How thieves strengthen your business

DOING business in the Philippines can be both stressful yet rewarding. While business schools may teach you how to do business, my MBA never taught me what to do when a trusted employee steals from you. Should you bring them to justice or let them go for compassionate reasons? Should you terminate them following due process, or give them another chance to redeem themselves?

I think every year, someone attempts to circumvent the system and steal a few here and there if they can get away with it. We've gotten better in catching thieves, but it's still challenging when others attempt. It takes up a lot of our time to investigate properly and find out how they've done it, how much they've taken, and how long they've been doing it for. What's more, investigations can be extremely painful. It's especially frustrating when the culprit is somebody you sincerely liked and shared a good relationship with.