Does Your Office Really Need 24 Hour Security?

Keeping your place of business secure is very important, but at a time when a lot of businesses are looking for ways to cut back, having security guards working on site 24 hours a day may be something you aren't sure is worth it. Having security staff is always a good thing and keeps insurance costs down, however at the same time, if you are paying someone to chill out on your front desk while nothing much happens, you may be thinking this is a good thing to cut from your budget. So, what factors should you consider before making a choice about changing your security?

Is Your Office Open 24 Hours a Day?

Some offices have pretty fixed business hours where others are available to staff who want to pull all nighters or work strange hours to get projects done. If everyone has gone home by 5.30 at your office, you may not really need to have someone present watching over things when nobody is likely to be about. If you tend to let people come and go as they please, it may be better to keep your security on 24 hours a day in line with your opening policies. Of course, if you are thinking of cutting back on security, you could consider changing your opening hours policy at the office and have those who want to work long hours do so from home instead, if you provide them with the equipment they would need.

What Other Security Measures Do You Have In Place?

Chances are your security staff aren't the only measures you've put in place to keep your site safe from thieves, vandals and general trespassers. If you have a fairly good access system where only people with security cards or access codes can get into the important parts of the office, it will be quite difficult for anyone to break in, and if you have a good business security system in terms of alarms, lights and cameras you may find you have enough protection without a human security guard being on site at all times. If your security is more lax and people can basically just walk in the door (for example if you have a site customers visit a lot and you can't really implement strict ID based security), it is generally better to have a trusted employee watching over security than cameras alone. Make sure too, that any camera system you are using truly meets the needs of the building and there aren't too many 'blind spots'.

Balancing your need for security and the costs involved can be tricky for businesses, but it is always better to regularly review whether you are paying for more than you need or whether you are putting your property at risk. This is something you should also analyze whenever you are expanding, changing location or downsizing. Security is essential, and you need to be able to monitor what is going on at all times, but making prudent choices about how you get it can make a big difference to your budget.

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AUTHORS BIO: The author of this post, Kate Harris, works with AAA Satellite which provides television installation services in Kansas City. Her hobbies include gardening and pottery.