http://money.cnn.com/2008/10/03/smallbusiness/surveillance.fsb/index.htm?postversion=2008100313
ERIE, COLO. (Fortune Small Business) — Ryan Elmore used to trust that his employees were hard at work after he left his neighborhood restaurant in Erie, Colo. Then, 18 months ago, he decided to spy on them.
Elmore, 30, installed networked cameras on the premises and started using an online service that let him view the action at his eatery. The video was highly revealing. The restaurant manager on duty went home minutes after Elmore left. Servers sat at tables, sent text messages on their cellphones, and gave free meals to friends. Cooks took multiple cigarette breaks each hour and cut corners making his signature fettuccine Alfredo.
“I couldn’t believe it,” says Elmore. “You may trust your employees, but you don’t know what happens when you walk out that door.”
Now the 20 workers at Elmore’s restaurant, Pepper Jack’s Neighborhood Grill, know the boss is watching, even if he is at home. Elmore can log in online, view a receipt, and call up the video of that transaction. He can see whether employees cleaned the restaurant when they said they would. He knows whether they’re smiling at customers. And if a customer’s order arrives at the table late or if employees are helping themselves to meals, Elmore sees it.
