Business owners, particularly small business owners sometimes have a problem they overlook until it causes them real harm. That problem is embezzlement or some other form of employee malfeasance that takes a large bite out of profits.
The disadvantage of the business owner is that he or she is so busy building and running the business that it becomes easy to overlook small details or to trust an employee beyond his level of responsibility. A valued employee often takes on so much responsibility that there is no oversight or segregation of duties for the employee. The employee is so good at his job that no one else ever cross trains or takes any responsibility of the job. This can lead to problems.
Small businesses are especially vulnerable to theft, fraud, and embezzlement because they don’t have the built in internal controls that larger companies do. Employee theft and embezzlement have a tendency to increase in volume and frequency if not caught early on.
More desirable than finding a dishonest employee after the fact is preventing the act of dishonesty in the first place.
This is when a business owner should consider a professional loss prevention consultant to review, audit, and make recommendations for the business, setting up workable policies and procedures that prevent problems before they happen.
Continued regular audits by loss prevention consultants check that there is compliance by employees and supervisors in the rules and policies that have been set up.
The expertise of our trained and experienced loss prevention staff includes policy formulation and compliance audits of:
- Inventory control procedures
- Cash handling and accounting procedures
- Physical security survey
- Intrusion alarms, closed circuit television, and EAS
- POS controls
- Internal and external theft vulnerability
- Robbery exposure
Once completed, the loss prevention consultant will deliver a written report itemizing his findings and recommendations. From this initial finding, an improvement plan can be formulated to bring the business’ loss prevention program up to a workable and acceptable standard.
