What Are The Signs Of A Good Shredding Company?
As a responsible business operating in the age where personal information and proprietary company information are always at risk, you know you must employ the services of a reputable shredding company to dispose of important and sensitive business documents. Selecting the right company can seem a daunting task, especially as many less dependable companies have flooded the market offering shredding services to businesses who are ethically responsible and often legally required to destroy documents in a prescribed manner.
Less reputable organizations and individuals have recently found shredding to be a quick and easy way to make a buck. Unfortunately, many of these companies don’t hold the necessary credentials, general business savvy, or ethical foundation to perform shredding duties to the fullest extent required by regulations or good business practice. In fact, there have been a number of cases publicized in the news in recent years where sensitive company or customer information has been discovered in trash dumpsters and other easily accessible locations. Still other stories have leaked regarding the improper handling of sensitive information, resulting in a break of customer or client confidentiality and often legal or financial ramifications for the individuals involved.
In this day and age when identity theft, privacy laws, and other legal and financial concerns are so prevalent, you absolutely must take special care in choosing the manner in which you destroy sensitive personal and business documentation. Failing to do so can lead to legal problems for your business, resulting from lawsuits. You can face fines from agencies tasked with ensuring the proper handling of client or customer information. Still further, you can destroy your business reputation by failing to ensure the privacy of those customers and clients who have done business with you in the past.
By far the best and most accessible method for destroying sensitive documents that are no longer needed is to employ the services of a shredding company. Selecting the right company can at first appear difficult but by following a few simple steps, you can ensure that the business you partner with in your shredding activities will be a good solid provider of ethical and quality services.
It may seem exceedingly simple but it is true nonetheless. Any quality business will provide excellent customer service and clear and open communication. Any business that fails to achieve these simple tasks, regardless of the type of products of services they offer, is not one you should partner with under any circumstances. Particularly when you are dealing with such sensitive and critical information as that contained in your business documents or client and customer records, you will want to make sure that the business is capable of handling itself in the most professional and honest manner possible.
You will also want to make sure that the sales and customer service staff that you have contact with are actual employees of the shredding business. Many services work with brokers or outsource their customer service or sales activities to other agencies. While this may at first seem an acceptable practice and one which probably saves customers money in the long run, it limits the shredding business’s actual responsibility for the actions of these contracted individuals. It opens the doors for risky and dishonest behavior, presenting an unnecessary risk for your business.
If you plan to establish an ongoing business relationship with a shredding company, you should easily be able to schedule a meeting with a representative of the company. During this meeting, you should be able to ask as many questions as you need and receive honest and expedient answers to those questions in order to establish a full and complete understanding of the company’s normal business operations and policies. Any failure on the part of the company to disclose information or provide an acceptable answer is a sign that they are perhaps not the company you should choose to partner with for your shredding needs.
If you wish to perform an on-site inspection, receive a tour of the shredding company’s facilities, or meet with a representative of the company at the shredding site, you should be able to easily arrange such activities. If the company appears hesitant to allow such events to occur, this is a good sign they either don’t trust their own activities to live up to your expectations or are knowingly deceiving you regarding the standard business practices.
Lastly, and perhaps most significantly, an excellent shredding business will be registered with the National Association for Information Destruction (NAID). The best companies will have achieved an AAA Certification from the NAID. This certification ensures that the company meets the highest level of standards in the shredding industry.
The NAID certification guarantees that the shredding company performs thorough pre-employment screenings, criminal history checks, random drug screens, and other background checks that ensure the ethics and quality of their staff. Additionally, the company will be required to have certain security policies and procedure in place, including non-disclosure agreements with all employees who are privy to sensitive information. They will carry a high-dollar general liability insurance policy should any business issues arise as well.
Most people who choose a new york shredding company are not aware that there are major differences between companies in terms of information security, price and customer service. At American Security Shredding, we protect businesses and their customers by providing highly secure, on-site and off-site shredding, to help them comply with HIPAA, GLB and FACTA, as well as all other federal information destruction laws.
