Home Insights & Spotlights Support Contact Centre
Accidents, incidents and near misses can be dangerous and costly with far-reaching consequences, but no matter how many measures you put in place to prevent unexpected events, they can still occur. Sure, there are many ways to minimise risks and act in a streamlined and efficient manner when incidents do happen, but it’s essential to track potential losses from incidents that have not yet occurred, allowing you to better understand the financial (revenue), productivity (expenses) and personal impact of incidents, should they occur in the future.
So how do you accurately calculate the cost of a potential incident? Firstly, you must consider all of the incidents that may occur and attempt to categorise them. For example, you may segment potential incidents into the following types:
Once you have decided on the incident categories, you can see if there were any losses in each of these categories historically. Let’s say that your company paid out for personal damages suffered from work-related injuries on 20 occasions at a total cost of £80,000. You can produce an estimate by dividing the total you paid out by the number of work-related injuries, giving you an incident average of £4,000.
If you’ve not had an incident occur in the past, yet you can reasonably expect one in the future, this formula would simply not work. For example, we know that by using the same formula, the incident cost in this scenario is going to £0. In this situation we recommend you browse online for statistics or by talking to other companies operating in your sector. According to a report by CII (Chartered Insurance Institute) titled ‘Reputation Risk in a Social Media Culture’ 52% of businesses suffered due to damaging social posts, prompting an average loss of £46,815. It’s not going to be possible to get perfect data by using industry statistics that you find online, however, data like the example above will give you a much better idea than £0.
In an ideal world we would only ever make important decisions using hard data and real numbers, however, the business world continues to evolve at a rapid pace, and you’re not always going to be in a position where you have access to accurate loss data and estimates. That’s not to say that a particular threat or incident type is not real. We understand that key stakeholders and management teams will question your estimates, especially when you’re hoping to allocate more budget to a particular incident type based on data that’s nowhere near perfect, however, you can at least begin important discussions about the latest threats, whilst ensuring your company remains vigilant to new threats and incident types.
As important as it is to measure the frequency of incidents, it’s important to understand the cost to your business. For example, it’s possible for several incidents to cost your organisation thousands of pounds more than other low impact incidents. By combining frequency with a quantifying value, you can put yourself in a better position to comprehend the true impact of each incident, whilst measuring incidents in relation to each other.
According to the ‘Retail Security in Europe: Going Beyond Shrinkage' report by Crime&tech, UK retailers lose more than £10 billion to shrinkage every year. Stock/product shrinkage can be attributed to a wide range of causes such as
Whilst focusing more on your inventory data is a good place to start, you’re unlikely to see a major improvement until processes are quicker, simpler and more efficient. For example, if your inventory-driven shrinkage numbers are only available every quarter or a couple of times a year, it’s difficult to label, forecast, and improve performance. By utilising cutting edge loss prevention and case management software, you can make it incredibly easy for your team to log and record shrinkage incidents accordingly, whilst maintaining a real-time account.
Here at Zinc Systems, we focus on helping organisations improve the speed, efficiency and accuracy of incident reporting, enabling a more proactive and accurate approach to Security Incident Reporting Systems (SIRS) and loss prevention.
If you’d like to learn more about our platforms, or wish to speak to us about how real-time reporting and a more effective use of intelligence can benefit your organisation, please get in touch with our team today.
Learn more: www.zinc.systems or contact us for a detailed demonstration
by calling +44 (0)1604 598999 or email us at info@zinc.systems
The City Security Council is on the verge of launching a new Incident and Crisis Management platform that will facilitate real time reporting into and out of the City of London Police JCCR (...
National Business Crime Solution (NBCS) and Zinc Systems have joined forces in the mission to tackle nationwide crime and deliver a safer environment for us all to enjoy and prosper...
Environmental risks are globally one of the biggest threats and cause for significant emergencies. The Environment Agency (EA) has appointed Zinc Systems, the UK's leading software provider...
In October 2019 Zinc Systems welcomed the Kingfisher Crime Centre to our head office in the heart of Northamptonshire. This move has included a physical move of 8 Analysts and an upgrade of...
According to the latest British Retail Consortium (BRC) Retail Crime Survey (covering 1st April 2017 to 31st March 2018) 115 retail employees are attacked every day. The findings...
Today marks another exciting milestone in Zinc’s journey to becoming the UK’s leading Crime and Intelligence software and solutions business. We are delighted to announce the...
Zinc Systems are delighted to announce the launch of our new dedicated website, showcasing our end-to-end turnkey solution for GSOC’s - www.gsoc.co.uk Working with leading experts...
Zinc launches global end-to-end incident management platform for JD Group. Our teams have loved working together to deliver an industry leading profit protection platform. "Through a collaborative...
A.S. Watson, the world's largest health and beauty retailer, awards its Incident Management service for Health & Safety and Security to Zinc. Spanning across Superdrug, The Perfume Shop...
Last month, James Brokenshire, Minister of State for Security at the Home Office, announced plans to introduce a law that compels owners and operators of public spaces to put measures in place...
Prevention & Partnerships – Metropolitan Police Service The Coronavirus has necessitated businesses close across London leaving many empty buildings: this will likely be the...
Together we are facing a truly unprecedented situation. The global COVID-19 pandemic is affecting all of our families, our businesses, our communities, and our way of life. During this time,...
Coronavirus has rightly dominated newspaper headlines with countries closing borders, restricting travel, imposing lockdowns and broadcasting daily updates. As the situation rapidly evolves,...
Accidents, incidents and near misses can be dangerous and costly with far-reaching consequences, but no matter how many measures you put in place to prevent unexpected events, they can still...
According to the ‘Retail Security in Europe’ report, shrinkage is costing UK retailers almost £11bn annually – the highest of any country in Europe. Keeping a...
Only a matter of decades ago, hiring security guards was one of the most effective measures for protecting people, buildings and assets – after all, nothing comes close to the intuition...
Agile is an approach to project management that challenges the traditional ‘Waterfall’ method of development. With Waterfall, the stages of design are followed sequentially. Each...
A control room acts as a data hub, allowing organisations to efficiently and effectively monitor multiple information streams and make accurate mission-critical decisions. There are many...
We all have a responsibility to protect and conserve the environment, but it’s particularly important for businesses and organisations to acknowledge potential environmental incidents...
Critical National Infrastructure (CNI) relates to buildings, networks, people and processes that keep the UK running. Without a high level of protection in place and a proactive approach to...
Zinc is delighted to announce the recent appointment of Sophie Malone as Commercial Director. This new appointment reflects a pivotal point in Zinc's strategy as the business prepares itself...
Within the software development life cycle, testing is one of the most important steps. On a daily basis, we make changes to the source code that need to be tested on every browser and system...
As the talk around superfast "fifth generation 5G" mobile internet continues to grow, we thought it would be beneficial to run though the features and rewards in more detail. In this article...
Most city skylines are dominated by tall buildings and it makes perfect sense; they can be environmentally friendly, leaving more space on the ground for infrastructure, greenery and more convenient...
Civil recovery was initially adopted by retailers as a means of challenging crime, acting as a highly effective deterrent. A company may therefore decide to take civil action against...
Real-time actionable threat intelligence is an emerging defence concept that’s focused on identifying and minimising cyber or physical threats. In this article, we will be looking at UK...
Lone workers are those who work by themselves without close or direct supervision. Anybody who works alone, including contractors, self-employed people and employee, is classed as a ‘lone...
Technology has dramatically changed the competitive landscape but effective communication has always been a key component in driving businesses forward. According to The McKinsey Global...
Loss Prevention Managers play a critical role in protecting company assets and maintaining profitability. They are therefore tasked with developing, implementing and maintaining procedures for...
Theft is a growing concern for retailers in the UK. Data from the Office of National Statistics (ONS) shows there was an 8% increase in the number of shoplifting offences in 2017, whilst police...
A Security Operations Centre (SOC), also now widely referred to as an intelligence centre, plays a pivotal role in helping to protect people, assets and brands by delivering a more strategic...
‘DevOps’ is the combination of cultural philosophies, standards, practices and tools that give organisations the ability to design, build and operate ever-evolving resilient systems...
Findings from the Home Office’s 2017 Commercial Victimisation Survey found that the cost of retail crime in the UK rose by 15% in 2017 to a record £700 million. Identifying...
Violence at work continues to be a critical issue for many businesses in the UK. According to the Crime Survey for England and Wales (CSEW) there was an estimated 698,000 incidents of violence...
Powerful Mapping Integrations It’s said that highly data-driven organisations are three times more likely to report “significant improvement in decision-making” according...
Asking the right questions during an incident Incidents can occur at any time, in any workplace. From safety incidents to accidents, environmental observations, security incidents, claims and...
There is a growing threat of theft, pilferage and collusion in distributions centres, and it’s largely down to the difficulty of prevention, as well as the ready availability of opportunities...
Situational intelligence has long been important in helping organisations make critical decisions, whilst it’s a key component in an effective security strategy – but what exactly...
Though the UK is recognised as the 33rd safest country, there are certain counties, towns and cities that are associated with high crime rates – as is the case with every country. Looking...
We’re excited to announce that we have appointed Keith Francis as a Non-Executive Board member of Zinc. Keith's recent appointment is a positive reflection of the company’s rapid...
In the world of security, a keyholder is a linchpin in an effective security strategy. They are responsible not only for the primary duties of security on the premises, but to be the first port...
For organisations in corporate, distribution and retail sectors, a security strategy is your most important asset. When you’re able to make informed decisions based on data, you will prevent...
Synapse work with some of the biggest names in both private and public sectors, providing a way to keep employees, customers and assets protected from threats. As part of our dedication to security...
Zinc has worked with countless businesses, bringing about digital transformations by providing the resources to transfer their operations to the Synapse digital platform to increase efficiency...
An alarm monitoring system is part of the essential security in most business locations. No matter the size, industry, or security requirements, an alarm system is vital to protect the people...
Zinc is proud to be amongst the first to have our software platforms available on the new G-Cloud 10 Framework. We have a long history of providing government bodies, local authorities, the...
2018 marks 100 years since the Women’s Suffrage movement won votes for women. On 10th June, tens of thousands of marchers in London took to the streets in the colours of purple, green...
With most constabularies in the UK unable to respond to shoplifting incidents due to a lack of resources, and theft in stores increasing, retailers are faced with the dilemma of either spending...
A Digital Transformation is the introduction of new digital technologies into an environment that had none. It can mean a multitude of things to different companies. Netflix underwent a digital...
Incident Reporting may seem like a laborious task, necessary only for multinational corporations, but to quote the infamous Murphy’s Law, “Anything that can go wrong will go wrong...
Synapse and Zinc Digital are proud to announce that we’re amongst the first organisations to be serving our solutions from the new Health & Social Care Network (HSCN). With this new...
On-site security in the modern day takes more than a walkie-talkie to stay connected. For companies that have multiple locations, or simply a large workforce, communication becomes both a necessity...
We have been working day and night to launch the interactive Activity Wall, which we are pleased to announce is now available for our Enterprise customers using version 10.2.1 or above. The...
At Synapse, we work with many companies that need the highest levels of security technology at every location. In these cases, it’s your job as an employer to offer your workforce the...
We have improved the multi-location facility within the Incident Reporting module to allow users to either manually select locations or use an improved mapping tool with drawing capabilities...
A Crisis Communications plan in business is how a business moves forward and begins to recover following a crisis. When it comes to fast and effective recovery from an emergency situation,...
An enhancement to the user profile and notification module now enables users to activate their Preferred Contact Methods. Once a user has logged into the app, within their profile, the users...
Agile Project Management & Development is how we do everything at Synapse. It’s a way of working that’s very different to traditional Waterfall Project Management, enabling us...
You can now activate an S.O.S Emergency feature on your app. Once activated an S.O.S alert icon appears in the header section of the App, allowing quick access to contact numbers/links to specified...
Technology has had an impact on every aspect of our daily lives, both at home and in business. The same goes for the way that the security industry works. The role of the Security Guard has...
Sign-offs and approvals are going digital and this is the future we must all look forward to. As part of our "Comms" module we have added a "Digital Signature" facility which can be switched...
More and more of our customers are sending Offender information directly to Police & Government Agencies to aide the research, arrest and/or sanction of Offenders that have impacted customer...
We have now seperated the "Manage Document Templates" facility from the "Notifications" module and created a new module with "Comms & Tasks" called "Communication Templates". This allows...
Your login details have been used by another user or machine. Login details can only be used once at any one time so you have therefore automatically been logged out. Please contact your sites administrator if you believe this other user or machine has unauthorised access.