COACH'S CORNER
By Barry Knepper
As Seen In Queensborough - The Magazine of the Queens Chamber of Commerce

Cash Management in a Retail Environment

Tab Member's Question:
I get about half of my daily receipts in cash. During the last couple, of months, various amounts have been missing at the end of the day. I am now reconciling twice a day but a number of people handle the cash due to lunch hours, flexible schedules, etc. Do you have any good ideas on how to handle this? I suspect an employee but can't prove anything.

TAB Coach:
In the retail business, there is a common practice called cash drawer accountability. In this practice only one employee has access to a cash drawer at a time and they must reconcile before another person touches the cash drawer. This is a little cumbersome perhaps, but a preventive process is much preferred to having to catch a thief.

You should also create a mental deterrent by creating processes where employees are afraid of being caught. This can be cameras and/or random reconciliations. Meet with every employee one on one and communicate your zero tolerance policy and that your company will prosecute any and all transgressions. If you do install any technology to prevent theft, let the employees know about it. These tighter security measures will help stop the behavior. Have each employee sign a declaration that they understand this new policy.

You can also try to catch the suspected employee by setting up a situation where the suspected employee would have access and others wouldn't. If they cash disappears you can confront the employee, but before doing so you must know what you want the ultimate outcome to be. If you want more than what was just taken, let someone with experience handle this step. You may find that the employee has been actually stealing more than small amounts of cash.

Another tactic is to right a letter to all employees describing the problem .You may find that the person that you suspect will resign on his/her own.

Barry Knepper is the certified facilitator and coach in Queens for The Alternative Board® ("TAB"). Board members meet monthly to learn from one another's successes to grow their businesses to the next level through a combination of peer advice and coaching He also serves a part time chief financial officer ("CFO"), utilizing his 30 years of full time CFO experience to help business owners maximize the profitability of their business through the development of a budget, business plan and monitoring of financial operations. He can be reached at 516-724-0351 or bknepper@tab-queensny.com.