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My office has an alarm that should be set when they exit the building. Unfortunately, sometimes the last employee out forgets, or doesn't realize that they're the last one (the office is on a single floor but you have to walk around the whole floor to see if you're the last one).
Any good tricks for reminding employees to remember to set the alarm?
I worked for one employer with an algorithm for this (yes, it was a software company, why do you ask?).
Certain people are designated "keyholders". This is because the last one out didn't just set the alarm, they also locked up, for which they each had their own set of keys. You could use a different name if there are no keys. The algorithm works if everyone is a keyholder, however at a minimum you can't be a keyholder if you haven't been shown how to work the alarm and this algorithm.
At the start of the day, at least one keyholder and preferably more becomes "tagged". This could be decided in daily standup, or could be the same person/people every day, provided that when that person isn't in, someone else becomes tagged in their place. It might as well be people who are likely to leave late, to save a lot of unnecessary checking right at close-of-play, so if you have people who typically work 10-6 instead of 9-5 then they are good candidates to start out tagged every day.
A tagged keyholder is not permitted to leave the building for the day without first doing one of two things:
The basic trick here is just to encourage keyholders (or everyone, if applicable) to consider locking up today to be an important task that has fallen to them unless they pass it on to someone else. OK, so someone might still forget, but at least they got a reminder on that day (not in a memo or company meeting six months previously), and at least checking whether you're the last to leave is a routine activity even for (some) people who normally are not the last to leave. And the person left locking up hopefully won't be someone who's forgotten how to set the alarm, because they have an opportunity to ask any questions they need to when they're tagged.
Typically the tag isn't arduous, since people will tend to tag those who work near them. Relatively few people actually have to search the building.
Note that the exchange of words "tag", "OK" is superior to just checking if anyone else is still there, since without interaction it's possible for two people each to observe that the other is still present. Then whoever leaves last doesn't notice the other one leave just before they do, but after they've established "I don't need to lock up".
What you need is a token:
Cut a length of dowel, paint it a visible color, drill a hole and loop a lanyard through it. Where I used to work, we called it "the baton."
Install a hook on the wall next to the alarm panel and hang the baton on it.
The first employee that arrives in the morning disarms the security system and takes the baton to his office.
When that employee leaves for the day, he begins walking the floor and gives the baton to the first other employee he can find. When that employee leaves, he does the same.
When no other employees can be found, the employee with the baton arms the security system on the way out and hangs the baton on the hook for the first employee the next day.
One way is to have a white board or some sort of sign-in sheet near the front door. (Like this one - thanks @Austin!) When you arrive for the day, write your name on the board, and when you leave for the day, erase it. If you don't see anyone else's name on the board, then you need to lock up!
In some companies, security is of high importance, and failure to lock up an area needs to be reported and is an auditable offense. If things are really becoming a problem, then you could start marking in people's employee record when they don't lock up the building. If setting the alarm is tied to their job performance, they will be much more likely to remember to do it.
@DJClayworth makes a good point that sometimes people will forget to sign out before they leave for the day. Usually if it's near the end of the day and I see that there is only one or two other names on the board, I will double check to make sure they are actually still in the office. But in the end, if the building is not alarmed because someone forgot to sign out, they are the ones held responsible for not following procedure.
In my company we have an automatic solution to this problem, which seems to work just fine. It requires a presence check-in system connected to the alarm and a convenient tool to disarm the alarm from where you are within the perimeter.
We have a large and very segmented building with one alarm that covers everything. It proves almost unmanagable to set the alarm manually without any automation. We have a RFID based presence system for fire protection and accounting purposes, which is conveniently used for managing the alarm as well.
So here is how it works:
At the first glance it may look incredibly complicated, but it has proved itself a very reliable system that is easy to grasp and convenient for everyone while minimizing the human error as far as possible.
Suggest they come up with a strategy. You've given them the responsibility of setting the alarm; they should be able to do this. An in and out board is a good idea.
Unfortunately, if they can't manage this, they'll need to lose the flexibility of having access to the office after normal hours. An alternative would be to assign someone a day/week in which they get to stay and lock up. It would be a shame to have to treat professional adults like this, but their current behavior doesn't leave you much choice.
I work at a (somewhat) similar office: we have multiple teams spread out in multiple large rooms on a single floor and the solution we use is rather simple.
Whenever you're the last person to leave the room, turn off the lights for that room. If you're leaving your corridor (a corridor connects, for example, three rooms) and see that all the rooms are dark, turn off the lights for the corridor as well. If you're leaving and see that all other lights are off, turn on the alarm.
Naturally, this won't work if you live in an area where daylight is plentiful and you don't use lights daily.
In case you want a high-tech solution: place motion sensors in all rooms. Configure them so that if there is no motion for 15 minutes (to allow people to go to the bathroom when working late) in the entire building, the alarm gets enabled.
Actually, motion sensors might be somewhat tricky: people easily set at their desks for 15 minutes without moving long. An alternative might be to check whether all computers are turned off (not including the servers, obviously). You can even do this with the above suggested lights solution by Nit.
In any case, if humans are unreliable, machines are your next best bet.
Set the alarm after the regular office time is over. Everyone who stays in office after that and has to go out must disable the alarm and then set it again before leaving.
Following this protocol will ensure the alarm is always set and there is no guesswork involved whether someone else is still in the building or not. Yes it is a little extra hassle for everyone to do it but it ensures its set always.
Neither does it cost you an extra dime nor does it rely on guesswork.
Use doors that open with RFID tags, and log opening. The last one to leave should set the alarm. If the alarm isn't set, check who left last and talk to them. Also, set the alarm to auto-activate at a certain time and disable door opening (to "help" people leave :D )
