Cash handling is a notoriously tedious part of doing business, and anything that can make the process more efficient, cost-effective, and secure is a huge advantage. Automating cash management is one of the best business decisions you can make, as it will significantly streamline the process, reducing the stress that comes with cash handling. Once you’ve made the decision, however, you might not know how to proceed. After all, it is a big change that will impact your work environment in a big way. Luckily, we have three strategies that will help you successfully automate your cash management!
1. Communication
Automating your cash management is a big step, and it’s important that you clearly communicate the implications of automating to your staff in order to ensure a smooth transition. Introducing technology that will take over manual cash management tasks can be intimidating to some employees; they may feel like their jobs are threatened, or feel unsure about where they fit into the new cash management process. Without clear communication, this can lead to a toxic work environment. Clearly communicating the significance of automated cash management, and the new responsibilities it will generate, is the best way to get everyone on board, and to foster an environment where the concerns and contributions of your staff are respected.
Automating also means adopting new policies and procedures, and clearly communicated guidelines are imperative for maximum efficiency for your new equipment. If your employees are not up to date on what the new policies and procedures are, they are less likely to understand exactly how they are meant to be utilizing the new technology, and less likely to understand what they can and cannot do when it comes to cash handling.
2. Training
While automated cash management is a great tool for maximizing efficiency in the workplace, it is crucial that employees are trained in how to effectively use the new equipment. Automated cash management technologies often have a diverse range of functions, with individual machines able to carry out numerous tasks, so it’s important that employees know how and what the technology should be used for. When employees are improperly trained, your new technology will have the opposite effect. Repeatedly having to explain how to use the technology will slow down cash handling, thereby reducing efficiency. It can also lead to costly mistakes, and tamper with the accuracy of the equipment. Investing in automated cash management without investing in the necessary training is risky business, and can seriously undermine the technology you are introducing into the workplace.
3. Strategic Placement
Deciding where to put your new automated cash management equipment involves assessing your retail goals and needs. Are you investing in automated cash management in order to increase customer service? To decrease the amount of time spent in the cash room? Or, are you looking to strengthen security? If you’re looking for better customer service, placing your automated technology at the point-of-sale (POS) will ensure that customer service representatives don’t have to leave their posts in order to make deposits or get change.
If you’re concerned about accountability, then you might want to consider placing your equipment in a cash room where you can monitor who has access to the equipment and to the cash. If you’re concerned about security, a smart safe is imbedded with anti-drilling technology, has an advanced locking system, and requires everyone to login with individuated IDs.
Strategic placement is an important part of integrating automated cash management into your retail environment, and will help determine how the new technology functions in your workplace.
