Once I replaced a manager who was considered a top performer but a week after I got there I did an inventory (you should always do an inventory when management changes) and was $30k short on equipment and parts. I heard that he took it, and later he was wanted on felony charges for stealing from his next position with the same company.
I had a manager friend who was my peer that told me one night over too many beers that he had gotten $150k in kickbacks from a vendor in his previous job this was back around the early 1980’s and that is a bunch of money. You can bet his company paid for that.
I could tell you about the Manager who took the store from $1400 to over $2000 per day and I caught him stealing. After replacing him with a new manager sales went back down to $1400 per day and the owner commented that he should have just made a deal with the last manager, just give me $2000 per day and you can keep the rest! I don’t need to keep going on with this list of examples and there are more, but by now you get the point. Just because someone is consistently a high performer, don’t excuse them if you suspect stealing.
If you notice that your cost of sales is up or a particular vendor is suddenly getting all the business, or you hear rumors about a top performer don’t pass it off without some thoughtful examination of the numbers and observation of employee’s habits. Why is this important? Because you’re other employees know and figure if you don’t care or are too stupid to do anything, I might as well join in!
This is slightly unrelated but I once had an assistant manager who would always stay late at work. I would usually leave about 5:00 or 5:15 PM and he was always still there when I left. Well I had a dispatcher quit in the office and a few weeks later one of the clerical ladies came to me and said she quit because my assistant was sexually harassing her. End result was that he was staying late to hang around the office in the evening to put the moves on her; this is a case of being aware of employee’s habits. Listen to what you hear also. I had a boss who built dozens of shopping centers and the accountant noticed an invoice for a truck load of wood 2×4’s but they were using metal studs for the job. She brought this to the attention of the owner and he hired a carpenter friend to go down and get a job at the jobsite under cover. He discovered that the superintendent was building several houses in the local town and billing all the material and labor to the shopping center construction job. Pay attention to rumors but don’t rely on them alone. Rumors are sometimes a way for an honest person to tell on a dishonest one. 33
Important Concept: We all want outstanding performers working for us but if they are dishonest and stealing they will ultimately cost your company in the long run by reputation, or morale, not to mention assets. Don’t be afraid or brush off evidence just because someone is on the top of the game! There is a caveat, believe half of what you see and none of what you hear! Libel is a serious charge get proof.