Fixed Asset Management Information

STEPS TO ACCURATELY AND COST EFFECTIVELY TRACK YOUR FIXED ASSETS

The second of a series of 20 key decisions

Key 2- Indentify areas of concern for Asset Shrinkage or Theft

I remember the days in my past working as a temporary staff member for companies and occasionally witnessing staff pilfer through the office supplies to take home.  “What’s the big deal, they wont be missed.”    Yesterday’s notepads seem to be Today’s laptops, cell phones, server blades etc..  According to reports by the Justice Department, Insider theft is growing at 15% annually. And, theft is costing between ½ - 3% of a company’s gross sales annually.   Another resource, on Ernst and Young, states that up to 1 in ten laptops will be stolen in their lifetime.

This epidemic has hit our region most recently, when Outback Restaurant was losing laptops to someone selling them on EBay. When laptops are taken, data theft becomes the real fear for companies.   Sweet Bay Supermarkets earlier this year had a security breech with their database that led to serious fraudulent banking transactions. All in all, you probably don’t have anything to worry about but, here are some AREAS of CONCERN that could be looked at by a task force team in finance, facilities and Information Systems. 

• Mobility of Assets containing Databases threatened
• Entry / Exit point vulnerability
• Security Camera devices recording schedule
• Asset tagging procedures
• Physical Inventory Schedule
• Background Checking

Your organization may have none of the concerns, or   many from the list above.  We recommend that each Key area have an analysis completed either by an internal task force or independent consultant.  The analysis should identify exact problems while providing current and state of the art solutions for solving them.  In addition, it helps to provide a certificate when these concerns are solved, for possibly
Receiving insurance discounts for property coverage. 

In 13 years we have been in business providing asset inventories, the primary reasons for calling us were to validate what was on the general ledger.  I see a shift lately in the reasons for conducting an inventory. One military client was concerned about missing laptops, and was very clear that checking in and out the assets were crucial.  Accountability, accountability!   They ironically had the software in place, but no one was trained nor educated what tools were available on their server. Key #18 – Know what resources are available internally, before looking externally to solve issues with Asset Tracking.

The good news is there is always a solution. Whether you require an RFID solution or   choose a solution that is driven on process changes and minimal barcode hardware implementation, such as a batch load system.

No one wants to have concerns within their organization like, staff theft.  Simply, being aware that it is on the rise, can help your internal task force research all the information available.

By: S.E. Pedone
Managing Asset Consultant

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