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The human threat

A survey conducted in 2007 in 60 countries by Transparency International revealed that about one in 10 people around the world paid a bribe in the previous 12-month period, and approximately half of the 63 000 people interviewed expect corruption in their country to increase in the next three years.

Note: greed and corruption are a worldwide phenomenon, and on the incline.

No matter where, or what your business, it would seem, it is under threat from the dishonest mind.

The business entities that fall into the industrial, manufacturing and processing sectors are certainly no exception and are subjected to a multitude of threats, as they invariably slot into a complicated supply chain situation.

Each step of the supply chain has its own particular threats, and these are traditionally catered for by implementing high-tech solutions, fine tuning systems and controls, and utilising physical security measures.

For instance, suppliers of raw materials and services to the manufacturing sector will have their own specific high-risk problems, depending on the commodity they are dealing with, and its marketability. And then the goods are transported to a manufacturer or processor, with its own inherent security issues (including storage, receiving, dispatch).

Once more, the goods are transported (again including storage, receiving, dispatch) - this time to a distributor or wholesaler, who is now dealing with a packaged, finished product, which must then be transported again to a retailer or customer, and may even be moved and stored again before it ends up with the end-user.

As stated, each leg in the supply chain is different with its own inherent problems and each time the product is moved down the supply chain it has to be transported and exposed to further internal and external threats.

But endemic staff dishonesty often flies 'under the radar' and is not always detected by the traditional preventive measures.

Information/intelligence also needs to be considered seriously as another crucial element in the integrated security package, which cements the package together.

Staff members who steal are usually observed by other employees in their nefarious deeds, or at least do so with the knowledge of others.

And often syndicates choose to operate in certain sectors of the supply chain, especially if they (in turn) have a ready market for the goods, or their component parts (the motor industry is a good example).

So these syndicates move up and down (and sideways) in the supply chain, hitting at the weakest links and moving to other segments when it gets too 'hot' and detection becomes more prevalent.

The solutions to consider, therefore, are:

1. The implementation of a 'zero tolerance' culture, from top management down, which clearly illustrates the consequence of both honest and dishonest behaviour to staff. Staff should be under no illusion that wrongdoing will be thoroughly investigated and the culprits dealt with severely.

2. Pre-employment polygraphing. Many potential employees lie about their previous criminal experiences or even previous convictions and sentences.

3. Routine random polygraphing of staff. Even staff members who start off as honest employees are sometimes driven by desperation (death in the family, school fees) to misappropriate company funds or stock.

4. Installation of undercover operatives in vulnerable areas. These individuals can be infiltrated as a temporary measure, or left in place for years.

5. Installation of covert cameras. This equipment is best monitored off-site, and moved from time to time to ensure complete confidentiality.

6. Installation of a whistle-blowers facility - an independent, anonymous call centre that enables honest employees to expose negative activity in the workplace.

In short, the implementation of security solutions that affect the entire supply chain should include as many concerned business entities as possible, working in co-operation to include:

* Physical security (manpower - traditional guards including undercover operatives).

* Technical security (electronics, IT package computers, including cover cameras).

* Intelligence (information gathering including whistle blower facilities).

Conrad van der Merwe is the director of Justicia Investigations, Gauteng

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