Employee Theft and Shrink Go Hand in Hand

Some business owners may believe that the cause of their lost profit and shrink is shoplifting. It’s easier to blame the questionable customers that may frequent our business than it is to believe that the very employees we trust with our business may be stealing. Statistics prove, however, that businesses typically suffer more loss from employee theft than they do from shoplifters.

Employee theft, or internal theft, is exactly as it sounds: it is theft that is committed against a business by its employees. It can be harder to detect, and the loss can be greater because there is greater opportunity for the theft to occur. Also, many business owners look past the employees as the possible cause for the losses that they may be experiencing.

Many smaller businesses do not have much experience with conducting an employee theft investigation. While larger businesses have a loss prevention or asset protection division that handle such things, smaller businesses may need to look to outside help when they are experiencing internal theft. Experts can be called in that are trained to conduct interviews, analyze reports and make recommendations as to what action needs to be taken to resolve the issue.

Businesses can take measures to help prevent employee theft. For example, a business can make sure that key controls are in place to prevent unauthorized employees from accessing high theft merchandise. Secure areas can also be managed by proper key controls. Additionally, businesses need to have an idea of what their inventory levels are at all times so that it is noticed immediately when merchandise may be missing.

Even the most involved business owners may experience internal theft at some point in their careers. How the employee theft investigation is conducted can mean the difference between forever being a victim to employee theft or acting appropriately so the problem is taken care of and others may think twice before committing the same crime.

For more information on employee theft , employee theft investigation or internal theft contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 – Atlanta Georgia