Since restaurants are low-margin businesses, theft by employees — which can cost the industry up to $200 billion a year — is a huge deal. So, many restaurants have turned to Big Brother for help, installing software in their computer systems that tracks and analyzes all transactions for red flags. The use of monitoring hasn’t been free of controversy, of course. But it’s hard to argue with the results. Although theft per restaurant has only decreased by $25 per week, revenues have increased by $2,475. Why? With theft no longer a viable option, staff are incentivized to hustle more, and take better care of customers. And as a result, tip percentage has gone up, too. Everybody wins.
SOURCE: In Praise of Electronically Monitoring Employees by Andrew McAfee