How to Make Your 2021 More Safe & Secure

Posted by Tom on March 31st, 2021

Keeping a business secure can be intimidating. An increasing concern for business owners is creating & keeping a safe environment for their employees. However, achieving this is harder than it looks. Ensuring the safety of all your assets comes with many levels of security measures.  When was the last time you checked in on how secure your business actually is? A business with outdated security becomes a tempting target for thieves who are on the lookout to find points of easy access. 

After having worked hard to build your business, the last thing anyone wants is for their hard work to become prey to thieves. Overlooking security can lead to stolen assets overnight – no business owner wants to face the expansive damage that could have been easily prevented with proper security measures. Here are some tips to keep your business safe and secure in 2021!

1. Security Culture

One of the best places to start with implementing security is with your own employees. The more they’re on the lookout, the better! Creating a strong collective value for safety and security in the workplace can ultimately save your business from theft. Educating each employee on recognizing security threats and suspicious activity, as well as how to appropriately respond and report, builds strong security culture within the workplace. Hold regular meetings and send regular reminders to everyone about each employee’s responsibility in keeping the workplace safe and secure! Aside from the surveillance provided by technology, surveillance through your own staff is often a very valuable and direct form of protecting your business.

2. Access Controls

Thieves love sneaking past the doors through small openings in security. Establish a system of controlling who has access with getting in and out. Adding ID cards for each employee and requiring ID cards to enter the building will allow you to keep track of building entrance activity. Also making sure that the locks for each of the entrances to your buildings are updated – is it about time you switched to timed locks, deadbolts or padded locks? The benefit of timed locks means that during certain times of the day, the locks will open and close, and all openings will be recorded. Install a system that can notify police immediately of possible intruders. With proper access control, you can have a means of both preventing those break-ins as well as a clear means of finding who could be intruding.

3. Theft Deterrents

Some businesses are appealing towards thieves depending if there’s a clear, easy opportunity for crime. Making your business less of an easy target can be done through the landscaping around your building. Are there trees or bushes that obstruct doorways or windows? Sealing off entry points and erasing potential hiding spots for thieves is important. Is your building well lit – inside and outside? Additionally, build a relationship with the law enforcement nearby to more easily handle future issues that may arise.  If you’re looking to move your business to a new location, do your research on the crime statistics of the area to see if it’s securely desirable enough to home your business. By incorporating small ways of making your business unattractive for theft, you prevent potential thieves scouting your business to break into. 

4. Surveillance

Identify & record potential intruders through a careful surveillance system. Implementing good security cameras and CCTVs both inside the workplace and outside deters thieves from taking action, while also deterring internal theft in the workplace. Be careful with placement of security cameras – are there any blind spots you are overlooking? With a rigorous system of security cameras they act as both a deterrent in reducing chances of criminal activity, while making intruders easily trackable.

Additionally, consider hiring around the clock surveillance with a security team – this ensures there’s always a set of trained eyes on the premises to protect your business. The presence of security guards themselves also act as strong deterrents towards potential intruders – reducing victim-reported crimes by 16%. With the extra help of security guards monitoring the inside and outside of the workplace, it’s an additional layer of security and protection for your business. Businesses lose 5% of their yearly revenue due to just employee theft. With cameras and a security team there and able to monitor employee activity, the chances of internal theft reduces dramatically.

Putting in place some form of surveillance allows you to rest a little easier knowing that your business is being watched around the clock.

5. Parking Lots

This one is normally overlooked – the parking lot around your business is a whole other realm that needs to stay protected. Make sure that there are exterior lights in your parking lot – your employees need to feel safe walking back to their cars after a long day. A properly illuminated parking lot ensures there are no dark spaces that attract thieves or any sort of criminal activity putting your business at risk. The parking lot is an equally vulnerable area as the building itself – install some sort of barrier so that there is no easy access for anyone to come in. Minimizing exit points also improves the security of the area – it seals the location of your business off in a safer way. Aside from surveillance of your building, extending surveillance as far as your parking lot is important because you want to know who’s visiting the premises when you’re not there.

6. Stay Consistent

You’ve taken every top-of-the-line security measure and precaution, and now it’s just the matter of carefully maintaining it. Delaying on upgrading outdated parts or faults in your security measures can ultimately cost you. Building a reputation for consistency and dependably requires you never fall short of fixing any issues that may arise with your security. Having this reputation for security lessens your business as a potential target towards thieves – who would try to rob a place they know has around the clock, impenetrable security? Implement security policies in the workplace for both you and your employees. With each individual knowing it is an integral part of their responsibility to upkeep the company’s security, this will decrease the chance for slip-ups. Safety comes with never under-estimating potential threats! With a dedication to maintaining tight security for your business, your assets are protected from the risk of damage or theft.

Approaching security for your business in 2021 can be achieved with the right practices and careful consideration of what measures to put in place! These tips can help you protect your property as you continue to grow your business, uninterrupted by easily prevented break-ins or thefts. Give yourself the freedom of knowing you can sleep soundly at night with a tight-knit, secure and safe business to return to each morning!