Cutting Costs? Don't Skimp on Key Control

Inflation is soaring, and 76% of CEOs are bracing for an economic slowdown or severe recession. What’s your business doing to weather the economic downturn? Whether you’re making big changes like cutting jobs or less drastic changes like traveling less, technology to manage physical keys is one area where you can’t afford to cut costs. Why? Let’s look at three reasons.

1. Technology Fights Inflation

With technology, businesses can fight inflation by increasing productivity and reducing operational costs. That’s why 74% of organizations prioritize successful digital transformation.

Why invest in technology during a recession? Consider that employee salaries account for over 70% of employer costs (as of March 2025). When you automate processes, employees don’t waste valuable time on repetitive tasks.

If you don’t modernize your key control process, your employees have less time to use the talent you hired them for. That time gap increases even more when it’s time to audit your keys. If you have to manually account for every key, the process can take hours, if not days. With electronic key control systems, auditing your keys is as simple as running a report. The system automatically creates a verifiable audit trail, reducing the risk of human error.

Comparison of manual versus digital key control process, based on internal testing

Employee accountability is another important benefit of key management. Because the system tracks each user’s activity, people are less likely to steal a key or asset. In turn, your rekeying and asset replacement costs go down.

2. You Need Both Physical Security and Cybersecurity

As more employees work from home, cybersecurity is nonnegotiable. But that doesn’t mean you should deprioritize physical security. Physical and digital security operations are interdependent.

For example, say you have an on-site data center. Key control helps prevent unauthorized access to the physical space containing the hardware. Cybersecurity helps prevent cyber attacks targeting that equipment. Together, physical security and cybersecurity protect your organization’s most valuable assets and information. Threats don’t disappear because the economy is suffering. If anything, they increase.

3. Key Management Helps With Compliance and Insurance

On top of wasting resources, inadequate key security has compliance and insurance implications.

Does your organization need to meet regional or industry-specific key control requirements? If so, failing an audit could lead to fines, legal consequences, or reputation damage. Key management systems help you stay compliant by controlling key access and maintaining an accurate audit trail.

Since electronic key management systems reduce risk, you might even be able to negotiate lower business insurance premiums. A discount isn’t guaranteed, of course, but it doesn’t hurt to discuss your options with your insurance provider.

Cutting expenses is a normal response to economic difficulties. But don’t cut corners on technology that helps you reduce operational costs, increase security, or meet compliance requirements. Electronic key control checks all those boxes. It’s worth the investment — recession or not.

This post was originally written in 2022 and updated in 2025.