Note: This post was updated in March 2025 with new information on security during the holidays.
The holiday season brings people together in celebration. Office employees enjoy decorations, parties and gift giving. But if they are not mindful of potential risks, business could be open to serious security breaches.
In the mad rush to complete shopping and other holiday details, normally vigilant employees may forget to lock doors and set alarms. As gifts arrive from vendors and customers, office receptionists may be lax about who they admit to the loading dock. And holiday parties are a perfect cover for someone to sneak in and steal valuable physical and logical assets.
Now is a great time to plan and issue office-wide reminders to employees on security protocols and procedures.
Security Reminders for Office Environments
- Make sure doors are locked at the end of the business day. Also, make sure secondary entrances typically kept locked throughout the day remain so.
- Remind employees to set door alarms and use their codes to enter. Remind service providers, such as janitors, to share codes with substitute workers to avoid false alarms.
- Use security cameras or a video intercom to ensure delivery door packages are being dropped off by known and reputable services. Watch as the person enters and leaves, making sure no one else enters at the same time.
- Inspect packages and identify the sender prior to signing for or opening packages. If any appear to be suspicious, don't open them and call a first responder for assistance.
Reminders for Holiday Parties
- Ask employees for lists of spouses and others they may invite. Check in guests as they arrive and note when they leave.
- Lock doors to offices with sensitive data or valuable equipment.
- Have security cameras record events to alleviate potential liability claims, such as slip and falls.
Most likely your company has been following these suggestions throughout the year. But a friendly reminder to keep your guard up during the holiday season never hurts.
Simple Ways to Protect Your Business Each Holiday Season
Here are 7 easy, common sense steps that can help deter criminals from making your business and employees a target:
- Ensure security cameras are plentiful and visible.
Visible cameras make customers aware that they are being monitored. Cameras also prevent liability to businesses against a customer who may attempt to purposefully hurt themselves in order to seek legal actions.
- Employ additional staff.
Having extra employees on the clock during hours of operation decreases the risk of theft.
- Keep normal business hours
Operating too early in the morning or too late at night heightens the risk for theft, burglary and robbery.
- Limit multiple points of ingress and egress.
The “one door policy” is one of the best and most inexpensive safeguards during the holidays. Having an employee stationed at the front door throughout your daily operation will ensure that a set of eyes is on every individual who enters and exits the store, and make thieves think twice about acting.
- Keep valuable items locked away.
This should be done at all times, not just during the holidays. All expensive items should be locked in a case and only retrievable by an employee at a customer’s request. While there may be times when criminals decide to “smash and grab,” having an extra layer of protection to safeguard valuables might be just enough to ward-off even the most brazen of thieves.
- Have multiple employees on-hand while closing.
Criminals tend to target businesses where a single person is responsible for closing the store and handling the money at the end of each work day.
- Change your routine.
Businesses that become too comfortable and predictable, whether it be opening, closing or with daily routines, become more prone to crime. Small, but necessary routine changes prevent criminals from having an advantage when planning a crime.
The number one reason criminals target businesses during the holidays is the high number of transactions and volumes of money stores manage. Additionally, the spike in customer numbers give thieves the benefit of blending-in while committing crimes. Following these simple steps will minimize your risk of becoming a victim during this meaningful and eventful time of year.