Security Magazine logo
search
cart
facebook twitter linkedin youtube
  • Sign In
  • Create Account
  • Sign Out
  • My Account
Security Magazine logo
  • NEWS
    • Security Newswire
    • Technologies & Solutions
  • MANAGEMENT
    • Leadership Management
    • Enterprise Services
    • Security Education & Training
    • Logical Security
    • Security & Business Resilience
    • Profiles in Excellence
  • PHYSICAL
    • Access Management
    • Fire & Life Safety
    • Identity Management
    • Physical Security
    • Video Surveillance
    • Case Studies (Physical)
  • CYBER
    • Cybersecurity News
    • More
  • BLOG
  • COLUMNS
    • Cyber Tactics
    • Leadership & Management
    • Security Talk
    • Career Intelligence
    • Leader to Leader
    • Cybersecurity Education & Training
  • EXCLUSIVES
    • Annual Guarding Report
    • Most Influential People in Security
    • The Security Benchmark Report
    • The Security Leadership Issue
    • Top Guard and Security Officer Companies
    • Top Cybersecurity Leaders
    • Women in Security
  • SECTORS
    • Arenas / Stadiums / Leagues / Entertainment
    • Banking/Finance/Insurance
    • Construction, Real Estate, Property Management
    • Education: K-12
    • Education: University
    • Government: Federal, State and Local
    • Hospitality & Casinos
    • Hospitals & Medical Centers
    • Infrastructure:Electric,Gas & Water
    • Ports: Sea, Land, & Air
    • Retail/Restaurants/Convenience
    • Transportation/Logistics/Supply Chain/Distribution/ Warehousing
  • EVENTS
    • Industry Events
    • Webinars
    • Solutions by Sector
    • Security 500 Conference
  • MEDIA
    • Videos
      • Cybersecurity & Geopolitical Discussion
      • Ask Me Anything (AMA) Series
    • Podcasts
    • Polls
    • Photo Galleries
  • MORE
    • Call for Entries
    • Classifieds & Job Listings
    • Continuing Education
    • Newsletter
    • Sponsor Insights
    • Store
    • White Papers
  • EMAG
    • eMagazine
    • This Month's Content
    • Advertise
  • SIGN UP!
Security Leadership and Management

What Does Risk Cost Your Business?

By Drew Levine
Exclusives Feature Image
February 14, 2012

 

One of the most crucial issues for businesses right now is managing risk. After all, risk, if left unchecked, can be a serious drain on budgets and assets. While risk comes in all shapes and sizes, identifying which incidents cause the biggest danger to your company is critical to protecting your business. Let's consider the possible economic ramifications of risk on business operation:

Safety issues. Carefully monitoring spills, for example, can avoid the huge costs that could be associated with a single slip-and-fall liability claim.

Equipment failures and fire hazards. Overseeing equipment operation and being attentive to possible fire hazards are common-sense ways to avoid disaster.

Workplace violence. Effective security measures and visitor management, along with well-understood emergency response protocols, can prevent such random events – and/or minimize their impact.

Human resources issues. A combination of employee education along with specific procedures and systematic response protocols will help manage costs.

Compliance violations. Enforcing compliance, company policies and industry standards should be accompanied by thorough follow up and corrective action.

Accidents and injuries. Rapid reporting to a pre-selected company incident management team and a well-planned response are always important.

Property theft. Employee theft can be very costly to any business, so prevention and the implementation of effective counter measures to prevent future trouble are critical components to risk management strategies.

As you can see from the short list above, risk can impact every department within a company. All functional areas within an organization from security, facilities, HR, legal, safety, and compliance − at some point, are impacted by risk and its cost.

So, it’s important that the security industry evolves to help customers find solutions to risk management and at the same time be highly resilient when a disaster or emergency does happen. Programs andsystems should be in place to ensure a timely response to any event with a combination of manpower and technology. Supplementing security officers – and enabling them to act in real-time using hand-held communication devices creates a good start to a comprehensive risk mitigation plan. But pressures in today’s business environment may require additional technology, such as risk management software, to provide a full and comprehensive view of incidents and their true costs.

Some risk management software solutions can be expensive, difficult to use and may not meet the needs of everyone within a company or the unique business environment.  So, it’s very important to find incident management software that’s easy-to-use and cost effective to help with the full life cycle of risk management starting from: capturing complete information at the time of the initial event, tracking incidents to their closures, providing secure digital data storage and analyzing if and when counter measures are working. Risk management software can also help document and record all important compliance initiatives.

Before making a decision on purchasing new incident management software or replacing an outdated system, companies may want to ask three simple questions to help clarify your company’s unique business needs and ultimately help find the best solution.

  • How does your company currently capture incident data and are managers notified in real-time?
  • How does your company gather incident data for reports? And then how is that data stored and is it secure?
  • How does your company currently analyze corrective measures to truly know if your efforts are helping to mitigating risk, lower costs or maintain compliance?

Businesses face a constant balancing act between risk expense and risk mitigation measures. However, managing risk effectively doesn’t always have to be expensive. Sometimes implementing a comprehensive security solution using a combination of manpower and technology can minimize risk without costing a lot. Companies who aren’t looking at risk mitigation techniques may find some of the least costly incidents, when left unchecked actually lead to expensive consequences.

As companies build a database of incidents, managers can begin to see trends and identify areas to optimize. So, it’s essential in today’s complex business environment for companies, both large and small, to have a comprehensive risk management process that combines the best security officers with case management technology to support a continuous process of improvement and analysis to reveal potential risks, help reduce costs and mitigate compliance exposures.

KEYWORDS: incident security risk management workplace violence

Share This Story

Looking for a reprint of this article?
From high-res PDFs to custom plaques, order your copy today!

Sec0612 virtual inbody2 150px

Drew Levine is president of G4S Secure Solutions 

Recommended Content

JOIN TODAY
To unlock your recommendations.

Already have an account? Sign In

  • Security's Top Cybersecurity Leaders 2024

    Security's Top Cybersecurity Leaders 2024

    Security magazine's Top Cybersecurity Leaders 2024 award...
    Cybersecurity
    By: Security Staff
  • cyber brain

    The intersection of cybersecurity and artificial intelligence

    Artificial intelligence (AI) is a valuable cybersecurity...
    Cyber Tactics Column
    By: Pam Nigro
  • artificial intelligence AI graphic

    Assessing the pros and cons of AI for cybersecurity

    Artificial intelligence (AI) has significant implications...
    New Security Technology
    By: Charles Denyer
Manage My Account
  • Security eNewsletter & Other eNews Alerts
  • eMagazine Subscriptions
  • Manage My Preferences
  • Online Registration
  • Mobile App
  • Subscription Customer Service

More Videos

Sponsored Content

Sponsored Content is a special paid section where industry companies provide high quality, objective, non-commercial content around topics of interest to the Security audience. All Sponsored Content is supplied by the advertising company and any opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and not necessarily reflect the views of Security or its parent company, BNP Media. Interested in participating in our Sponsored Content section? Contact your local rep!

close
  • Crisis Response Team
    Sponsored byEverbridge

    Automate or Fall Behind – Crisis Response at the Speed of Risk

  • Perimeter security
    Sponsored byAMAROK

    Why Property Security is the New Competitive Advantage

  • Duty of Care
    Sponsored byAMAROK

    Integrating Technology and Physical Security to Advance Duty of Care

Popular Stories

Coding

AI Emerges as the Top Concern for Security Leaders

Half open laptop

“Luigi Was Right”: A Look at the Website Sharing Data on More Than 1,000 Executives

Shopping mall

Victoria’s Secret Security Incident Shuts Down Website

Laptop with coding on ground

Stepping Into the Light: Why CISOs Are Replacing Black-Box Security With Open-Source XDR

Gift cards and credit cards

Why Are Cyberattacks Targeting Retail? Experts Share Their Thoughts

2025 Security Benchmark banner

Events

June 24, 2025

Inside a Modern GSOC: How Anthropic Benchmarks Risk Detection Tools for Speed and Accuracy

For today's security teams, making informed decisions in the first moments of a crisis is critical.

July 17, 2025

Tech in the Jungle: Leveraging Surveillance, Access Control, and Technology in Unique Environments

From animal habitats to bustling crowds of visitors, a zoo is a one-of-a-kind environment for deploying modern security technologies.

View All Submit An Event

Products

Security Culture: A How-to Guide for Improving Security Culture and Dealing with People Risk in Your Organisation

Security Culture: A How-to Guide for Improving Security Culture and Dealing with People Risk in Your Organisation

See More Products

Related Articles

  • virtual meeting

    What does your virtual meeting background say about you?

    See More
  • escape room

    Escape Room Challenge: Does Your Team Have What it Takes?

    See More
  • Generic Image for Leadership Topic

    Does Your CEO Know What's Keeping You Up at Night?

    See More

Related Products

See More Products
  • security culture.webp

    Security Culture: A How-to Guide for Improving Security Culture and Dealing with People Risk in Your Organisation

  • Risk-Analysis.gif

    Risk Analysis and the Security Survey, 4th Edition

  • physical security.webp

    Physical Security Assessment Handbook An Insider’s Guide to Securing a Business

See More Products

Events

View AllSubmit An Event
  • May 14, 2012

    Effective Risk Communication: Theory, Tools, and Practical Skills for Communicating about Risk

    Stay ahead of the curve by attending this in-depth program, featuring the latest scientific findings on risk perception, case studies from around the world, a suite of practical tools, and hands-on skill training.
View AllSubmit An Event
×

Sign-up to receive top management & result-driven techniques in the industry.

Join over 20,000+ industry leaders who receive our premium content.

SIGN UP TODAY!
  • RESOURCES
    • Advertise
    • Contact Us
    • Store
    • Want More
  • SIGN UP TODAY
    • Create Account
    • eMagazine
    • eNewsletter
    • Customer Service
    • Manage Preferences
  • SERVICES
    • Marketing Services
    • Reprints
    • Market Research
    • List Rental
    • Survey/Respondent Access
  • STAY CONNECTED
    • LinkedIn
    • Facebook
    • YouTube
    • X (Twitter)
  • PRIVACY
    • PRIVACY POLICY
    • TERMS & CONDITIONS
    • DO NOT SELL MY PERSONAL INFORMATION
    • PRIVACY REQUEST
    • ACCESSIBILITY

Copyright ©2025. All Rights Reserved BNP Media.

Design, CMS, Hosting & Web Development :: ePublishing