In these times when more and more employees are working from home, or even quarantined, it's important to stay positive and see new opportunities.

On Monday morning, many companies and schools will be ramping up their use of Microsoft Teams - a novelty for many that may end up taking hold as an effective way of working going forward.

A friend at Microsoft has promised me that they are ready for the expected increase in traffic.

But perhaps your company could also use the slowdown for reflection these days? How are you doing in your fight against fraud? Could you optimize and increase profits? In many companies, the answer is:

Yes!

Too many companies think traditionally and only see the opportunity to increase revenue by either selling more - or saving. There is actually a third option that too many underestimate and don't allocate resources to.

At yourCompany ApS, we have been helping companies increase revenue for some years now. We do this by helping companies think differently through consulting - or we offer our ”outsourcing concept”, where we take on tasks that are not naturally part of your existing organization. Our customers' ROI is often between 1:5 - 1:10 when they choose to use our outsourcing concept. This is, of course, when it comes to bottom line money which makes it a pretty good business, even if many are skeptical from the start.

So what can your business do.

What is the right thing for companies to do varies greatly, which is probably why companies don't ”just” do it. Most people are most comfortable doing something well-known and well-documented - but that's not the case in fraud prevention. It's a taboo area that many business owners are afraid to touch.

But what are we really talking about? Are companies supposed to adopt a ”shut up, pace and direction” method in the future? Should all employees and customers feel monitored and subjected to constant scrutiny? The answer is of course - no. Instead, we must utilize the loyalty of the many good employees and business partners to the company and the moral compass of the good employees to the company's advantage. There are many good people in most companies who can point to obvious improvements and gaps in your business that are costing you money or pose a risk just waiting to be exploited.

Some employees or customers may feel like they are being watched or breathed down their necks. This is either an important communication task from management to customers and employees - or it's a case of control pressure working on the few.

It is my experience, from companies yourCompany ApS has helped, that when it succeeds in revealing crime-related fraud - there are employees who were well aware of this, or suppliers and employees who have actually tried to raise the alarm - but have been ignored or not taken seriously enough.

Your company could therefore - in these Corona times, use the time to consider whether:

• Do you have a good employee culture or are there pockets of the business where a bad culture is costing you money?
• Do you have the necessary and preferably automated processes for control in your company?
• Are you utilizing the skills of the IT and accounting departments sufficiently beyond normal operations? Are they an integral part of the company's fraud prevention?
• Do you routinely scan documents for fraud and do you run Ransomecare products on your IT system to avoid becoming hostage to criminals who encrypt your files and shut down your business. This is underestimated by too many IT managers.
• Are you taking the right backups of your IT system and storing emails long enough? Many people think 6-12 months is enough, but in fraud cases it's often far too little.
• Do you have taboos and fear of contact in your company? - Or are you open to the idea that fraud from customers, suppliers, colleagues or management is inherently deceitful and will often surprise, shock and trigger a reaction: ”That's the last person I thought would do something like that...”
• Do you have sufficient experience or written procedures for how to conduct a ”difficult conversation” - for example, dismissing an employee, business partner, customer or supplier? Do you have a handle on the all-important preservation of evidence? You may not get the chance afterwards - so preparation is key.
• As a business, do you think about the signals you send to criminals when it comes to physically securing your property, vehicles, tools and machinery? A lot of crime starts with some kind of motivation and belief that the crime can be carried out.
• Are you considering how certain security measures, such as GPS, fleet management, video surveillance, license plate scanners, modern alarm systems, can also contribute to optimized operations and replace manual processing? The ROI is thus completely different and the company is lifted while security is increased.
• Do you have someone in the company who handles these things like A primary task, Or are such initiatives a ”secondary task” for people with other more important tasks with higher focus? In too many places, security is handled by Facility, IT or HR without having an independent focus area. This can be achieved by outsourcing.

At yourCompany ApS we are ready to help your business.

Our staff all have a background in the Police and Intelligence Services. Most police officers became police officers out of a strong sense of justice, caring and the desire to help others. This is what our staff bring to the work that yourCompany offer our customers. Even though we are no longer police officers, we still possess these skills combined with our experience from police life and now also the business world.

We can be the cog in your organization that you need. That way, you can continue doing what you do best and we can assist you on your terms. That's what we're good at.

It is our clear opinion that Danish business has a huge undiscovered potential in organized fraud prevention and if yourCompany can help your company make this happen, we are highly motivated - if you are too.

The period when many employees and managers are working from home due to Coronavirus / Covid-19 could be the time to stop and reflect. What potential is there in your business? How can you increase revenue?

We also work from home - but are ready by the phone.

Sincerely yours

Christian Pejtersen

Director, yourCompany ApS