If you think that there is no way that your inventory is at the risk of being stolen, then you are clearly thinking wrong. Your inventory can remain free from theft and vandalism only in utopia. However, the imperfect world that we live in comes with unique set of challenges, one being to safeguard your business products and inventory against robbery.
If you look at the ground facts, you will find them to be quite bothersome. Each year, many businesses lose their valuable inventory owing to petty instances of theft. It is very disturbing for business owners to figure out that their inventory has shrunken due to breaking or even worse theft.
The first step that you should take to keep a track of all your inventory is to train employees to report as soon as they find a product broken or wasted. By daily reporting the breakage and wastage, the supervisor would calculate the intact inventory. Once you have outlined how much of your inventory shrink is due to waste and breakage and still find your inventory decreasing, it is because of theft.
Losing revenue because your inventory is being stolen right under your nose is not a pleasing idea for any distributor. In order to avoid this highly disturbing action, you can take the following measures.
It’s not necessary that your customers are taking away your inventory. Sometimes it’s the internal employees that are to blame for inventory shrink due to theft. In order to control robbery from your store and warehouse, you can take the following measures.
Make Your Physical Store Or Warehouse Theft Proof
If you face the problem of your products being stolen in your physical store, then you need to work on the security of your shop. Installing CCTV cameras on all the crucial points of your store can help you keep track of your products. Training your employees about inventory control and theft can also considerably reduce the risk of shoplifting in your store. In case the theft is recurring at your warehouse and you are not present there physically all the time, you can install cameras along with keeping a close check on time-clocks, so you are well aware which employee is close to the inventory at what time and assign him the task of monitoring it closely.
Update Your Inventory Management Software
Warehouse robbery can also be controlled by using inventory management software and then training your employees on how to use them. If your systems are frequently updated, you can check anytime the amount of inventory you have and how much of it is lost due to wastage. This clearly helps you determine the amount that has been lost due to thefts and can help you chalk policies to stop any further damage.
Restrict Inventory Management Software Access
Make sure that the employees who are entitled to inventory management software are reliable. Ideally, you should grant access to only a few employees who have been working with you for quite some time and are trustworthy. Also, make sure that the employees who have access do not share the information with others. It is very easy for anyone who has access to the software can falter with the correct figures and without you even knowing your products will start disappearing. Denying access to information regarding your inventory can keep your business safe from internal theft along with potential risks of stealing from customers.
Create Separate Accounts
It’s always better to be safe than sorry. While inventory management software can bring you hordes of feasibility, a little mishandling can turn into havoc. While it is necessary to provide access to the software to only a select few employees, it is always a good idea to safeguard your inventory and other business software with a password, which only you have access to. When the need to be you can create separate accounts for reliable employees with your inventory or supply chain management.
Ensure Your Inventory Is Placed At A Secure Spot
Another important factor that most of the business owners overlook is whether they are placing their inventory at a safe place. In order to protect your inventory from both internal as well as external theft, you can consider using cages, cabinets with locks or alarm systems that would ring once anyone comes near the products. When dealing with valuable inventory, only allow specific employees to access them such as line managers. Taking small measures like these will help you keep your inventory safe from a lot of hazards.
Equipping yourself with an efficient management system and using some good inventory management techniques can surely help you keep your products safe and sound without any further inventory shrink.
