Digital surveillance systems and CCTV are of course predominantly used for security purposes but end users should begin to think about their capabilities as both general management and Health and Safety tools as well.
In-house professionals may not be fully aware that the use of CCTV and remote digital surveillance systems stretches far beyond the pure security function. In truth, they may be deployed in a variety of applications to increase productivity, improve customer service and throughput, monitor employees forced to work with dangerous equipment and to record details of any accidents to determine whether or not stipulated Health and Safety standards were met and followed.

In short, the use of this technology offers the potential for it to become an all-encompassing management, Health and Safety and security tool of great benefit to the end user.

Using remote surveillance systems as a management tool has the major advantage of placing managers in the middle of things – even when they're off-site – as well as affording them an extra understanding of the needs of their staff and customers. Rather than cameras simply taking the place of management, or being used as a tool for managing from a distance, CCTV can in fact provide the perfect complement to the human face of management.

Take the retail environment, for example. The repeat purchaser is an essential customer for all retailers, but how do you ensure that people come back for more? A remote surveillance system allows the security manager to review every action taken by members of staff that make customers return and purchase more goods. For example, this can include how long people queue for service, their interaction with members of staff, how quickly queries are dealt with and even whether or not a member of staff smiles!

Information gathered may be used both in the short and longer terms. Management can monitor queues and, if necessary, direct more staff to a particular 'bottleneck'. The same information can then be used in the longer term to plan the amount of staff needed at any given time of the day, thereby ensuring smooth customer throughput at all times.

In addition, such technology may be deployed to find out if the poor performance of a given member of staff is down to the individual, or whether too much is being asked of them. Conversely, it allows the management team to determine whether there are too many people doing one job.

Health and Safety issues explored
Health and Safety issues are a priority for any organisation in this day and age. Its management is essential – not just because of the potential cost implications, but from a legal and moral standpoint as well.

According to the latest figures published by the Health and Safety Executive, an estimated two million people suffer from ill-health caused by work-related factors (whether stress or health problems or accidental injury).

  A staggering 31 million working days are lost each year through people taking time off – more than 30 times the number of days lost to strikes. This in turn produces an on-cost to employers of some £300-£700 million per annum. Quite staggering.

In many commercial and industrial environments – particularly that of the factory – the opportunity for accidents to occur is potentially huge, with many people in the environs, different items in stock and stored, different plant and equipment all over the place and work-related vehicles everywhere.

Using remote surveillance systems as a management tool has the major advantage of placing managers in the middle of things – even when they’re off-site – as well as affording them an extra understanding of the needs of their staff and customers. CCTV is t

The manager cannot be 'all-seeing' at all times, nor will he or she have eyes in the back of his or her head. According to the law, it's the duty of the employer to ensure that these factors or risks are controlled correctly – if not eliminated. In no small measure, this will help to ensure that employees, people on site and (in the wider sense) the company itself is at no risk in the workplace.

Monitoring acts of violence
Violence at work is yet another threat to the Health and Safety of an organisation. The Health and Safety Executive's definition of work-related violence is 'any incident in which a person is abused, threatened or assaulted in circumstances relating to their work'. This may be caused by any number of factors – internal issues arising between staff, or from criminals taking an opportunity for vandalism and/or theft within that environment. Both are likely to have passed unnoticed by the employer.

In workplace environments where accidents can and do happen very quickly, without warning and 'out of nowhere', a digital surveillance system can usefully work as a Health and Safety tool, monitoring and recording areas of risk within the working area. It can be used to identify potential hazards and, when linked-in directly to items of plant and equipment, may be used to identify user risk and/or error. In this way, remote digital surveillance acts both as a deterrent and, if need be after the event, as an investigative tool following an accident or any incident in identifying areas of risk and spotting who is at fault in each given circumstance.

Security managers can also monitor staff theft of stock. The British Retail Consortium has openly reported that one third of all retail stock loss may be attributed to 'internal factors'. 'Shrinkage' – or unnoticed decline of stock – is estimated to have doubled since 1986 and, though it's made up of both staff and customer theft, the Centre for Retail Research is quick to point out that 50% of total store theft can be attributed to members of staff. That figure increases once you take into account staff collusion with customers.

Over 97% of shrinkage passes by undetected by retailers either at the time of the crime or subsequently, while for every theft detected no less than 46 pass by unnoticed. Remote surveillance will provide the loss prevention specialist with an extra pair of eyes.

Systems providing clear, unbiased pictures that may only be accessed by specified, named individuals off-site (or from a computer at any location) offer very exciting solutions for security managers.

Surely a plethora of cameras and recording equipment will spark a Big Brother-style outbreak of resentment among staff? Wouldn't they see it as an invasion of privacy, as a threat to the security of their jobs or even a sign that the security team doesn't trust them? Marginal workers would indeed see the system(s) as a threat. Those that are trustworthy and work hard would view it as responsible monitoring, if coupled with personal face-to-face management techniques.