larger companies have Human Resource personnel that may handle most of this, but I can tell you from experience, other store managers assist in the interview process. Small businesses may have to rely on an office manager or even the owner/operator to handle all of the hiring functions. If managers are focused on staffing, who is overseeing the operations critical to running the business? Hiring is always going to take place, but how much hiring could be avoided if a strong pre-employment screening program was being utilized?
Consider also that the hiring process does not end when the employee is hired and has accepted a position. The new employee has to be properly trained for the new position they were hired to fill. What costs are expended by businesses in training and development? It doesn’t matter whether someone is hired to bag groceries or supervise a shift, that employee must be properly trained. Failure on the part of an owner or manager to properly train a new employee has its own consequences. So how much time and effort will be expended training that new employee? That may depend on the job, the trainee and the quality of the trainer. The bottom line is that it is still time and money that perhaps could be better spent elsewhere.
If a company is filling a vacancy because an employee was caught stealing or committing fraud, what is THAT cost? What did the employee take? Was it cash, merchandise, or company property that was stolen? Even when the dishonest employee is caught and admits to theft, it can be difficult to be certain ALL theft was accounted for in the termination process. Can an employer be certain the former employee will pay restitution? Did the employee defraud a customer? Can that even be quantified in terms of loss of prestige for the business and the negative experience of the customer? A pre-employment screening might be enough for a business to avoid that nightmare.
The process of hiring and staffing a business can be a drain on a business’s resources. It requires time and money to recruit and train new employees. If the wrong person is hired it can cost a business a lot more than time and money, it can result in lost merchandise, money and even reputation. Using pre-employment screening and employee background checks can assist businesses in avoiding hiring pitfalls and protect the investment spent in the hiring process.
For more information about employee background checks contact us or call 1.770.426.0547
Have you ever had to let an employee go after they have been caught stealing, or lying about something they had omitted on an application? If you have had to let an employee go, have you ever asked yourself afterwards if there was something you should have caught on their application or during the interview process that could have prevented the hire in the first place? Even an experienced hiring manager can overlook information on an application that might have raised a red flag about an applicant. Employee Background Checks can be invaluable in making the right hiring decisions.
There are many reasons businesses have to fill positions, sometimes it is due to growth, which is the best of all reasons. Positions also open up because employees leave to seek opportunities elsewhere for personal reasons. Unfortunately, positions frequently open up due to an employee who has been caught stealing, violating company policy or for falsifying an application. Many times the employees in the last category could have been weeded out with a pre- employment screening. Thorough employee background checks can include such things as criminal background checks, employment credit checks, motor vehicle records and even sex offender registries. When a check confirms a problem exists, the hiring process can stop for that applicant and save a lot of problems for an employer down the road.
One of the commonly overlooked expenses of running a business is the hiring process. When an employer has to fill a position there is the expense of advertising, whether it is posted online or in a newspaper. Someone’s time is required to review applications and schedule interviews, using time that might be better spent elsewhere in a business. Larger companies have Human Resource personnel that may handle most of this, but I can tell you from experience, other store managers assist in the interview process. Small businesses may have to rely on an office manager or even the owner/operator to handle all of the hiring functions. If managers are focused on staffing, who is overseeing the operations critical to running the business? Hiring is always going to take place, but how much hiring could be avoided if a strong pre-employment screening program was being utilized?
Consider also that the hiring process does not end when the employee is hired and has accepted a position. The new employee has to be properly trained for the new position they were hired to fill. What costs are expended by businesses in training and development? It doesn’t matter whether someone is hired to bag groceries or supervise a shift, that employee must be properly trained. Failure on the part of an owner or manager to properly train a new employee has its own consequences. So how much time and effort will be expended training that new employee? That may depend on the job, the trainee and the quality of the trainer. The bottom line is that it is still time and money that perhaps could be better spent elsewhere.
If a company is filling a vacancy because an employee was caught stealing or committing fraud, what is THAT cost? What did the employee take? Was it cash, merchandise, or company property that was stolen? Even when the dishonest employee is caught and admits to theft, it can be difficult to be certain ALL theft was accounted for in the termination process. Can an employer be certain the former employee will pay restitution? Did the employee defraud a customer? Can that even be quantified in terms of loss of prestige for the business and the negative experience of the customer? A pre-employment screening might be enough for a business to avoid that nightmare.
The process of hiring and staffing a business can be a drain on a business’s resources. It requires time and money to recruit and train new employees. If the wrong person is hired it can cost a business a lot more than time and money, it can result in lost merchandise, money and even reputation. Using pre-employment screening and employee background checks can assist businesses in avoiding hiring pitfalls and protect the investment spent in the hiring process.
For more information about employee background checks contact us or call 1.770.426.0547
