July - August 2021

Asset Protection | Profit Enhancement | Retail Performance

Insights 7-Eleven Upgrades Store Communications Diversity & Inclusion in Retail Alt-Tech Social Networks

Helping Retailers Solve Problems

The Role of the Retail Industry Leaders Association

July–August 2021 | V20.4 | losspreventionmedia.com

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Contents

July-August 2021 Departments

EDITOR’S NOTE: Brian Dodge is president of the Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA). He joined the association in 2007 as vice president of communication and held various public affairs roles before becoming the COO in 2018 and then president in January 2020. Prior to RILA, Dodge worked in the office of Massachusetts Governors Paul Cellucci and Jane Swift, as a legislative assistant to US Representative Jack Quinn, and as a lobbyist with Cassidy and Associates.

He is a Massachusetts native with a BA in political science from the University of Connecticut.

JIM: Thank you, Brian, for joining us for this interview today. And we are very excited about RILA’s upcoming August asset protection and supply chain conference where we will be able to see people in-person again who we’ve not seen for literally over eighteen months. Let’s start by asking you, What is the Retail Industry Leaders Association?

Helping Retailers Solve Problems

BRIAN: First, let me thank you again for the invitation to be a part of this interview. I’ve spent a lot of time with the loss prevention professionals in the last year, given the prominence of their role in the pandemic, and have a deeper appreciation for the scope of work that this group is responsible for.

12

To your question, RILA represents the largest retailers operating in the United States, and probably the simplest description for what we do is—we help our members solve problems. Those problems oftentimes are operational challenges that are common across our membership, and they are, at times, public policy issues, and we work with them to resolve those problems in a variety of ways. Over the last year, that has been really on display, in the sense that there were so many problems generated by the pandemic.

One of the key ways that we identify and then resolve problems is through the forty-plus communities that we maintain.

These are not only heads of asset protection but also human resource leaders, supply chain leaders, heads of stores, CEOs, and CFOs. Working with these communities, we identify issues and then bring the right resources together to address them.

JIM: As the president of RILA, what functional leaders do you have reporting to you?

BRIAN: I have seven total direct reports. The four major functions are retail operations, which Lisa LaBruno leads; public affairs, which is led by Michael Hanson; legal and

The Role of the Retail Industry Leaders Association

By Jim Lee, LPC, and Jack Trlica

July–August 2021

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LossPreventionMedia.com

LPM

8 Editorial Board

The Role of the Retail Industry Leaders Association

10 Retail Sponsors 22 Interviewing

9 Vendor Advisory Board

The Rules of Engagement

By David Thompson, CFI, and Shane G. Sturman, CFI, CPP The Hall 2020 Award Winners

W

hen serious incidents occur, retailers’ thoughts turn to the safety of their store associates and customers.

“Are they okay?” is probably the question asked more than any other—and to better those odds, companies dedicate months and staff hours to craft policies, deliver trainings, and conduct exercises.

But there is always an upstream question that determines if all that preparation will pay off. Namely, “Do they know?” If you can excel in this area, then preparedness programs have a chance to deliver.

7-Eleven invests heavily in supporting the stores. It employs software to assess the potential impact of weather events on store assets, and when a major storm is seven days from landfall near operating locations, it goes live with a crisis command center to provide as much support to stores as possible. The company leadership engages franchisees in their corporate communications early on and holds several conference calls a day that franchisees can participate in to share information and concerns and identify support they might need.

But until recently, the company’s communication pipeline wasn’t as robust in helping stores that could potentially be impacted by faster

7-Eleven Upgrades Store Communications to Better Inform Associates

SPARK Publications / guteksk7 / Shutterstock.com

By Garette Seivold, LPM Senior Writer

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Helping Retailers Solve Problems

By Jim Lee, LPC and Jack Trlica

July–August 2021

Summer Reading

By Jack Trlica

24 LPM Excellence

Getting theWord Out

July–August 2021

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6 Editor’s Letter

LossPreventionMedia.com

LPM

moving incidents, like a nearby robbery or active shooter event, or civil unrest in the neighborhood.

In these incidents, the company’s call center would call stores in the affected area to alert them of the event so they could enact safety procedures.

“The mechanism we had to communicate to a store was an in-store phone,” explained Brent Smerczynski, corporate asset protection manager for 7-Eleven operations, safety, and regulatory compliance. “But there was no guarantee store associates would answer the phone.” This was especially worrisome for in-store overnight operations when emergency events are more likely to occur.

There are many facets to crisis communication. Operating units and the emergency command center must communicate effectively with one another, for example. So, too, must the individual members of the response team. But perhaps the most glaring need for communication is between the organization and store-leve associates. Companies need an effective method for communicating emergency status information to employees, as gaps in this area can have safety consequences. “It’s not that what we had wasn’t working—we wanted a more efficient way

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26 Retail Community

28

We're in It Together

By Stefanie Hoover, CFI

Getting the Word Out Brent Smerczynski

7-Eleven Upgrades Store Communications to Better Inform Associates

By Garett Seivold

July–August 2021

36 Certification

Thoughts on the LPF Courses and the Industry Featuring Daniel Jones, LPC, Fanatics, and Kyrie Bock, LPQ, ALTO USA

48 Technology

The Link Between ORC and Human Trafficking

By Tom Meehan, CFI

50 Supply Chain

Diversity & Inclusion in Retail

W

Getting Comfortable Having Uncomfortable Conversations

SPARK Publications / outsideclick / Shutterstock.com

By Jacque Brittain, LPC, LPM Editorial Director

July–August 2021

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hy has diversity and inclusion (D&I) become such an important conversation? Because it needs to. In the age of global communities, we simply can’t survive by living in a cocoon.

Frankly, in a shrinking world with a growing reach, it’s foolish to try. Change defines the human condition.

Let’s face it—I’ve never spent one day living in your shoes, and you’ve never spent one day living in mine. This is true for every person across the globe, regardless of who we are, where we live, and what background we may have. Our experiences are unique and based on countless factors that make up who we are from our DNA, to the decisions we’ve made, and every single thing that has ever influenced our lives.

These countless differences are something that we all have in common.

While we may continue to find comfort in common ground, our world is growing smaller every day. We’re regularly introduced to new people and new cultures, but also gaining greater exposure to the tremendously diverse cultures that have surrounded us. And no matter how hard we try, we simply can’t crawl back into the cocoon. It doesn’t work that way for any of us, and that’s a good thing.

As our communities continue to grow more diverse, we also see dramatic changes in retail as an increasing percentage of the workforce is populated with individuals of different identities, traits, cultures, and

backgrounds. Awareness has heightened as the world continues to shrink and the demographics of the workforce change, and retail companies are taking on additional initiatives to further embrace diversity and inclusion.

But no matter who we are or what our background may be, we still must be willing to accept change. We must be willing to see the world in a new way. Often, the thing that sparks this kind of growth is a willingness to have uncomfortable conversations.

Understanding D&I Let’s begin with the basics.

First, diversity is not about any one thing. While it may mean different things to different people, no one can claim the term exclusively. In general, diversity involves the full range of human differences and should not be limited by narrow definitions. This often includes attributes such as race, ethnicity, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, social class, physical abilities or features, religious or ethical values, national origin, and political beliefs, but can include other factors as well. By learning to better understand, accept, and value the perspectives, characteristics, experiences, and behaviors that make each of us who we are, we give further meaning to our unique identity. It can enhance innovation and creativity, opening our minds to fresh ideas and invigorating limitless possibilities.

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Inclusion, on the other hand, builds upon involvement and empowerment, where the inherent worth and dignity of all people are recognized.

An inclusive environment promotes and sustains a sense of belonging for everyone. It is collaborative and supportive, respecting the participation and contributions of all employees.

It values the talents, beliefs, backgrounds, and ways of life for the entire team. It unites and integrates all people by providing equal access to opportunities, ideologies, activities, and resources. True inclusion removes barriers, discrimination, and intolerance.

When applied properly, it’s natural for everyone to feel engaged and supported.

D&I not only encompass how we perceive others but how we perceive ourselves.

We need to build a culture of respect where attitudes and actions will encourage mutual understanding, creating an environment where all people can be valued and successful in the workplace and throughout our communities.

Making a Difference The retail community has largely accepted that D&I matters—that focusing on diverse teams, actively

“ ”

I was taught from a young age, and still believe, that you treat ALL people with kindness and respect.

July–August 2021

21 Million US Jobs Depend on Imports

40

Diversity & Inclusion in Retail Getting Comfortable Having Uncomfortable Conversations

By Jacque Brittain, LPC

A

lt-tech social networks once catered to a niche clientele such as privacy advocates, conspiracy theorists, and fringe political groups. Now, seemingly everyone is jumping on board.

Over the past year, tens of millions of people have abandoned mainstream platforms like Facebook and Twitter. In their place, users have shifted to a growing collection of new offerings that promise less content moderation and more privacy features.

That creates new challenges for loss prevention teams. On one hand, more users have turned these alt-tech sites into an invaluable source of threat intelligence. But they can also serve as havens for nefarious groups like cyber criminals, shoplifting rings, and other bad actors.

Alt-Tech Social Networks Explained

Alt-Tech Social Networks

What Investigators and Analysts Need to Know

By Neil Spencer

July–August 2021

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LPM

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July–August 2021

Alt-tech social networks represent a collection of platforms that have positioned themselves as new offerings to more mainstream sites like Twitter and Facebook. They first emerged in the early 2010s, catering to a hodgepodge of various fringe communities. But these hubs have exploded in popularity over recent years and that has drawn more attention from security experts.

This movement is a direct response to the concentration of power among a handful of tech companies. Facebook, for instance, owns the four most downloaded apps of the past decade—Facebook, Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, and Instagram. Only a handful of other firms have a sizable chunk of active users. That gives these firms an enormous amount of sway in terms of what messages get shared and promoted online.

Thus, founders of many alt-tech websites see themselves as important counterweights to Silicon Valley’s growing control over the web.

63 Solutions Showcase

ADT Commercial AFA Protective Systems CIS Security Solutions DefenseLite Hanwha Techwin America Knightscope Medeco Protos Security

78 Resource Guide

Alt-Tech Social Networks What Investigators and Analysts Need to Know

By Neil Spencer

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How Internet of Things Security Is Impacting Retailers

By Garett Seivold

74 People on the Move

52

July–August 2021

60 Cybersecurity

LossPreventionMedia.com

80 Advertisers 80 Subscription Form 82 Parting Words Welcome Back

By Jim Lee, LPC

Vladitto / ShutterStock.com

EDITOR'S LETTER

Jack Trlica, Managing Editor

Summer Reading W

elcome to this post-pandemic summer. Hopefully, you are fully vaccinated and getting back to a semblance of normalcy. That said, let’s hope the delta variant does not overtake those still unvaccinated and cause another wave of infections that impacts our economy and our health.

There is a lot of great information in this print edition for your reading enjoyment.

Here is a short preview of what to look for in these pages.

Brian Dodge and RILA

Many of you voted in our new awards program called The Hall that is designed to recognize excellence in a variety of categories from Investigation of the Year to Law Enforcement Partner of the Year, from LP Leaders to Rising Stars.

Brian Dodge assumed the role of president of the Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) January 1, 2020, after rising through the ranks of the association. His leadership was put to a test within a few short weeks when COVID hit the US, disrupting the retail industry and the overall economy. In my opinion, Brian and the RILA team responded in exceptional fashion.

Jim Lee and I interviewed him for this edition, which will be circulated at RILA’s asset protection in-person conference in August.

This article on page 12 is a must-read.

Crisis Communications Communicating to store associates is seriously important when crisis events July–August 2021

take place. Whether the crisis event is related to weather, civil unrest, or crime, corporate leadership must provide timely information to protect both customers and employees.

Dallas-based 7-Eleven recently piloted a new emergency notification technology that alerts impacted stores. The company’s asset protection team worked cross-functionally with internal peers to develop and implement the system.

Check it out on page 28.

Diversity & Inclusion Earlier this year, the magazine surveyed the loss prevention industry to assess the current attitudes about diversity and inclusion. Working with subject- matter experts and D&I retail professionals, we produced a detailed questionnaire that ultimately was completed by 400 professionals from store- level to corporate-level, from across the globe, and across a broad spectrum of individuals. Jacque Brittain, who led the effort, gives us a broad look at the results in the feature article on page 40. It’s an important topic for all of us to consider and take to heart.

Alt-Tech Social Networks For a majority of us who use Facebook, Twitter, and similar social networks, it’s a way to communicate

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with friends and family or with business associates.

However, as we’ve witnessed especially in the past several years, many of the platforms have been used to promote political, racial, criminal, and extreme points of view. As social platforms try to manage content by removing users or taking down posts, alternative networks have popped up to fill the gap. Our article on page 52 offers an exposé that can help investigators and brand managers understand and monitor these rogue platforms.

The Hall Award Winners Many of you voted in our new awards program called The Hall that is designed to recognize excellence in a variety of categories from Investigation of the Year to Law Enforcement Partner of the Year, from LP Leaders to Rising Stars.

We also recognize lifetime achievement with the Loss Prevention Hall of Honor.

Check out all the 2020 winners and the many worthy nominees on page 24.

There are many more excellent columns and informational sections in this edition. Take your time to digest the many topics and, as always, please let us know what you think at editor@lpportal.com.

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EDITORIAL BOARD

Ray Cloud Senior Vice President, Loss Prevention, Ross Stores

Scott Draher, LPC Vice President, Loss Prevention, Safety, and Operations, Lowe’s

Scott Glenn, EDJ, LPC Vice President, Asset Protection, The Home Depot

Barry Grant Chief Operating Officer, Photos Unlimited

Robert Holm Director, Global Safety & Security McDonald’s

Seth Hughes Director, Asset Protection, Risk & Safety, Internal Audit REI Co-op

Frank Johns, LPC Chairman, The Loss Prevention Foundation

Mike Lamb, LPC Consultant

Michael Limauro, LPC Executive Leader, Asset Protection, Whole Foods Market

David Lund, LPC Vice President, Loss Prevention, DICK’S Sporting Goods

John Matas, CFE, CFCI Director, Global Fraud, Risk, and Compliance Operations Etsy

Randy Meadows Senior Vice President, Loss Prevention, Kohl’s

Melissa Mitchell, CFI, LPC Director, Loss Prevention, MAPCO Express

Dan Moren Senior Manager, Starbucks

Richard Peck, LPC Senior Vice President, Loss Prevention The TJX Companies

Joe Schrauder Vice President, Asset Protection, Walmart Stores

Tina Sellers, LPC Vice President, Asset Protection, Rite Aid

Hank Siemers, CFI Vice President, Global Retail Security, Tiffany & Co.

Mark Stinde, MBA, LPC Vice President, Asset Protection, The Kroger Co.

Pamela Velose Vice President, Asset Protection, Belk

July–August 2021

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VENDOR ADVISORY BOARD

Rex Gillette

Vice President of Sales

2120 Crown Centre Dr. Ste 200 Charlotte, NC 28227 | 704-365-5226 office Managing Editor Jack Trlica JackT@LPportal.com

Hedgie Bartol, LPQ, LPC

Executive Editors James Lee, LPC JimL@LPportal.com Merek Bigelow MerekB@LPportal.com Editorial Director Jacque Brittain, LPC JacB@LPportal.com

Director of Sales

Kim Scott

Director Of Digital Operations John Selevitch JohnS@LPportal.com

Director of Marketing

Special Projects Managers Justin Kemp, LPQ Karen Rondeau

Ken Kuehler

General Manager

Design & Production SPARK Publications info@SPARKpublications.com Creative Director Larry Preslar

Kris Vece, LPQ

Brad Campbell President/CEO

Mark Berger President

Ned McCauley Director of Sales

Robb Northrup

Director of Marketing Communications & Support

Cita Doyle, LPQ

Vice President, Sales & Marketing

Rhett Asher

Vice President, Strategy

Stacy Dean Stephens

EVP and Chief Client Officer

Idan Koren

Vice President of Marketing

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Loss Prevention, LP Magazine, LP Magazine Europe, LPM, and LossPreventionMedia.com are service marks owned by the publishers and their use is restricted. All editorial content is copyrighted. No article may be reproduced by any means without expressed, written permission from the publisher. Reprints or PDF versions of articles are available by contacting the publisher. Statements of fact or opinion are the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the opinion of the publishers. Advertising in the publication does not imply endorsement by the publishers. The editor reserves the right to accept or reject any article or advertisement.

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July–August 2021

Helping Retailers Solve Problems The Role of the Retail Industry Leaders Association

By Jim Lee, LPC, and Jack Trlica

July–August 2021

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LossPreventionMedia.com

EDITOR’S NOTE: Brian Dodge is president of the Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA). He joined the association in 2007 as vice president of communication and held various public affairs roles before becoming the COO in 2018 and then president in January 2020. Prior to RILA, Dodge worked in the office of Massachusetts Governors Paul Cellucci and Jane Swift, as a legislative assistant to US Representative Jack Quinn, and as a lobbyist with Cassidy and Associates.

He is a Massachusetts native with a BA in political science from the University of Connecticut.

JIM: Thank you, Brian, for joining us for this interview today. And we are very excited about RILA’s upcoming August asset protection and supply chain conference where we will be able to see people in-person again who we’ve not seen for literally over eighteen months. Let’s start by asking you, What is the Retail Industry Leaders Association?

BRIAN: First, let me thank you again for the invitation to be a part of this interview. I’ve spent a lot of time with the loss prevention professionals in the last year, given the prominence of their role in the pandemic, and have a deeper appreciation for the scope of work that this group is responsible for.

LPM

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To your question, RILA represents the largest retailers operating in the United States, and probably the simplest description for what we do is—we help our members solve problems. Those problems oftentimes are operational challenges that are common across our membership, and they are, at times, public policy issues, and we work with them to resolve those problems in a variety of ways. Over the last year, that has been really on display, in the sense that there were so many problems generated by the pandemic.

One of the key ways that we identify and then resolve problems is through the forty-plus communities that we maintain.

These are not only heads of asset protection but also human resource leaders, supply chain leaders, heads of stores, CEOs, and CFOs. Working with these communities, we identify issues and then bring the right resources together to address them.

JIM: As the president of RILA, what functional leaders do you have reporting to you?

BRIAN: I have seven total direct reports. The four major functions are retail operations, which Lisa LaBruno leads; public affairs, which is led by Michael Hanson; legal and compliance, which is led by Deborah

July–August 2021

FEATURE Helping Retailers Solve Problems White; and member services and conferences, which is led by Jenny Keehan.

JIM: How long have you been president?

BRIAN: I became president in January 2020, but I’ve been with RILA for almost fourteen years.

JIM: How has RILA changed from what it was fourteen years ago?

BRIAN: RILA has grown considerably in these last several years, doubled our membership in the last five years. The number of communities that we maintain has grown probably by at least a third over that time period. And

perhaps most importantly, the depth of engagement across each of our member companies has gone up significantly.

The number of retail executives from each member company who engaged with our various communities is the highest it’s ever been. Now, in part, that is a reflection of the extraordinary circumstances of last year, but as the focus has turned to the future, engagement has held steady.

JIM: Do you report to RILA’s board of directors?

BRIAN: I do. We have about twenty-five directors on our board, made up primarily of the CEOs of our member companies.

They are a very engaged board.

I am lucky to be working directly with our current chair, Mary Dillon, from Ulta Beauty, who has been an exceptional partner to me as the new CEO dealing with such a crisis.

JIM: How often does the board get together?

BRIAN: The board meets twice a year, and the executive committee, which is eight members of the board, meets four times a year. We are excited to be hosting our first in-person meeting with the board in a year and a half in early July.

JIM: Now that we have almost gotten out of the pandemic, what are the issues ahead that you and your team believe you are faced with?

BRIAN: I’ll break them into two categories—operations and public policy—but there’s a lot of overlap between the two.

While we have been thankfully finding our way out of the pandemic as a nation over the course of the last several months, retailers have been focused on the post-pandemic world now for quite some time.

Looking to the future, we are focused on the contribution of digital to the retail experience, not just e-commerce, but how digital will continue to play a much larger role in the shopping experience online and offline.

We are also working with members around how supply

RILA represents the largest retailers operating in the United States, and probably the simplest description for what we do is—we help our members solve problems. Those problems oftentimes are operational challenges that are common across our membership, and they are, at times, public policy issues.

July–August 2021

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chains will need to change to serve customers more, with higher expectations for speed and accuracy of delivery, and tailored product assortments nearer to the ultimate consumer.

Relatedly, we are focused on addressing the enormous issues that are plaguing global supply chains, where port congestion, container misalignment, and insufficient ocean-carrier capacity are greatly delaying shipments and increasing costs.

We are focused on ESG (environment, social, and governance) in a more robust way, recognizing that consumers have become even more focused on the impact that their purchases have on the world around them, on the environment, and on their communities. How are retailers showing up around those issues?

On the public policy side, we have a considerable focus right now on organized retail crime. We know that this is an issue that has become more problematic, not less, over the course of the last eighteen months, and we are working hard, both on the operational side and public policy side, to advance solutions that will hold online marketplaces accountable to police the products that are sold on their sites.

lunamarina / iQoncept / Shutterstock.com

On the public policy side, we have a considerable focus right now on organized retail crime. We know that this is an issue that has become more problematic, not less, over the course of the last eighteen months, and we are working hard, both on the operational side and public policy side, to advance solutions that will hold online marketplaces accountable to police the products that are sold on their sites.

We are also watching, very carefully, how some of the infrastructure proposals that are moving through Congress are taking shape.

We support wise investments in the country’s infrastructure networks but feel strongly that this spending should not be paid for by an increase in the corporate tax rate. As an industry, retailers are full freight payers of corporate taxes and it’s our perspective that it’s grossly unfair to ask retailers to pay more while other corporations pay little to nothing. We are working hard to make sure the infrastructure package makes the right investments without burdening retailers with an increased tax bill.

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There are many, many more issues, but those are a few of the tough ones we’re addressing.

JIM: Since we are a magazine that predominantly focuses on retail asset protection and loss prevention, I would like to hear your view, as the president of RILA, of the weekly calls that the APLC (Asset Protection Leaders Council) and Lisa’s team held over the past eighteen months.

BRIAN: I must first start by saying that the AP function has always been critically important to retailers, but over the course of the last year and a half, that community has really shown up and delivered for their companies. It has been remarkable to see that function July–August 2021

FEATURE Helping Retailers Solve Problems even further elevated during this challenging time. They were tasked with incredibly complicated issues; first, of course, with developing and putting into place safety protocols within stores at a time where information was imperfect and rapidly changing.

They did this well within their own businesses, but then shared information willingly with peers in order to make sure that the best practices

Then the same leaders were responsible for dealing with months of civil unrest. Again, the community came together to share information around safety in communities, in-store, and protecting stores and associates, and, once again, the sharing was exceptional.

I can’t say enough about how the communities came together last year. The interest to learn and share came from the retail executives

happening on the ground, on an ongoing, frequent basis.

The level of participation was very high because these professionals had an opportunity to share and hear from others about what was going on. They came away from those conversations better informed about what the challenges were and what they needed to do to address them.

It’s a great case study of the role that RILA plays within the industry during times of crisis.

JIM: RILA produced a great bonding among retail AP and LP organizations.

BRIAN: We are lucky that we have relationships with executives from all the major functions within retail, but I have to say that there seems to be a natural predisposition within the AP community to share, and kudos to them for that, because they see the opportunity in every call. I describe it this way. On a single call, each participant has the opportunity to be a student and a teacher. The AP leaders seemed to really embrace this,

The AP function has always been critically important to retailers, but over the course of the last year and a half, that community has really shown up and delivered for their companies. It has been remarkable to see that function even further elevated during this challenging time. that had been developed were available and known to everybody to put into place.

That was the case for large retailers sharing with other large retailers, but also making that information public, so that other businesses could put into place similar protocols. I think that was really remarkable.

July–August 2021

themselves. But credit for executing upon that interest goes to Lisa LaBruno, who has fostered an incredible culture of openness and sharing within those communities.

Those regular calls were an incredibly valuable opportunity for RILA and for the participants to understand what was

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and they all took advantage of it, which is terrific.

JIM: Diversity and inclusion is another issue I’d like for you to address, because the magazine is closely involved in it as well.

BRIAN: We launched our diversity and inclusion (D&I)

initiative in the summer of 2018, a little bit ahead of the curve, and thank goodness we did.

We had a couple years’ worth of work under our belt before the murder of George Floyd and everything that followed.

This positioned us to have thoughtful discussions with the right leaders across the industry, from D&I practitioners to CEOs, and help companies take meaningful internal and external actions.

But as you know, the importance of D&I is far greater than knowing what to do in a crisis. Instead, the fundamental point here is that businesses perform better when they have a diverse and inclusive workforce.

Achieving that is not easy.

Businesses need to recognize that a diverse workforce, where people are encouraged to bring their authentic selves to

work, is a key component to business success.

I think of it this way. While often said together, diversity and inclusion are two distinctly different things that each require a devoted focus. Diversity, for lack of a better definition, is changing the class photo so you have people from different walks of life.

Inclusion is allowing those people to bring the richness of their life experiences to work. If you have one without the other, you haven’t achieved much. If you have both, that’s when you have magic.

As I think about these issues, I think about the things that show up in resumes and the things that don’t. Oftentimes a person’s greatest contributions in the workplace come from things that are not traditional credentials.

For example, our judgment and instincts are shaped by more than just the academic and

professional experience that shows up on a resume. Instead, our full life experience shapes how we interpret information, make decisions, and react under pressure. So having teams made up of people with varying life experiences means that varying perspectives will inform decisions.

Team members complement one another, and you can better avoid blind spots. This is important in all settings, but the importance to retail, an industry that aims to serve a diverse customer base, is all the more pronounced.

It is an incredibly important focus for RILA and the industry, and it has become a passion of mine. I’ve learned so much, but recognize that I’ve likely only scratched the surface.

JACK: There’s another initiative that’s getting a lot of media play right now, called the Buy Safe

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July–August 2021

FEATURE Helping Retailers Solve Problems

The fundamental point [with D&I] is that businesses perform better when they have a diverse and inclusive workforce. Businesses need to build into everything that they do a recognition that a diverse workforce, where people are encouraged to bring their authentic selves to work, is a key component to business success.

America Coalition. Tell us about this initiative.

their sites are not counterfeit and not stolen.

BRIAN: The Buy Safe America Coalition is a group of like- minded organizations that have come together to address the problem of stolen and counterfeit goods that are sold online. It is a diverse group of businesses from a variety of sectors that feel that the online marketplaces need to do much more in order to make sure that illicit products aren’t sold on their platforms and consumers aren’t put at risk by these counterfeit and stolen goods.

It’s not a new issue.

Unfortunately, this is an issue that predated my time here and was one of the first issues I worked on when I came to RILA. Many online marketplaces simply don’t seem to place much value on ensuring that the products that are sold on

JACK: Do you believe the coalition is making headway with these issues?

July–August 2021

BRIAN: Yes, the coalition is working. As you mentioned, it communicates publicly about these issues but also directly with lawmakers in an effort to advance legislative solutions that will bring greater accountability to the marketplaces. We have gotten legislation introduced in both the House and the Senate that we think is good.

There’s been progress made in a handful of states, where legislation has been introduced and advanced, and I think we have raised the profile of the issue publicly to media and other sources.

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It’s important to note that these types of campaigns are rarely linear, though.

There’s a buildup period, and then oftentimes, you wait for opportunity to present itself before you can actually achieve whatever your ultimate goal is.

So, while we feel good about the work that’s been done so far, we’re not nearly at the end of the road. But we do feel like we’ve made great progress and are poised for success when the opportunity presents itself.

Another sign that we’re having success is evidenced in how hard our opponents are working against us. Amazon, in particular, is pushing back hard against being held accountable.

JACK: Let’s talk about supply chain for a moment. Right now, supply chain delays are causing a lot of issues with retailers. What is RILA doing to try to solve the problem of goods not getting to your members?

BRIAN: Unfortunately, these challenges, while they are particularly acute right now, are persistent ones that have existed for a very long time. In some respects, it is a reflection of the broad ecosystem that makes up the supply chain, the various players that exist within it, and their historical financial strain.

Unfortunately, not everybody in the supply chain is beholden to the shippers. So the lack of accountability to shippers and Continued on page 20

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FEATURE Helping Retailers Solve Problems

I have to say that while I’m really happy to have the opportunity to be the president of RILA and the opportunity to work with our members, as is the case with all great things, the work is done by the team.

Great accomplishments require a great team, and I’m lucky to work with an exceptional group of leaders. I can’t say enough about the work that the team has done over the course of the last year in the face of considerable personal and professional challenges. imagine that this topic will be front and center at the conference.

BRIAN: It will indeed. It is front and center in all of our community discussions right now, and it will be prominent while we’re together. The nice thing about the conference is that it does bring together members of that ecosystem.

That means, in addition to the topic being discussed in the sessions, there will be discussions, I’m sure, on the side with representatives from the ports, from the shipping companies, and so forth. That’s another benefit of having an in-person event.

Continued from page 18

retailers is a source of frustration and a key element of the longterm issues with the supply chain.

Right now, the challenges are big and particularly acute as products are very slow to make their way to the US. We’re seeing spikes in shipping rates. We’re seeing a severe misalignment on cargo containers. All these things are contributing to substantial delays and problems for retailers right now.

Our communities are coming together to talk about what those challenges are, and where appropriate, we are communicating with July–August 2021

policymakers—with the Federal Maritime Commission—to make sure that they understand the impact of these issues. Of course, we are communicating directly with the ecosystem partners to make sure they understand the problems that are playing out here.

Unfortunately, there’s no easy solution, and persistence in this is important. We are helping businesses think about creative ways to move product while we try to deal with the knot that is in the system right now.

JACK: This year’s AP conference is colocating with the LINK supply chain conference. I

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JIM: All these important initiatives we’ve talked about today brings me to this question: as the president of RILA, how do you measure your personal success and the success of your association?

BRIAN: There are the hard metrics, which are engagement, membership growth, and revenue, but I think the way that we are properly evaluated is how effective we are in helping our members solve the biggest problems that they face. Last year, we had a lot to be proud about in bringing our communities together and

helping them navigate those big, complicated problems very well. We also achieved public policy successes throughout the year and made advancements on others that will lead to success in the not- too-distant future.

These things are ultimately why we exist. But the ability to solve problems is really how we’re evaluated.

JIM: Well, you should be commended for the work you and your team have done, historically, and especially the past eighteen months.

BRIAN: Thank you for that.

But I have to say that while I’m really happy to have the opportunity to be the president of RILA and the opportunity to work with our members, as is the case with

all great things, the work is done by the team. Great accomplishments require a great team, and I’m lucky to work with an exceptional group of leaders. I can’t say enough about the work that the team has done over the course of the last year in the

face of considerable personal and professional challenges.

JIM: Well said, Brian. Thank you again for your time today.

We look forward to seeing you and your team and the magazine’s many friends in Orlando in August.

The Buy Safe America Coalition is a group of like-minded organizations that have come together to address the problem of stolen and counterfeit goods that are sold online. It is a diverse group of businesses from a variety of sectors that feel that the online marketplaces need to do much more in order to make sure that illicit products aren’t sold on their platforms.

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July–August 2021

INTERVIEWING

Shane G. Sturman, CFI, CPP

ArtFamily / iQoncept / Shutterstock.com

David Thompson, CFI

Thompson is the president and partner of Wicklander-Zulawski & Associates, providing investigative interview and interrogation training to a global audience. He has served as a subject-matter expert in developing curriculum and providing consultation to investigators, attorneys, and the academic community. He can be reached at dthompson@w-z.com.

Sturman is the CEO and senior partner of Wicklander-Zulawski & Associates and has led this international training organization for over a decade. Sturman has provided training for WZ for a variety of clients over the last twenty years. He is also a member of ASIS International’s Retail Loss Prevention Council. He can be reached at 800-222-7789 or at ssturman@w-z.com. © 2021 Wicklander-Zulawski & Associates, Inc.

The Rules of Engagement A

Elite interviewers must remain aware of the ongoing evolution of appropriate interview techniques.

n interviewer takes on a role at a new company, excited to leverage their extensive interview experience, only to discover that their new organization has a completely different expectation of how to conduct an investigation. One organization mandates recording and another prohibits it; another company may require a written statement while another avoids written documentation.

These policy guidelines are based on case precedent, company culture, and jurisdictional guidelines. Previous successes or failures combined with academic research have helped to facilitate these protocols. The evolution of interviewing techniques is also guided by legislative and policy changes from various sources.

The US Supreme Court has ruled on the admissibility of confession evidence, and local jurisdictions have provided even more direction and clarity. Additionally, agencies such as the National Labor Relations Board and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission have made clear distinctions as to what is permissible throughout an investigation. Elite interviewers must remain aware of the ongoing evolution of appropriate interview techniques.

There are numerous parts of an investigation or an

July–August 2021

interview that are consistently under review for policy or legislative changes. A few of these topics are timely and important for interviewers and decision makers to consider when establishing the rules of engagement for investigations and interviews.

Lying About Evidence An often-used tactic by interviewers is fabricating the existence of evidence to subjects during an interview.

the cooperative relationship of the subject and the interviewer.

Wicklander-Zulawski (WZ) has consulted on this issue and has provided support to legislation that would prohibit the use of explicit deception during an interrogation. The state of Illinois has passed legislation that will prohibit the use of this tactic with young subjects during an interview. This groundbreaking law was built through a partnership of the investigative,

The field of interviewing is anything but stagnant and requires continuous education and outreach to ensure the interviewer and the organization are aligned.

The US Supreme Court ruling in Frazier v. Cupp 394 U.S. 731 (1969) permitted the use of deceptive interrogation topics.

Within the framework of this ruling, interviewers may have made statements such as, “We have video evidence of you stealing from the safe” or “Your fingerprints were identified on the weapon” even if there was no video or fingerprints.

Research has shown that the presentation of false evidence may result in several issues: incentivizing a false confession, contaminating the reliability of a true confession, and impacting

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legislative, academic, and advocacy communities.

Most interviewers who utilize nonconfrontational interviewing methodologies are not impacted by this ruling, as they do not rely on the use of deception to get to the truth.

However, this is an important trend for all interviewers to be aware of; removal of this tactic should be widespread and will continue to gain traction.

Recording Electronic recording, whether video or audio, has continued to gain traction among law

enforcement and the private sector. From a legislative standpoint, over half of the states have mandates on recording felony-level interrogations and many more require the same with juvenile cases. In the private sector, there is not a legislative mandate requiring recording, but many organizations are starting to investigate this option.

WZ has been recording interviews since 1982 and believes this process has multiple benefits, although there are many variables to consider. When deciding to enact a policy that requires recording of interviews, there are risks and benefits to evaluate. One of the major obstacles for those in the private sector is the cost and management of recording devices and the storage of media afterward. Interviewers must also be aware of the legal implications of recording a conversation, as each state may require a different level of consent for those being recorded.

The benefits of recording are countless, with one of the most impactful being the transparency of the interview process. Providing an inside look to human resources, arbitrators, attorneys, and other stakeholders delivers increased credibility to the interview process and resulting admissions. Conversely, it would also provide invaluable training material for self- assessment of the interviewer as well as examples to other investigators. The use of electronic recording also preserves the integrity of the conversation in a more comprehensive way than a written statement at the conclusion of the conversation.

Another point of consideration for decision makers is the duration of the recording, as some agencies only record the confession. The benefit of

Electronic recording, whether video or audio, has continued to gain traction among law enforcement and the private sector. recording is then minimized as there is no transparency to the entire process.

Recording can also be debated from the perspective of the subject. Organizations must also deliberate on their policy allowing a subject to record an interview. There are multiple regulations about recording in the workplace, and the National Labor Relations Board has even weighed in on this issue. All of these variables must be discussed and considered when developing an interview policy.

during a private sector interview has increased in recent years. Like all the topics we have discussed, there are inconsistencies to policy direction on these requests. Interviewers should understand that the request for a parent may be due to various concerns, including the possibility that the subject has intellectual disabilities.

Organizations should consider providing guidance to their investigations teams for these situations.

Staying Current

The field of interviewing is anything but stagnant and requires continuous education and outreach to During an interview, there ensure the interviewer and may be a request from the the organization are aligned. subject to contact their There are multiple ways for attorney or bring a parent or interviewers to stay plugged guardian into the room. Like in to the evolving legislative the policies on recording, and academic changes in each organization may have our industry. Publications, its own policy regarding these such as LP Magazine or the requests. In the private sector, CFInsider, help to facilitate People v. Deborah C. 30 Cal. communication and provide 3d 125 (1981) addressed the issue of advisement of Miranda a resource for continued education. Involvement in rights in a loss prevention or associations or attendance security interview. This ruling exempted these conversations at industry events can also provide insight. Events like from the requirement of Elite Training Days, NRF, RILA, advising Miranda, for various and LPRC IMPACT help to reasons. The subject’s accomplish this same mission. freedom to leave during the Interviewers should also set conversation as well as the up Google alerts for keywords, lack of security personnel follow industry-specific social representing themselves as media channels, and subscribe law enforcement were both to publications that consistently important considerations for report on legislative or policy this ruling. Although this case changes. Interview skills are law permits private sector perishable, the science is investigators to have most of their conversations without the always evolving, and policies advisement of Miranda, it would will forever be changing; it is be prudent for decision makers your responsibility to maintain to thoroughly review this part of relevancy and credibility. Since you have read this article, their policy. you are clearly headed in the The request for a parent right direction. or guardian to be present

Requests for Attorneys or Parents

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The request for a parent or guardian to be present during a private sector interview has increased in recent years.

LPM EXCELLENCE

The Hall 2020 Award Winners The votes are in, and the winners have been announced! The Hall is an awards program designed to recognize, celebrate, and reward those in and around the retail loss prevention industry, honoring achievement and excellence across a variety of categories. Finalists were nominated and winners selected by you and thousands of your colleagues across the loss prevention community. Here are the 2020 winners in each category. For additional details on every nominee and winner, go to lphall. com.

■ Investigation of the year

■ LP Leader of the Year

Winner: Operation Proof of Purchase CVS ORC Team

Winner: Brendan Dugan, Director, CVS Health

A cooperative operation between the organized retail crime (ORC) team at CVS Health and law enforcement led to a $50 million case against a sophisticated ORC operation that had been targeting retailers in the Bay area for several years.

While managing his day-to-day responsibilities as the director of ORC investigations for CVS, dealing with COVID-19 related issues, and civil unrest, Dugan continued to promote the Coalition of Law Enforcement and Retail (CLEAR) where he is president. He also stepped up and held several virtual conferences and is working tirelessly to pass federal legislation related to ORC.

Runner Up: ●

Operation Bleeding Edge, Walmart, Target, Lowes, HD, Albertsons

Finalists: Operation Looted and Burned, Rite Aid AP and Sacramento PD ● The Home Depot ORC Team (Texas and Colorado) ●

■ Law Enforcement Partner of the Year Winner: Adam Berg, Criminal Intelligence Research Specialist at the New England State Police Information Network (NESPIN) Berg provided a secure platform for retailers, police agencies, and the FBI to communicate and collaborate. His passion for connecting law enforcement with retailers has helped tremendously with information gathering while keeping eyes and ears on the ongoing issue of ORC impacting cities and towns in New England and beyond.

Runner Up: ●

Det. Brandi “May” Streeter, Oklahoma City PD

Finalists:

Runner Up: ●

Lisa LaBruno, RILA

Founded in 2006, the LPF has helped to evolve the LP industry and ensure that its retail members and solution partners remain collaborative in developing convenient, informative, and applicable educational resources for future industry leaders.

Runners Up (Tie): ●

ORCAS in Action, LPM RILA APLC / COVID Response Initiative

Finalists:

Wade Wheeler, MTI ● Mike Lamb, Kroger ● Anderson Ozawa, Cinemark Brazil ●

■ Rising Star

● ●

Global Retail Crime Summit - Auror ASIS Retail Asset Protection Community in association with the LPF

■ Community Champion Winner: Sean Sportun, Circle K Stores

Winner: Maygen Taff, DICK’s Sporting Goods As single mother of three, Taff led Walmart in apprehensions her rookie year in LP. After moving to DICK’s in 2019, she led another major retailer in cases, prosecutions, and merchandise recovered. Taff is tasked with training new hires and is a leading candidate to be promoted to area LP manager.

Runner Up: Ashley App, Big Lots Stores

Finalists:

Erin Grigoletti, Meijer ● Samuel Alvarado, LPC, Home Depot ● McLean Stanley Essiene, Nigeria ●

Winner: The Loss Prevention Foundation

●

Finalists:

●

■ Association or Industry Initiative

Sportun’s vision is simple yet contagious: “make our stores less attractive to the criminal element through community engagement.” He believes it is important to evaluate your current practices and think beyond the box to make a shift in your paradigm and get the results you need.

Runner Up: ●

Kevin Metcalf, National Child Protection Task Force

Finalists: ● ●

Walgreens Red Nose Initiative Dinesh Elangovan, Overseas Security Advisory Council, India

Sgt. Jeff Thomas, Harris County, TX Det. Jon Houston and Officer Wesley Aslin, Sacramento PD ● Crime Prevention Supervisor Ed Fritz, Boise PD ● ●

July–August 2021

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■ Investigator of the Year Winners: Anna Isabel Marquez and Ryan Puryear, CVS Health Marquez and Puryear played a fundamental role in Operation Proof of Purchase, one of the largest ORC cases ever recorded in the US. Multiple arrests were made and a mountain of health and beauty products seized, resulting in a $50 million case against a sophisticated operation that had been targeting retailers in the San Francisco Bay area for several years.

Runner Up: ●

Timothy Kicha, Bloomingdale’s

Finalists:

Michael Murphy, Retail Business Services/Ahold Delhaize USA ● Chris Walden, Utah C.A.S.E Unit SSA ● Adam Labanosky, Global Investigator II, Walmart ●

■ LP Team of the Year Winner: SSP Group Loss Prevention Team (UK) The SSP Group did an excellent job supporting the operation throughout a tough year, carrying out investigations and activities to maximize revenue and profit. They proved to be results- focused, keeping loss prevention KPIs on the expected levels, and the difficult circumstances didn’t stop them from starting new projects.

Runner Up: ●

Home Depot Supply Chain AP Team

Finalists: CVS AP Team

Meijer AP Investigations Team ● PetSmart Field LP and Safety Team ●

■ Outstanding Podcast or Series Winner: CrimeScience, Loss Prevention Research Council CrimeScience explores the science of crime prevention and the practical application of science for LP and AP practitioners and other professionals. CrimeScience discusses a wide range of topics with industry experts, thought leaders, solution providers, and many more.

Runner Up: ● 2Cents on 2Things, LPM

Finalists:

● ●

ISCPO 360 Security Podcasts, ISCPO The Employee Safety Podcast, AlertMedia

Loss Prevention Hall of Honor The Hall of Honor celebrates the lifetime achievements of those industry leaders who have contributed so much to benefit the industry they have served. Cutting the path for those who have followed, they are leaders of innovation, design, process, and policy, who have led an exemplary career, served as masters of mentoring, and shared with others to help elevate the profession by enhancing the industry, giving back, and paying it forward for those who will carry the torch for the next generation of LP leaders. This year’s inaugural class includes the outstanding individuals below.

Peter Berlin James Bridges Benjamin Guffey John Hegan Dr. Richard Hollinger Sandy Katz George “Pops” Luciano Bob MacLea Gary Manson Dave Myers King Rogers Lew Shealy Doug Wicklander and Dave Zulawski Fred Wilson

■ Social Justice Warrior Winner: DICK’S Sporting Goods Diversity & Inclusion Team The DICK’S Sporting Goods diversity and inclusion team has built a culture that supports the wide variety of characteristics that make up who we are as people and as individuals. They promote training programs but go beyond the training to instill an attitude that offers an example we should all follow. They remind us that each of us are champions in our own way.

Runner Up: ●

International Organization of Black Security Executives (IOBSE)

Finalists: ● ●

Dinesh Elangovan, India Chevarra Orrin, D&I advocate and practitioner

■ Solution Provider Innovator Winner: ThinkLP ThinkLP offered a groundbreaking case and audit platform that was easy to implement and could quickly identify, solve, report, and mitigate crime. But in the last year, ThinkLP has focused on developing and improving their AI and analytics products including an easy to use and innovative exception-based reporting and analytics platform.

Runners Up (Tie):

■ Outstanding Webinar or Series Winner: ALTO Alliance and LPM—COVID-19 Lessons from Spain At the very onset of the pandemic and systemic shutdowns across the globe, Alto Alliance, in partnership with LPM, hosted an important webinar on COVID-19.

Spain then had one of the highest infection rates in the world that started several weeks before North America. The lessons learned from Spain helped all retailers prepare for the months to come.

Runner Up: ●

Global Retail Crime Summit - Auror

Finalists:

AXIS Retail Open Mic—AXIS Communications ● ORCAS in Action 2020 Summit— Coalition of 26 ORCAS and LPM ● The Power of Teamwork—LP and LE combatting ORC and Gangs, 3Si and LPF ●

LPM

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●

Treuth

● 3Si Security Systems

Finalist: SecureCash

■ Solution Provider Partner Winner: ALTO Alliance At the beginning of the pandemic, the ALTO Alliance team hosted a conference call with retailers from Europe who shared best practices that were critical for keeping appraised of what could be coming to the US. ALTO provided proactive intelligence during the social unrest and partnerships with law enforcement, district attorneys, and other community support systems.

Runner Up: ●

AXIS Communications

Finalists:

ThinkLP CargoNet ● Auror ● ●

SPONSORED CONTENT

RETAIL COMMUNITY Stefanie Hoover, CFI

GaudiLab / Shutterstock.com

Hoover is AVP strategic accounts and business development at ALTO USA. She is a member of the ASIS Retail Council and IAI Midwest Chapter Executive Board, and has over twenty years’ experience in retail loss prevention. She can be reached at shoover@alto-us.com.

We’re in It Together R

C. J. Orrantia

On February 22, 2021, Illinois Governor J. B. Pritzker signed H.B. 3653, known as the “Criminal Justice Reform Bill,” into law.

etailers do not operate in a vacuum. We can think of the individual store and the community in which it exists as an “ecosystem.”

In that ecosystem, hundreds of factors affect the experience of the customers, employees, and, ultimately, sales. We do our best in loss prevention to be up to date and knowledgeable about the store ecosystem. The truth is, we do not know exactly what is happening out there. Yes, there is disconnect.

Even with the newest technology, it’s difficult to be plugged into what’s truly going on in a store.

As we continue to expand in the US, ALTO is gathering information in order to build partnerships between retailers, law enforcement, prosecutors, and their communities.

ALTO wants to give back to the industry and share some of our learnings along the way. This series of articles will provide actionable information into what is truly happening in stores. We will share legal updates from our staff attorneys, stories from the frontlines, tips, and behind- the- scenes glimpses that will surprise you.

We’re all in this together, so let’s learn together as well.

In this edition, ALTO’s Chicago market Staff Attorney C. J. Orrantia, JD, fills us in on some of the legal changes coming to Illinois that will affect retailers.

H.B. 3653, known as the “Criminal Justice Reform Bill,” into law.

Pritzker announced that the bill would reform pretrial detention, expand training and wellness programs for law enforcement, and modernize sentencing laws.

Proponents presented the bill as a step toward ending systemic racism, in response to the highprofile violent incidents involving law enforcement and minorities in 2020. Law enforcement groups criticized the bill, characterizing it as an anti-police measure that would hinder the ability of law enforcement to do its job.

Many of the bill’s provisions went into effect July 1, 2021. The bill is massive and adds new laws or changes existing ones. Regardless of perspective on the bill, there is no doubt that it will change how the criminal justice system works and how law enforcement will operate in Illinois. Therefore, it is important that retailers pay close attention to some of the changes so they can adjust their loss prevention policies accordingly.

Many of the bill’s measures, such as abolishing bail or changing the use-of-force standards, have made headlines. Other changes have received less attention. One of the less- covered changes governs law enforcement’s ability to arrest that will take effect on January 1, 2023.

Criminal Justice Reform in Illinois

Custodial Arrests

On February 22, 2021, Illinois Governor J. B. Pritzker signed

The bill places limits on when and for what law enforcement can

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place people into custodial arrest.

Previously, law enforcement in Illinois could take offenders into custody for any offense, including petty ones. The bill changes this authority by generally directing law enforcement to issue citations to offenders for misdemeanors, like criminal trespass. What this means for retailers is that police will generally be precluded from taking offenders into custody for certain minor offenses.

There is an exception based on health and safety that will allow officers to arrest offenders. Still, it is likely that police departments will err on the side of issuing citations for minor offenses rather than try to determine at the scene whether an exception allowing for custodial arrest applies.

This change has the potential to have a massive impact on retailers. Police will continue to have authority to place retail theft offenders into custody. Therefore, retailers may not see a difference when calling police regarding retail theft, especially retailers who have a “hands off” policy where retail theft is usually reported after the fact.

However, retailers may need to adjust policies when they are confronted by an offender who is generally disruptive, or an offender who refuses to leave after being asked to do so. Soon, police will be limited in when they can physically remove such offenders, and that is the space where retailers may need to adjust policies.

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Getting the Word Out 7-Eleven Upgrades Store Communications to Better Inform Associates

SPARK Publications / guteksk7 / Shutterstock.com

By Garette Seivold, LPM Senior Writer

July–August 2021

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W

hen serious incidents occur, retailers’ thoughts turn to the safety of their store associates and customers.

“Are they okay?” is probably the question asked more than any other—and to better those odds, companies dedicate months and staff hours to craft policies, deliver trainings, and conduct exercises.

But there is always an upstream question that determines if all that preparation will pay off. Namely, “Do they know?” If you can excel in this area, then preparedness programs have a chance to deliver.

7-Eleven invests heavily in supporting the stores. It employs software to assess the potential impact of weather events on store assets, and when a major storm is seven days from landfall near operating locations, it goes live with a crisis command center to provide as much support to stores as possible. The company leadership engages franchisees in their corporate communications early on and holds several conference calls a day that franchisees can participate in to share information and concerns and identify support they might need.

But until recently, the company’s communication pipeline wasn’t as robust in helping stores that could potentially be impacted by faster

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moving incidents, like a nearby robbery or active shooter event, or civil unrest in the neighborhood.

In these incidents, the company’s call center would call stores in the affected area to alert them of the event so they could enact safety procedures.

“The mechanism we had to communicate to a store was an in-store phone,” explained Brent Smerczynski, corporate asset protection manager for 7-Eleven operations, safety, and regulatory compliance. “But there was no guarantee store associates would answer the phone.” This was especially worrisome for in-store overnight operations when emergency events are more likely to occur.

There are many facets to crisis communication. Operating units and the emergency command center must communicate effectively with one another, for example. So, too, must the individual members of the response team. But perhaps the most glaring need for communication is between the organization and store-level associates. Companies need an effective method for communicating emergency status information to employees, as gaps in this area can have safety consequences. “It’s not that what we had wasn’t working—we wanted a more efficient way

July–August 2021

Brent Smerczynski

FEATURE Getting the Word Out

Art Lazo

to reach more locations and raise awareness,” Smerczynski said.

Smerczynski culled company records from past events to assess how often those calls didn’t reach their intended targets. Some stores were perfect, but some weren’t. Ultimately, the AP team decided the percentage of event-driven emergency calls answered by stores was not good enough. “We started to examine how we could improve,” he said.

In-House Technology Finding the best solution started by examining what stores already had at their disposal. “In the last few years, the company has made a commitment to become more digitally enabled,” Smerczynski shared. “We wanted to leverage current in-house technologies to support our vision and program.”

One of those technologies is the company’s 7MD (7-Eleven Mobile Device), a tablet that store location managers use for item information, managing cycle counts, handling payment, and even scanning products.

It seemed ready-made for store-level communications.

“We thought to look at how

we might leverage that capability and the possibility of sending an Electronic Alert,” said Smerczynski.

With the full support of senior leadership, 7Alert was piloted in 700 stores within eight short weeks. The AP and operations teams identified what was needed, and the R&D team went to work developing the technology, which is essentially a software API between two platforms: the company’s case-entry system and the 7MD. Critically, the design pushes emergency notifications directly to the store.

Upon identification of an incident, the company’s hotline auto generates a notification to 7MD devices in a predetermined radius of the incident location, which sounds an alarm until someone manually confirms notification of the event on the device. Stores receive reminders or suggestions via the app for actions to take, such as dropping excess cash or to have panic devices on hand.

Most critically, it ensures the foundation for any successful communication plan: knowing an incident has occurred.

“We wanted to make our system push out notifications in a reliable manner,” said

“Are they okay?”

When serious incidents occur, retailers’ thoughts turn to the safety of their store associates and customers. “Are they okay?” is probably the question asked more than any other—and to better those odds, companies dedicate months and staff hours to craft policies, deliver trainings, and conduct exercises.

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Smerczynski. “This has a forced interaction; store associates need to confirm on the device they have reviewed the alert, so we know we have fully reached the store.”

With the pilot proving successful, the app will soon roll out to all 7MDs. 7-Eleven’s communication team is producing a job aid with instructions to introduce stores to the new 7Alert emergency notification tool, and upcoming store visits will provide a touch point for field leaders.

Art Lazo, vice president of asset protection for 7-Eleven, stated, “The team has done a great job working cross-functionally and with emerging technology to make an existing notification system much better. The speed at which this was accomplished was extraordinary and will make an immediate impact.”

Regarding lessons for the industry, Smerczynski thinks his team’s experience is a reminder for AP to resist a siloed approach to finding solutions. While 7-Eleven’s AP team certainly had a head start with its existing store technology, many big box stores are increasingly using similar handheld devices to facilitate store operations and can be a critical avenue to improve communication and other AP priorities.

“We like to keep our finger on the pulse of what our internal partners are working on, to anticipate what’s coming, and to evaluate and improve on what we currently have in place to enhance current AP initiatives,” he said.

Along with the technology foundation, asset protection’s history of collaboration helped with the remarkable speed of the project. “There are those things that keep you

up at night, and this provides a little sense of ease that we’re communicating with the stores, and that nobody is on an island,” said Smerczynski.

“We feel like we’ve done a good thing.”

Options in Crisis Communication Technology plays a foundational role in retailers’ ability to communicate with stores and employees, and for company-owned, company-operated entities there are multiple options.

Yet, compared to other uses, technology’s role in emergency response gets less attention, according to Jerry Wilkins, PSP, cofounder of Active Risk Survival, a company that provides specialized emergency management training for security professionals.

“Companies have emergency operation plans for responding to threats like tornadoes, hurricanes, and violence, but getting technology to be part of that workflow when a critical incident happens is not happening.”

Technology is a moving target, and several experts said retailers and their emergency teams should have a strategy for staying current with new options, devices, and advances in system design that could provide an upgrade to their existing strategy for emergency alerting.

A front-end content management system, connected to the cloud and then into each store, is a robust approach that provides plenty of flexibility in what messages go out and which screens they go to, according to Ben Hardy, senior product manager at Sharp NEC Display Solutions,

There are many facets to crisis communication.

Operating units and the emergency command center must communicate effectively with one another, for example. So, too, must the individual members of the response team. But perhaps the most glaring need for communication is between the organization and store-level associates. a global provider of digital signage solutions. “When you have your CMS, you can create content, and whoever is managing that can push whatever message is needed to whichever screens you want in that ecosystem,” he said.

“You can see every node and push wherever you want—like to every screen at store 438.”

According to Hardy, a retailer’s level of planning can make a big difference, from cabling and infrastructure to leveraging investments. “My suggestion is to think not only about the primary purpose of a screen, but what else a display might be used for,” he said. Displays in a retail store that have a primary purpose of showcasing ads and promotions can also alert employees or the public of emergencies or threats in an area.

Control over connected displays offers retailers flexibility in public alert messaging, something that may be useful considering what some experts feel is a growing complacency among the public at the sound and sight of store evacuation alarms. According to local press reports, for example, when emergency alarms sounded at Palisades

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Center in Rockland, NY, alerting shoppers to evacuate, few did—and it’s a problem noted in several emergency management surveys, including one by the federal Office of Emergency Management.

It’s not as easy for retailers with less scale and budget, but Hardy suggested there are workarounds to get content to screens when you don’t have a front-end type of control system that can talk directly to the monitor. “But a good thing about a CMS is you can easily customize content.”

That’s just one possibility.

IP endpoints provide everexpanding opportunities to improve communication, enhance coverage, and target messages for different situations and audiences.

The more channels of communication that an organization opens for emergency notification, the smaller the likelihood of having gaps in the crisis alerts they issue, suggested Helio Fred Garcia, president of the crisis management firm Logos Consulting Group and executive director of the Logos Institute for Crisis Management and Executive Leadership. Building alert options include messages

July–August 2021

Jerry Wilkins

Ben Hardy

Helio Fred Garcia

FEATURE Getting the Word Out

Paul Shain

Matthew Bradley

to IP phones, public address speakers, digital signs, and desktops. Personal or off-premises notification includes SMS text, mobile app alerts, email, phone calls and toll-free hotlines, and social media.

“You also need to plan for redundancy in the manner of delivering messages. If phone lines are down, if email is down, you still need to communicate,” he said. Using multiple methods to deliver crisis communications helps organizations reach more people, and it also helps when one of those avenues is cut off.

Multiple alerting options can also improve speed.

“The sooner everyone is alerted about an event, the quicker they can respond, potentially minimizing the damage caused by a crisis event,” said Paul Shain, CEO of Singlewire Software. “This means being able to receive alerts about potential issues using on-premises and mobile devices.” Ideally, retail organizations should strive to have as many ways to contact stakeholders in an emergency as those stakeholders receive information, said experts.

Sending messages directly to workers via an emergency notification and mass communications platform is

an alerting option that grows more powerful as consumer and store technology merge.

Walmart, for example, said it will give Samsung smartphones to 740,000 frontline workers—half its US workforce—that will feature a new app allowing them to communicate directly with each other, clock in and out, and assist with customers’ questions. Push-to-talk over cellular (PoC) devices offer another communication option, which may have less expensive service plans.

Having a range of messaging options facilitates better message targeting and tailoring—to select stores, to store management, to crisis team members, or to stakeholders in a geographic area. “Instant notification technology is increasingly seen as a good way for segmenting the audience, for understanding who opened the message, and third-party services can keep things more up to date than a printed emergency phone list,” said Garcia, who noted some companies have recently deployed their instant notification system to warn employees to not log in to company email networks during a ransomware attack.

Shain added, “Mass emails can be easy to ignore,

Technology is a moving target,

and several experts said retailers and their emergency teams should have a strategy for staying current with new options, devices, and advances in system design that could provide an upgrade to their existing strategy for emergency alerting.

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and individually texting or calling people can be time consuming. With a mass notification system, they can alert large groups of people quickly [of] the situation taking place.”

Mass notification platforms typically offer multichannel broadcast delivery, message customization, targeted recipient grouping, and reporting and analytics.

They also help retailers manage disparate systems, which can streamline the delivery of alerts and prevent wasting time in a crisis. Often, notification is one component of an umbrella crisis event management solution that integrates risk intelligence, critical communications, and incident management in one platform. “Unifying all the devices and systems an organization uses for communication with a mass notification platform can make managing alerts much more efficient,” said Shain.

Problems with Emergency Alert Systems The reputation of emergency notification systems is not unblemished.

Several years ago, following the worst mass shooting in Oregon history on the campus of Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, a student fatally shot an assistant professor and eight other students in a classroom. Faculty members told local media that the school’s emergency alert system, designed to text cell phones and display a crawling message on school computer screens, did not activate. “I had my campus computer on and my cell phone next to me and the emergency

notification system did not fire,” according to a professor who didn’t learn of the shooting until he later checked his email and found a message instructing staff to go into lockdown. Text alerts being received in the incorrect order—and thus making it difficult for recipients to follow instructions—is also a traditional complaint.

There is evidence, however, that systems are growing more reliable.

In a survey of educators released in June by Campus Safety, only 3 percent said they experienced “many problems” with their emergency notification system during the pandemic, with delays being the most common complaint. Still, despite newer options, email remains the most common method for crisis alerts (80%) among the mature alert market of higher education institutions, ahead of text messages (71%) and far outpacing alert messaging via mobile safety apps and push notifications (27 and 26% respectively), according to Crisis Communication and Safety in Education, 2021 Survey Report by Rave.

According to Matthew Bradley, regional security director at International SOS + Control Risks, smartphone apps are particularly useful for alerting traveling employees to emergencies.

Simultaneously, they can deliver safety information, provide updates, and facilitate safety check-ins.

That trend—of using the same app for alerts and other travel risk management—has become common, he said.

Regarding social media, Garcia thinks it’s inadequate

as a primary method of employee alerting because it won’t reach all employees, but that it can support a broader crisis communication plan. Crisis management representatives can jointly develop strategies with public relations executives to use social media platforms to keep key stakeholders—including the public, loyal customers, and the media—informed on crisis events.

Ultimately, Garcia said companies that are agile and can think creatively in crises tend to have the best track record for mitigating emergencies, noting how one large company client overcame downed phone and internet lines and limited cell service by using a skywriter to alert employees where and when to meet. “That is a good adaptation, and an indication that if you rely on technology you have to be nimble and agile in a crisis to communicate effectively.”

The Need for Consistent Messaging While it’s helpful to have a range of alerting options, it can’t come at the expense of consistent messaging. In 2017, when describing Kroger’s success during Hurricane Harvey, Christopher Ochs, LPC, noted the importance of a communication plan that establishes and maintains control of messaging.

“You need to ensure that messages aren’t mixed, which can happen when you don’t have a single line of communication,” he said. Open lines of communication are critical, but clear lines of

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July–August 2021

FEATURE Getting the Word Out

Continued from page 33

authority must accompany communication, he advised.

A byproduct of the nation’s many active shooter events is information about the functioning of emergency notification systems in actual emergencies. The forensic

As for message content, an alert to a retail worker should typically consist of three components, advised Garcia. ● Who is the message for?

“They should know if the information is intended just for them or if it is for the customers, too.” ● What is the situation?

While it’s helpful to have a range of alerting options,

it can’t come at the expense of consistent messaging. In 2017, when describing Kroger’s success during Hurricane Harvey, Christopher Ochs, LPC, noted the importance of a communication plan that establishes and maintains control of messaging. analysis that often follows a tragedy provides information on what works, where problems can arise, and how to make systems more robust. Common problems cited include: ● A lack of guidance about what kinds of events should initiate the use of the emergency alert system, ● Identification of all individuals authorized to launch it, and ● What information should be provided.

Several others found that a lack of training and practice often delayed organizations from sending out time-critical notifications. Along with the ability to use an emergency mass notification system comes the responsibility to stay current, practiced, and maintain the ability to use it under pressure and without delay, noted one review.

July–August 2021

● What

are you asking them to do? “You want to be clear with what you are asking the employees to do,” said Garcia. “It’s not enough to say that there is a situation, and you are following it and will keep them posted. You want to tell them what to do in the meantime.” Absent instructions, for example, an employee who gets an alert and is scheduled to work is likely to stay home, Garcia added.

The Role of Loss Prevention Loss prevention should work with their IT team and other leaders to determine the best strategy for delivering crisis alerts, and experts we interviewed offered the following ideas to ensure crisis communications quickly reach stakeholders.

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● To

ensure that alerts can go out quickly, draw clear lines of authority, and designate responsibility. ● Conduct routine tests of emergency notification systems to discover if targeted recipients don’t receive timely alerts and why. ● Review the existing system for issuing alerts annually to determine if it continues to meet the needs of the organization in terms of design and functionality, or if changes in the way individuals communicate require changes in the alert system. ● Write alert scripts in advance for a complete range of possible emergency scenarios. ● Assess if the emergency communication plan is sufficient for all workers and stakeholders, including non-English speakers, special needs, contractors, and others. ● Raise stakeholders’ awareness of how they will receive instructions in an emergency. Possible ideas include a periodic notice at the time of network sign-in; reminders in safety or departmental meetings; advertisement of the alert system during emergency or safety awareness days; and posters in elevators, breakrooms, restrooms, or other places where captive audiences may notice them.

Garett Seivold is senior writer for LPM. A trained journalist, he has spent the majority of his career writing about security, risk management, supply chain, and loss prevention topics. He can be reached at GarettS@LPportal.com.

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The Loss Prevention Foundation (LPF) is a leader in educating and certifying retail loss prevention and asset protection professionals by providing relevant, convenient, and challenging educational resources. The LPF is dedicated to elevating the industry through its accredited LPQualified and LPCertified courses. For more information, visit losspreventionfoundation.org.

Thoughts on the LPF Courses and the Industry L

oss prevention and asset protection professionals study for LPC and LPQ certifications for a variety of reasons. Some are new to retail LP and want to get a base knowledge of the profession. Others are seasoned professionals who have worked in the industry for years and want to ensure they are fully knowledgeable about the retail business and the many subject-matter areas that are needed to advance their careers. In this column, we asked newly certified individuals to offer their insights as to why they chose to become certified and the experience of studying the certification coursework.

Daniel Jones, LPC

Regional Loss Prevention and Security Manager, Fanatics LPCertified in May 2021 Daniel Jones

I’ve worked in the loss prevention industry for almost eighteen years, and even after all that time, I realized that there was still a lot to learn.

Daniel Jones, LPC, began his loss prevention career in 2003 as an entry-level protection specialist. Over the years, he has served in several loss prevention and asset protection roles and helped create the Charleston, South Carolina, law enforcement and retail partnership between more than 100 local LP and law

July–August 2021

enforcement professionals working together against organized retail crime (ORC).

Jones has been with Fanatics since 2016, managing loss prevention and security in the e-commerce fulfillment and manufacturing division.

“I’ve worked in the loss prevention industry for almost eighteen years, and even after all that time, I realized that there was still a lot to learn,” said Jones. “Several of my peers had gone through the Loss Prevention Foundation’s LPCertified (LPC) and LPQualified (LPQ) courses and exams. They had great things to say about their experiences, and so I decided it was my turn to step out of my comfort zone and push myself to learn more. Once I began the LPC coursework, I was blown away by the amount of information it covered and how well it was structured. I made a plan, set my goal, and got to work.

“Luckily, several other members of our team were going through the course at the same time. We would often have study sessions and help keep each other on track to meet our goals. Having a team go through this coursework together has so many advantages,” stated Jones.

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“The LPC course truly helped us see where LP fits in the business as a whole, and how it is imperative that we are able to look past our own department and truly understand how our piece of the puzzle fits. If we only focus on our own department needs and not reach out to our partners within the other departments, we are doing a great disservice to ourselves and the business. Business acumen and strong partnerships are the key to having a truly successful loss prevention program, and as a team, we all have the tools needed for success in our department as well as our own careers.”

Jones offered this recommendation: “If you are looking to increase your loss prevention knowledge base, become a better partner within your organization, and ensure that you are setting yourself up for success within your own personal loss prevention career, I highly recommend putting in the time and effort to complete this certification. Find a mentor and invest in yourself. Immerse yourself in the information the LPC course has to offer and truly see what new lessons you Continued on page 38

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Educating an industry, one leader at a time.

CERTIFICATION Continued from page 36

can learn as it relates to loss prevention. Only then will you truly benefit from this program, becoming more well-versed in the process.”

Kyrie Bock, LPQ Kyrie Bock

A career in loss prevention is complex, and the LPQ course helps to organize all of the industry’s different aspects.

Director of Customer Success, ALTO USA LPQualified in March 2021

More than fourteen years ago, Kyrie Bock, LPQ, began her career in retail. Over the years, she has worked in sales, operations, and management in the retail, nonprofit, and financial services industries. Bock is now using her background in all these areas with ALTO USA. She feels she has come full circle from her beginnings in retail to the new and challenging industry that retail loss prevention has become today.

“Continued education has always been important to me, and I felt the LPQ certification would be a good next step for me since returning to retail in the loss prevention space,” said Bock. “The course was more detailed and informative than I had anticipated and helped me to better understand the loss prevention industry as a whole. Now that I have increased my knowledge and broadened my scope of understanding, I feel better equipped to identify with clients. I believe the LPQ certification has allowed me to create more credibility and commonality even in brief introductions and encounters.”

Bock continued, “If I could offer one key takeaway for those considering the LPQ course it would be to understand your learning style and pace. That way you can prepare and plan properly for studying, learning, and retaining the coursework.

This will not only allow for success when taking the exam but will give you the ability to use the information learned for job applicability. A career

July–August 2021

in loss prevention is complex, and the LPQ course helps to organize all of the industry’s different aspects.

“Take the time to really understand your career goals and be open-minded to the varying and complex opportunities in the industry,”

said Bock, when asked about advice for those considering loss prevention certification or careers in the industry.

“Getting the LPQ certification is a great way to delve deeper into all that loss prevention and asset protection has to offer.”

Newly Certified Following are individuals who recently earned their certifications.

Recent LPC Recipients Ronald Annis, LPQ, LPC, Tire Discounters Michael Caron, LPC, Dick’s Sporting Goods Crystal Collins, LPC, Meijer Jonathan Edelman, LPC, Bealls Neal Ford, LPC, John Lewis PLC (UK) Jeff Greene, LPC, Hudson Group Jason Hamill, LPC, Walmart Daniel Jones, LPC, Fanatics Adegbenga William Koko, LPC, SecurityHaus Consulting Steve Korhummel, LPC, Whole Foods Market Scott McEntyre, LPC, Whole Foods Market Thomas Peters, LPQ, LPC, F5 Investigative Solutions Elmelo Punongbayan, LPC, LPC, PetSmart Robert Sanchez, LPC, Dollar General Tara Reed Shoop, LPC, Hibbett Sports Aaron Winkel, LPC, Zebra Technologies Recent LPQ Recipients Ronald Annis, LPQ, Tire Discounters Lucia Arreguin-Fitz, LPQ, CPhT, Walgreens Adam Burton, LPQ, Meijer Cathy Campbell, LPQ, Retail Business Services LLC, an Ahold-Delhaize company Jacqueline Carmaz, LPQ, ALTO US Mary Current, LPQ, Meijer Lahela De Vera, LPQ, Army Air Force Exchange Service Benedict Donaldson, LPQ, Dyson Joseph Fortunato, LPQ, Giant Martins Steve Hernandez, LPQ, Ralph Lauren Greg Huber, LPQ, Meijer Benjamin Mertz, LPQ, Giant Martins Kirsty Milhomens, LPQ, Federated Co-operatives Limited Oheneba Oppong Nyarko, LPQ, Ralph Lauren Thomas Peters, LPQ, F5 Investigative Solutions Jeffrey Pinheiro, LPQ, Ralph Lauren Tonia Ramos, LPQ, Meijer Tina Stafford, LPQ, Meijer James Standley, LPQ, Meijer Robin Teesdale, LPQ, Dyson Jessica Uzoho, LPQ, ALTO US Alyssa Verblaauw, LPQ, Zebra Technologies Carolyn Warren, LPQ, Ralph Lauren Jeremiah Wood, LPQ, ALTO US

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Diversity & Inclusion in Retail Getting Comfortable Having Uncomfortable Conversations

SPARK Publications / outsideclick / Shutterstock.com

By Jacque Brittain, LPC, LPM Editorial Director

July–August 2021

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W

hy has diversity and inclusion (D&I) become such an important conversation? Because it needs to. In the age of global communities, we simply can’t survive by living in a cocoon.

Frankly, in a shrinking world with a growing reach, it’s foolish to try. Change defines the human condition.

Let’s face it—I’ve never spent one day living in your shoes, and you’ve never spent one day living in mine. This is true for every person across the globe, regardless of who we are, where we live, and what background we may have. Our experiences are unique and based on countless factors that make up who we are from our DNA, to the decisions we’ve made, and every single thing that has ever influenced our lives.

These countless differences are something that we all have in common.

While we may continue to find comfort in common ground, our world is growing smaller every day. We’re regularly introduced to new people and new cultures but also gaining greater exposure to the tremendously diverse cultures that have surrounded us. And no matter how hard we try, we simply can’t crawl back into the cocoon. It doesn’t work that way for any of us, and that’s a good thing.

As our communities continue to grow more diverse, we also see dramatic changes in retail as an increasing percentage of the workforce is populated with individuals of different identities, traits, cultures, and

backgrounds. Awareness has heightened as the world continues to shrink and the demographics of the workforce change, and retail companies are taking on additional initiatives to further embrace diversity and inclusion.

But no matter who we are or what our background may be, we still must be willing to accept change. We must be willing to see the world in a new way. Often, the thing that sparks this kind of growth is a willingness to have uncomfortable conversations.

Understanding D&I Let’s begin with the basics.

First, diversity is not about any one thing. While it may mean different things to different people, no one can claim the term exclusively. In general, diversity involves the full range of human differences and should not be limited by narrow definitions. This often includes attributes such as race, ethnicity, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, social class, physical abilities or features, religious or ethical values, national origin, and political beliefs, but can include other factors as well. By learning to better understand, accept, and value the perspectives, characteristics, experiences, and behaviors that make each of us who we are, we give further meaning to our unique identity. It can enhance innovation and creativity, opening our minds to fresh ideas and invigorating limitless possibilities.

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Inclusion, on the other hand, builds upon involvement and empowerment, where the inherent worth and dignity of all people are recognized.

An inclusive environment promotes and sustains a sense of belonging for everyone. It is collaborative and supportive, respecting the participation and contributions of all employees.

It values the talents, beliefs, backgrounds, and ways of life for the entire team. It unites and integrates all people by providing equal access to opportunities, ideologies, activities, and resources. True inclusion removes barriers, discrimination, and intolerance.

When applied properly, it’s natural for everyone to feel engaged and supported.

D&I not only encompass how we perceive others but how we perceive ourselves.

We need to build a culture of respect where attitudes and actions will encourage mutual understanding, creating an environment where all people can be valued and successful in the workplace and throughout our communities.

Making a Difference The retail community has largely accepted that D&I matters—that focusing on diverse teams, actively

July–August 2021

“ ”

I was taught from a young age, and still believe, that you treat ALL people with kindness and respect.

FEATURE Diversity & Inclusion in Retail

mitigating bias, and embracing inclusive habits benefit the business. We’ve recognized the value of an employee population that respects and embraces our differences, and by learning to better understand each other we recognize the unique contributions that people can make. This creates a positive and nurturing work environment that maximizes the potential of all employees. ● Organizations employing a diverse workforce tend to be more adaptable, potentially offering a greater variety of solutions to business-related problems. ● Employees from diverse backgrounds bring individual talents and experiences, suggesting ideas, showing flexibility, and adapting to the changes that are an ongoing element of the retail world. ● A workforce with a spectrum of perspectives can provide a larger pool of ideas, insights, and experiences.

When the team feels comfortable communicating diverse points of view, the organization can draw from that pool to meet strategic goals and the needs of our customers more effectively. ● Companies that encourage diversity in the workplace inspire all of their employees to perform to their highest ability. Company-wide strategies are then executed

“

I think the more concerning issues fall on individuals rather than organizations, which makes it more difficult to overcome many of the challenges we face.

”

July–August 2021

more effectively, resulting in higher productivity, morale, profit, and return on investment. ● A workplace that reflects the diversity of our communities will better understand our customers, which will lead to improved service. A diverse workplace will have good communication with customers based on a deep understanding of the needs of the community. ● A diverse collection of skills and experiences allows a company to provide service on a broader level. ● Diversity in the workplace can increase marketing opportunities, recruitment, and our business image.

Certainly, there are challenges associated with diversity in the workplace. There will always be those who resist change and refuse to accept that the social and cultural landscape of the retail environment is evolving. Poor attitudes and personal biases can quell ideas and innovation and slow progress. Perceptual, cultural, and communication barriers need to be overcome if diversity programs are going to be successful.

But despite these challenges, change is inevitable. As far as we’ve come, there is still much more to learn. We need to continue to modify our way of thinking to deal effectively with the issues of communication, tolerance, adaptability, variety, and change.

Embracing our differences and working together far outweigh the challenges we face, and the quicker we realize that the better off we will be. We must implement a strategy that best fits the needs of the business, creating an environment that assesses people for who they are, taking us out of our comfort zone, and establishing a plan that

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best brings ideas to actions. It’s time to get comfortable having uncomfortable conversations, learning more about our differences and ourselves.

The Survey Process This survey was intended to do just that. The survey was crafted with the guidance, support, and direction of subject-matter experts and several retail D&I departments to develop questions that explored key D&I topics. Some of the terminology was also suggested by these experts. For example, the term “diversity identity” was suggested to help best capture the characteristics that make up who we are.

The survey comprised fifty-one questions, primarily consisting of multiple-choice queries that included “comment” sections that allowed respondents to further clarify their answers. Some of the questions were considered difficult or uncomfortable to answer. Some explored areas that were likely unexpected. All participants were encouraged to be candid and share their thoughts.

A total of 401 participants completed the survey. While the primary audience was the loss prevention community, retailers from every area of the business were invited to take part, along with some of our key retail partners. We also invited retail professionals worldwide to participate. Anonymity was a critical aspect of the process, and all respondents were assured that their identities would be kept strictly confidential to ensure honest and candid responses.

Recognizing Our Own Opportunities Good people are strong enough to change their minds.

New information is then seen as a chance to grow, not as a barrier

that stands in our way. Of course, information can help validate what we already know. But it can also lead us down a different path. This isn’t just a lesson that applies to all the faceless “theys” and “thems” that we use to generalize our anger, frustration, and resentment. It applies to you.

It applies to me. And all those pointing fingers—those who don’t feel the need to change—may want to pay closer attention to the person their thumbs are pointing toward rather than focusing so much energy on everyone else.

We all have opportunities to learn and grow, and finding hidden prospects through self-discovery can help take our attitudes and perspective in new directions. However, breaking free from our own perspectives can be difficult, leading to some of the most uncomfortable conversations we can have—with ourselves.

The D&I survey carried some strong opinions, shedding additional light on numerous topics while reaffirming others that we may have heard before.

Every voice is important and offers a window into the way our colleagues feel about these important topics. Discussion may or may not lead to solutions, but opening the dialogue is always a step in the right direction.

Before exploring the particulars of the survey results, let’s start with a few key observations based on the comments made throughout the process.

The majority of those in the retail community embrace D&I. Too often it seems like we are driven by the exceptions rather than the opinions of the majority. Everyone’s opinion is important—and that often drives change. But the needs of everyone must be considered, and common sense must prevail. Most are sincerely

open-minded, have the desire to learn and grow, and want positive change.

Language is often our biggest hurdle. The way thoughts are worded can often get in the way of the message.

For example, do we believe that someone should be hired, promoted, or advance in their career simply based on race, gender, or some other characteristic? Or do we really mean that someone shouldn’t be denied the opportunity to be hired, promoted, or advance based on some characteristic that has nothing to do with their capabilities and performance?

Wording can make a tremendous difference in the way our message is received.

Skepticism is also a concern.

It’s clear from many of the comments that there are those who mistrust the motives behind some of these issues. Simply stated, are we sincerely looking for true equality when we speak of D&I, or are there those looking for an advantage based on their diversity identity? Are we trying to suppress others to get ahead?

Rather than seeing this as a criticism, we should recognize a legitimate concern repeatedly voiced in survey responses.

There are many in the retail community who need to expand their definition of D&I. We all need to do a better job of recognizing and understanding the depth of the discussion and how it applies to each of us. This is not a subject exclusive to one group, individual, or diversity identity. Inclusion is an aspect of the conversation that can get left behind if we are not careful.

D&I in retail is not exclusive to the US. Diverse participation in the survey and the comments shared by those outside the US indicate that this is a worldwide dilemma that deserves greater attention. Different aspects of D&I may be more prominent based on culture and

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It appears leadership wants to hold fast to what’s being done that they see as good and right without considering there is opportunity for growth, a need for education, and people within the department that may actually feel marginalized.

”

geography, but they are just as important to consider.

There’s a great deal of emotion tied to many of the comments. Anger, frustration, animosity, anxiety, and sarcasm are expressed in many of the responses. Some claim that it’s a fabricated or overstated topic.

But others share real interest, objectivity, and hope. Overall, it points to how important the subject is to the retail community.

There are too many mirrors.

Of course, it’s only natural that we view D&I based on our own reflection. In some way, we all believe we’ve been misjudged or treated unfairly in some way. But do you really believe that you’re going to convince others that their experiences are trivial, unimportant, or less meaningful than yours? That only builds walls, especially when people feel they are being put on the defensive. We must be willing to hear and understand perspectives other than our own.

Unconscious bias is very, very real. It can be heard repeatedly in many of the comments shared throughout the survey.

Generally speaking, we should all be more aware of our own biases and work to improve who we are. But unfairly grouping people based on their diversity identity to make a point about how that group mistreats or misrepresents others—for example, saying something is “made up or fabricated” when it doesn’t match your opinion,

July–August 2021

The D&I survey carried some strong opinions, shedding additional light on numerous topics while reaffirming others that we may have heard before.

Every voice is important and offers a window into the way our colleagues feel about these important topics.

FEATURE Diversity & Inclusion in Retail 83 percent of the respondents identify themselves as LP professionals. However, we did have business partners that took part in the survey, including sales, operations, human resources, finance, risk management, supply chain, legal, internal audit, safety, information technology, and the academic community.

Approximately 4 percent of respondents included our non-retail partners that serve the retail community as solution providers or law enforcement partners.

Professionals at every level of leadership took part in the survey, from store-level leaders to department pyramid heads. Respondents were fairly evenly distributed across the leadership spectrum, providing a broad range of opinions and perspectives.

Respondents represented a broad educational background and a diverse racial/ethnic background. The age of respondents was also very diverse. Approximately 67 percent of respondents identify as heterosexual males, while 22 Demographics of percent identify as heterosexual the Respondents females. Respondents included gay and bisexual males and Our first objective was to lesbian and bisexual females. identify the demographical Two individuals identify as makeup of our survey respondents. When approaching transgender, two as pansexual, and sixteen chose not to answer. the subject of D&I, we want to We then asked respondents invite participation and gather to comment on their perceived the responses of a diverse physical appearance. While audience to encourage a broad some factors are generally range of opinions. defined, this is a subjective topic While 66 percent of the that would vary depending on participants live in the US, 34 any number of factors. What percent represent nations in does it mean to be attractive? other parts of the world. This participation and their responses What is considered tall or short? What is considered thin underscore the global reach or overweight? What’s most of the interest in addressing important is how individuals D&I and how it impacts perceive themselves. Our retailers worldwide. respondents proudly come in all In addition to LP and AP shapes and sizes. professionals, we also invited Our final demographics our partners from across the questions asked if respondents retail community to participate were comfortable with their in the survey. Approximately calling someone a “racist,” “cisgender,” or part of a “good ol’ boys’ club” based on the behavior—is inappropriate, counterproductive, and extremely hypocritical.

Everyone feels that their opinion is correct—otherwise, it wouldn’t be their opinion.

We’re all capable of changing our opinions, but the most important influence in forming or changing our opinions is information. Listening with an open mind is just as important as speaking into an open mic. In any real conversation, you won’t be heard if you’re not willing to listen.

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I feel people are still adjusting and learning how to have conversations that were not previously ‘comfortable.’

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diversity identity. Approximately 99 percent of respondents indicate that they are comfortable with their own diversity identity.

“I am flawed and imperfect but very comfortable with who I am and what I believe I stand for.”

Are respondents comfortable with others? We asked if individuals of certain diversity identities make them feel uncomfortable. Approximately 83 percent of respondents disagree, while 17 percent of respondents indicate that individuals of certain diversity identities make them feel uncomfortable.

Retail Support of D&I Several questions focused on how participants believe that the retail community is responding to the topic. How engaged are retailers with respect to D&I? Most respondents gave their companies and their departments high marks with respect to support of D&I in the workplace; however, there were still those that provided very low marks. Overall, this indicates that we’ve made some positive progress and some organizations are doing very well, but there’s still a great deal of improvement that needs to be made. On average, respondents gave their companies a ranking of six out of ten.

Overall, 88 percent of respondents feel that their company leadership, and 90 percent believe that their department leadership, value D&I in the workplace. Eighty-eight percent feel that their company has a successful strategy for driving an inclusive environment.

While 90 percent of survey participants indicate that they agree that all employees would benefit from their organizations offering D&I training, only 82 percent of respondents believe

that they would personally benefit from D&I training.

Additional findings include: ● 85 percent of participants feel that their company does a good job of handling incidents of harassment in the workplace. ● 78 percent feel that their company is doing an effective job of recruiting, developing, and promoting talented candidates into leadership roles regardless of diversity identity. ● 92 percent of participants feel that regardless of diversity identity, every member of the team has an equal voice with their counterparts. ● 70 percent of participants disagree that there are times when they feel uncomfortable in their jobs based on their diversity identity, which further tells us that 30 percent agree that there are times when they feel uncomfortable in their jobs based on their diversity identity.

More Attention Needed D&I dialogue should not be limited to particular groups or diversity identities. Based upon the responses to several questions where participants held varying opinions on the subject and the strong opinions voiced within the comments, there were several areas that appear to need additional attention, clarity, and consideration. ● Participants had a mixed response as to whether individuals in the workplace frequently benefit or are discriminated against based solely on how attractive they are considered and/or their physical body type, with 50 percent agreeing and 50 percent disagreeing. ● Participants also had a mixed response about whether individuals in the workplace frequently benefit

or are discriminated against based solely on their age, with 53 percent agreeing and 47 percent disagreeing. ● Overall, 60 percent of survey participants disagree that individuals in the workplace are frequently discriminated against based solely on a physical or developmental disability, while 40 percent agree. ● 60 percent of survey participants disagree that individuals in the workplace are frequently discriminated against based solely on their nationality, background, or country of origin, while 40 percent agree. ● Participants had a mixed response about whether individuals in the workplace are frequently discriminated against based solely their ethnicity/culture, with 44 percent agreeing and 56 percent disagreeing. ● 65 percent of survey participants disagree that individuals in the workplace are frequently discriminated against based solely on their creed/religion, while 35 percent agree.

The contrast reflected in these results coupled with the comments shared by survey participants points to areas of opportunity that might benefit from further research.

At the very least, these results suggest both conscious and unconscious biases in several areas beyond typical D&I talking points.

The Impact of Discrimination Among survey participants, 76 percent state that they agree that anyone, regardless of their personal diversity identification, can and will be discriminated against in the workplace at some point. However, 98 percent of survey participants agree (76% strongly agree) that being discriminated against

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Inclusion also needs to include accepting people as they are, meaning everyone may not articulate the same, have the same understanding of some things that people experience, and that doesn’t make them less.

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does not give anyone the right to discriminate against others.

Overall, 97 percent of survey participants agree (74% strongly agree) that individuals in the workplace should not be treated differently, in terms of advantage, disadvantage, or opportunity, based on gender, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or other differences. ● 57 percent of participants believe that there have been times when they felt they missed out on a raise, promotion, key assignment, or chance to get ahead because of their diversity identity. ● 57 percent also feel that there are those in the workplace who use their personal diversity identity to mask poor performance or behavior. ● 69 percent of survey participants agree that those in the workplace who use their personal diversity identity as an excuse to mask poor performance or behavior can have an influence on the way other hardworking and deserving individuals who share the same diversity identity are perceived.

Participants noted various ways that they feel, at work and/or in everyday life, they have been discriminated against.

Age was the most prominent, followed by gender and race.

Participants also provided a variety of ways they have benefited by or otherwise used July–August 2021

Among survey participants, 76% state that they agree that anyone, regardless of their personal diversity identification, can and will be discriminated against in the workplace at some point.

FEATURE Diversity & Inclusion in Retail

to their advantage certain aspects of their diversity identity.

Intelligence was the most prominent, followed by gender and race.

There was an interesting disparity in response to the topic of profiling. Among survey participants, 80 percent stated that bias and profiling customers based on their personal diversity identity remains a legitimate concern

“ ”

Not enough attention is placed on the inclusion aspect of D&I. It’s about opening minds and sharing ideas as well as learning more about one another.

across the retail industry (28% strongly agree). In contrast, 85 percent of participants indicated that they personally never show bias or profile customers based on their personal diversity identity (43% strongly agree). In other words, most believe that “Other people do it, but not me.”

Supporting an Inclusive Environment Overall, 79% of survey participants disagree (38% strongly disagree) that the questions asked as part of the survey made them feel uncomfortable.

That’s a terrific sign that every conversation on D&I can build upon.

agree) that we must all learn to better understand and celebrate our differences.

Ninety-four percent of survey participants agree (69% strongly agree) that the use of offensive or derogatory names, terms, labels, or language referring to someone’s diversity identity is never appropriate, including language between those who share the same diversity identification.

“This has always been a huge pet peeve! Either it’s offensive and inappropriate for everyone, or it’s not. Claiming a word or phrase is yours and somehow acceptable based on your identity is hypocritical at the ultimate levels. It perpetuates division. It says it’s okay for you to set yourself apart based on how you identify yourself, but it’s not okay for others, which also angers and frustrates people. It’s wrong and needs to stop. You can’t have it both ways.”

Overall, 91 percent of survey participants agree (57% strongly agree) that there should be a greater investment in understanding unconscious bias as part of D&I training programs.

Uncomfortable Conversations

Overall, 79 percent of survey participants disagree (38% strongly disagree) that the Generally speaking, questions asked as part of participants voiced the opinion the survey made them feel that D&I programs represent a uncomfortable. That’s a terrific positive step in the evolution of sign that every conversation the retail culture. Some voiced on D&I can build upon. But that this is the latest “phase” several really important or “fad” for retail organizations questions remain. or influenced by “politically correct” motivations. But most ● How comfortable are you believe that D&I is an important listening to opinions contrary and progressive initiative that to your own? benefits everyone. ● How willing are you to share your thoughts with others Among survey participants, who may disagree with you?

97 percent agree (64% strongly agree) that D&I training ● Is it possible that your programs should include comments or actions might everyone and not focus on those hurt others without you who share a particular diversity realizing it? identification. Ninety-seven ● Are you truly willing to take percent also agree (73% strongly in new information and

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change your mind? you believe that most individuals are good and decent people trying to do their best? ● Are you willing to accept that good and decent people may disagree with your point of view? ● Can you accept that all this includes you, and not everyone but you?

Those questions are the foundation of every meaningful conversation where we disagree, and especially important when it comes to conversations that make us feel uncomfortable. If we want to have meaningful dialogue and move forward in a positive and constructive fashion, the answer to each of these questions must be “yes.”

Dealing with D&I in the workplace is a conversation that needs to take place across the retail landscape.

But it’s also a subject where more information and greater awareness can have a tremendous impact. It’s a shared responsibility but also a discussion that will benefit everyone.

A wealth of additional information was provided by our participants and is available as part of our Diversity & Inclusion in the Retail Workplace report available on the magazine website losspreventionmedia.com.

● Do

Jacque Brittain, LPC, is editorial director for LPM. Prior to joining the magazine, he was director of learning design and certification for Learn It Solutions, where he helped coordinate and write the online coursework for the Loss Prevention Foundation’s LPC and LPQ certifications. Earlier in his career, Brittain was vice president of operations for one of the largest executive recruiting firms in the LP industry. He can be reached at JacB@LPportal.com.

JOIN OUR RESEARCH & RESULTS COMMUNITY The Loss Prevention Research Council (LPRC) conducts evidence-based research and provides a collaborative environment to develop crime and loss control solutions to improve the performance of its retail members, solutions partners, and entire retail industry.

Our research and team/individual development tools provide you with the necessary resources to combat theft, fraud, and violence.

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TECHNOLOGY Tom Meehan, CFI asiandelight / Shutterstock.com

Meehan is retail technology editor for LPM as well as chief strategy officer and chief information security officer for CONTROLTEK. Previously, Meehan was director of technology and investigations with Bloomingdale’s, where he was responsible for physical security, internal investigations, and systems and data analytics. He currently serves as the chair of the Loss Prevention Research Council’s (LPRC) innovations working group. Meehan recently published his first book titled Evolution of Retail Asset Protection: Protecting Your Profit in a Digital Age. He can be reached at TomM@LPportal.com.

The Link Between ORC and Human Trafficking A

Capturing an accurate global snapshot of human trafficking data is virtually impossible.

global pandemic, large numbers of men, women, and children are even more susceptible to exploitation. What we are seeing evolve at an alarming pace is the growing trend of in-store criminal activity fueling human trafficking.

crews facilitating labor trafficking, or those addicted to drugs who are involved in labor trafficking.

Many times, underinvestigated crimes occur because there is no nexus of crimes to ORC. Yet, as complex as this may seem, retailers play one of the The Retail Connection most critical roles in combating human trafficking, as they often Organized retail crime (ORC) refers to professional shoplifting, have significant amounts of cargo theft, retail crime rings, and data that can be used in an ORC criminal case. For example, a other organized crime occurring retail establishment involved in in retail environments. Make no an ORC investigation can utilize mistake—these are not petty data and run it against its POS thieves stealing from a local store. These are career criminals systems, ORC lists, and CCTV records. Using this multifaceted who frequently move in highly approach is how retailers can organized groups from store to work to defeat organized store, city to city, and state to criminals in what is now one of state. The complexity of their the most lucrative “business” “business model” only adds to the many obstacles retailers face operations in the world.

According to data from the when combating ORC. Department of Homeland Although retailers can play Security (DHS), it is estimated a significant role in combating that the average price of a sex human trafficking, there are ad is sixty dollars. Multiply this several challenges they face, such as sex traffickers purchasing by the 1.04 million sex ads that currently utilize retail gift cards and utilizing retail brand gift as forms of payment, and you cards to fuel the underground are looking at over sixty million sex trade, identifying traveling annual dollars in potential laundered gift card expenditures.

Retailers play one of the most critical roles DHS also listed five of the largest retailers, whose names were in combating human trafficking, as they excluded from the report for often have significant amounts of data that the purpose of anonymity, in its can be used in an ORC criminal case. research. The list below outlines ccording to the Federal Human Trafficking Report, at its core, human trafficking is the act of exploiting—often dehumanizing—another person for financial gain or other benefit.

The people who traffickers coerce and exploit are known as “victims” in the criminal justice system because they have been harmed during the commission of a crime. In laymen’s terms, “victims” refers to the many individuals who are no longer being trafficked and now identify as survivors.

Of course, a single term can never adequately reflect or encompass the humanity and resilience of each person whose life has been impacted by the (often) devastating effects of human trafficking.

Capturing an accurate global snapshot of human trafficking data is virtually impossible.

Human trafficking is now an estimated $150 billion annual industry, with 32 million individuals enslaved in labor and sex trafficking worldwide. With millions out of work due to the

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the actual revenue (in total funds) made via sex ads: ● Real Company A: 44,500 sex ads = $2.67 million ● Real Company B: 30,000 sex ads = $1.8 million ● Real Company C: 20,000 sex ads = $1.2 million ● Real Company D: 14,500 sex ads = $870,000 Unfortunately, organized retail crime is not given the priority and attention it needs, because it often lacks nexus (a connection linking two or more things) when under investigation. However, human trafficking is, in fact, the nexus between many organized criminal efforts including organized retail crime, fencing, fraud, and drug dealing.

Human traffickers create complex scams and frauds, border and security issues, drug cartels, human smuggling, and money laundering operations, in addition to supporting and financing global terrorism. If human trafficking is a nexus crime and human traffickers constantly publish targetable identifiers through their consistent need to post on the internet, then human trafficking information is one of the richest publicly available data sets for criminal network discovery. With the right protocols and investigative strategies, brands can begin to prove the connectivity of these crimes within human trafficking and ORC. Drug trafficking organizations (DTOs) that participate in human trafficking are experts in moving “goods” through channels in the criminal underground. Like global transport companies, DTOs move “products” from point A to point B. Their specialization is trafficking, not the goods they are moving. To a drug trafficker, humans are just another “product” to move from point A to point B, with some interesting traits.

We often find labor trafficking organizations turning into full-blown commercial sex operations supported by

sophisticated outcall protocols that frequently move employees through multiple locations.

This allows criminals to keep “product” fresh for customers, and to keep those who are being sexually exploited “under

Identical tattoos in similar locations may indicate “branding” by a trafficker.

While intelligence firms can help retailers win the war against ORC through training, tighter protocols, and exploiting

Unfortunately, organized retail crime is not given the priority and attention it needs, because it often lacks nexus (a connection linking two or more things) when under investigation. However, human trafficking is, in fact, the nexus between many organized criminal efforts, including ORC, fencing, fraud, and drug dealing. control.” We also see labor trafficking criminals using new and creative ways to launder money. ATMs, closed-loop retail gift cards, and cryptocurrency are some of the tactics frequently used to move and conceal funds.

The Signs of Human Trafficking Human trafficking is, without question, an expanding criminal market, with trafficking and smuggling growing more intertwined with larger-scale criminal enterprises. Early identification of the signs of human trafficking is key in helping families, law enforcement officials, and retail brands tackle this issue.

Often, victims exhibit signs of fear, anxiety, tension, submission, and/or nervousness, in addition to signs of physical abuse, restraint, and confinement. Evidence of verbal threats, emotional abuse, malnourishment, poor hygiene, fatigue, sleep deprivation, untreated illness, injuries, and/or unusual behavior are also indicators. In other cases, we see victims traveling with an individual who appears to be a significantly older “boyfriend,” “girlfriend,” or romantic partner.

If in a group, they tend to lack a cohesive social dynamic, and often dress inappropriately for their age and/or weather.

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organized crime data, there are a few things retailers can do: ● Train Your Team. Equip managers and ORC analysts with information and training to quickly spot human trafficking and transactions. ● Verify Organized Crime Activity. Run vetted criminal data against guest and transactional holdings to identify nexus points for theft and fraud analysis along with building better typologies. ● Build Cases That Win. Use intel from trained staff while working alongside law enforcement partners at Homeland Security to build a case linking retail crime to human trafficking for prosecution resulting in the return of millions.

In the end, while this is a large commercial retail issue, it is also a human one. If you observe suspected human trafficking, the details you provide in your tip to law enforcement can be crucial to locating the trafficker and victim(s). Be observant, and try to collect as much information as possible about the situation and people. Every detail you provide can help loss prevention professionals and law enforcement officials combat organized retail criminals and traffickers, making our stores and communities safer.

July–August 2021

Human trafficking is, without question, an expanding criminal market, with trafficking and smuggling growing more intertwined with larger-scale criminal enterprises.

SUPPLY CHAIN

tcly / Shutterstock.com

The global supply chain is an essential part of the retail enterprise and an important role of retail security organizations. To read more articles on supply chain, visit the magazine website losspreventionmedia.com and choose the Supply Chain category under the Topics tab.

21 Million US Jobs Depend on Imports A

Blake Harden

This study reiterates just how significant imports are in supporting millions of American jobs.

n economic impact study commissioned by nine business organizations, including the Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) and the National Retail Federation (NRF), found that imports support more than 21 million American jobs.

The study titled Imports Work for American Workers focuses on the net impact of imports on US jobs, including statistics on sectors such as retail, apparel, transportation, manufacturing, and consumer technology.

The study also looks at how imports support jobs in states across the US as well as trade policy initiatives pending before Congress and the administration with the potential to preserve or diminish import-related jobs.

“This study reiterates just how significant imports are in supporting millions of American jobs,” said Blake Harden, RILA vice president for international trade. “It’s critical for policy makers to remember what a substantial impact trade policy has on American workers. Jobs created by imports are supporting families and building communities across the US. And current destructive trade policies that place tariffs on imported products are putting these American jobs at risk. We need policy makers to prioritize smart and strategic US trade policies that celebrate

July–August 2021

the role imports play in creating good-paying American jobs and strengthening the US economy.”

Key Findings ● Imports support more than

21 million American jobs across the country, including a net positive number in every US state. The 10 states accounting for the largest number of import-related jobs are California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Virginia. ● Imports from key trading partners, including Canada, China, the European Union, and Mexico, support a net positive number of US jobs.

workers doing important non-sales jobs (46% of the total retail employment) within the retail industry. ● The vast majority (96%) of companies who import are small or medium-sized businesses. ● US trade policies, many now pending before Congress and the administration, have the potential to both support and hurt these jobs.

Survey Sponsors The American Apparel and Footwear Association, the American Chemistry Council, the Consumer Technology Association, the National Foreign Trade Council, the National Retail

Jobs created by imports are supporting families and building communities across the US. And current destructive trade policies that place tariffs on imported products are putting these American jobs at risk. ● Import-related jobs are good

jobs that pay competitive wages. Nearly 8 million of the jobs related to importing are held by minorities and 2.5 million jobs are held by workers represented by unions. ● Today’s retail value chain includes more than 7 million

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Federation, the Retail Industry Leaders Association, the US Chamber of Commerce, the US Fashion Industry Association, and the US Global Value Chain Coalition commissioned the study, which was prepared by Laura M. Baughman and Dr. Joseph F. Francois of Trade Partnership Worldwide, LLC.

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A

lt-tech social networks once catered to a niche clientele such as privacy advocates, conspiracy theorists, and fringe political groups. Now, seemingly everyone is jumping on board.

Over the past year, tens of millions of people have abandoned mainstream platforms like Facebook and Twitter. In their place, users have shifted to a growing collection of new offerings that promise less content moderation and more privacy features.

That creates new challenges for loss prevention teams. On one hand, more users have turned these alt-tech sites into an invaluable source of threat intelligence. But they can also serve as havens for nefarious groups like cyber criminals, shoplifting rings, and other bad actors.

Alt-Tech Social Networks Explained

Alt-Tech Social Networks

What Investigators and Analysts Need to Know

By Neil Spencer

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July–August 2021

Alt-tech social networks represent a collection of platforms that have positioned themselves as new offerings to more mainstream sites like Twitter and Facebook. They first emerged in the early 2010s, catering to a hodgepodge of various fringe communities. But these hubs have exploded in popularity over recent years and that has drawn more attention from security experts.

This movement is a direct response to the concentration of power among a handful of tech companies. Facebook, for instance, owns the four most downloaded apps of the past decade—Facebook, Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, and Instagram. Only a handful of other firms have a sizable chunk of active users. That gives these firms an enormous amount of sway in terms of what messages get shared and promoted online.

Thus, founders of many alt-tech websites see themselves as important counterweights to Silicon Valley’s growing control over the web.

FEATURE Alt-Tech Social Networks

The Largest Alt-Tech Social Networks

Minds Mastodon Gab 4chan 8kun Discord BitChute

Widely described as the “anti-Facebook.” A laissez-faire approach to content moderation has attracted those booted from other platforms.

A decentralized social network where no one entity owns or controls published content. Users create their own communities, called “servers,” based around a common topic of interest.

A Twitter-like social network best known for its limited content moderation and dedication to free speech. While the site welcomes all users, the bulk of its membership consists of right-wing political figures.

A popular English language imageboard. Topics discussed range from anime and travel to sports and photography. The site’s user base, however, is well known for conducting acts of internet mischief. That has earned 4chan a poor reputation in the mainstream media.

A dark web imageboard dedicated to extreme free speech.

8kun serves as a hub for fringe communities. Law enforcement has also linked the site to numerous mass shootings.

Widely described as Slack for gamers, though the site has diversified its user base in recent years. Discord’s privacy features, however, make it a popular tool for criminal groups.

The video streaming service has carved out a niche by catering to far-right and conspiracy content creators. BitChute’s most popular personalities consist mostly of groups and individuals barred from mainstream platforms.

MeWe

The platform closely matches the look and feel of Facebook. While not an explicitly conservative site, MeWe has developed a large following among right-wing groups not welcomed on other social networks.

Parler

Parler’s CEO describes it as a “community town square.” In recent years, it has emerged as the alternative for right-wing and conservative users frustrated by perceived censorship on Twitter.

Rumble

A Canada-based video streaming platform. Thanks to a hands-off approach to content moderation, the site has emerged as a popular YouTube alternative.

The rise of alternative technology also represents a reaction to the debate over what content social networks should host and promote. Big Tech companies have struggled to find a balance between embracing free speech while policing harassment and propaganda. Much of their efforts have involved deplatforming (removing someone from the network), censoring, or shadow banning problematic individuals.

But those efforts have sparked a backlash. A growing number of people accuse social media companies of politically motivated enforcement, censoring those with right-of-center or anti-corporate views. And in response, critics July–August 2021

have started migrating to alternative online spaces with fewer restrictions.

The result is a constantly shifting ecosystem of sites and apps. New platforms pop up all the time, and established communities can disappear overnight.

Who Uses Alt-Tech Social Networks The type of people that make up these online communities can vary widely. Some platforms, such as Discord, Mastodon, and Telegram, are ideologically neutral. Topics of conversation range from birdwatching and video games to television and

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sports. Limited content moderation has attracted large numbers of political extremists, organized retail crime (ORC) groups, and various fringe communities.

Other sites cater to explicitly right-wing audiences not welcomed on mainstream networks. This includes forums (8kun formally known as 8Chan), microblogging sites (Parler and Gab), and video streaming services (BitChute).

This creates a challenge for security teams. Previously, analysts only had to watch a handful of Big Tech platforms like Instagram, Reddit, or Twitter. And given these sites command the bulk of

online market share, they still represent the most important places to watch for threats.

But users continue to migrate to lesser-known corners of the web—the darknet, paste sites, and alternative social networks. And as they do, security teams could miss or overlook serious risks to their organizations.

We often describe it as an intelligence agent eavesdropping on conversations in a coffee shop. If you’re in Starbucks but all of the bad guys are meeting at Dunkin’ Donuts, you probably won’t pick up any useful information.

The riots at the US Capitol provide a good case in point. In the weeks leading up to the incident, individuals and groups published posts openly calling for violence.

But because these conversations mostly took place on alternative social networks, notably Parler, the event caught many in the intelligence community off guard.

But the same principle applies to retail loss prevention. Organized criminal groups may have once coordinated their activities on mainstream websites. But today, these groups are far more likely to use alternatives like Raddle.me or Telegram. Security teams that fail to monitor these sites could be caught off guard by a threat that they later discover was published right in plain sight.

sites. An analyst might detect a threat on a mainstream platform. Then the analyst has to follow a trail of clues through various alternative forums and communities.

It’s often only through the collection of data across multiple locations, mainstream and alternative, that security teams can develop a full picture of a threat.

provides near complete anonymity. This has turned the app into a safe place for criminals to conduct online activities, such as recruiting coconspirators or marketing illegal products and services.

Take the Russian Telegram channel Dark Job. On this forum, criminal outfits recruit staff for their operations.

Employers color code roles (white, gray, and black) depending on their difficulty or illegality. And anyone who downloads the Telegram app can advertise or apply for positions.

Insider threats represent one of the biggest concerns here. On the Dark Job channel, it’s not uncommon to find criminal groups recruiting company employees or contractors. High advertised salaries could be attractive for any disgruntled workers or employees in dire financial straits.

Tasks include leaking confidential data, selling workplace uniforms, or compromising cybersecurity measures. All of which could be useful when carrying out a robbery or other type of attack against a business.

Counterfeiting also runs rampant on Telegram. A simple search will reveal dozens of channels dedicated to selling knockoff products, including electronics, designer handbags, and high-end watches. Criminals have also impersonated the official pages of well-known brands, tricking unsuspecting customers into buying fakes.

This has obvious downsides for impersonated businesses.

They miss out on direct sales, for starters. Every dollar counterfeiters earn is a

Over the past year, tens of millions of people have abandoned mainstream platforms like Facebook and Twitter.

In their place, users have shifted to a growing collection of new offerings that promise less content moderation and more privacy features. That creates new challenges for loss prevention teams.

The Largest Alt-Tech Social Networks Analysts could also benefit from exploring alt-tech social networks during investigations.

Bad actors don’t conduct online activities in one corner of the web. Like the rest of us, they often have multiple accounts across several

The New Dark Web Telegram ranks as one of the largest and most successful sites in the alt-tech universe.

The instant messaging system, which resembles Facebook’s WhatsApp, offers one-on-one conversations and group chats. Users love the platform for its end-to-end messaging encryption and other security features. And that explains why Telegram once ranked as the communication tool of choice for dissidents in places like Iran, Russia, and Hong Kong.

Those same privacy features, however, also make Telegram the tool of choice for organized crime.

Messaging encryption

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July–August 2021

Analysts could also benefit from exploring alt-tech social networks during investigations.

Bad actors don’t conduct online activities in one corner of the web.

FEATURE Alt-Tech Social Networks

Monitoring alt-tech social networks presents a challenge. In the case of more mainstream platforms, analysts could cobble together a collection of free online tools.

Or they could piggyback off the marketing department’s social media listening software by buying an extra license.

dollar that comes out of the company’s bottom line. Even worse, counterfeit products may deteriorate quickly or fail catastrophically. But because customers may not know they’ve purchased a knockoff, they will likely still blame the supposed manufacturer.

Ultimately, that can bite into a company’s brand value.

Looking forward, some cybersecurity experts have even called Telegram the “new Dark Web.” Historically, criminal outfits and terrorist groups have exploited encrypted Tor (The Onion Router) networks to conduct their online activities.

Tor software conceals a user’s location by randomly bouncing communications through a network of relays across the globe. Accessing this corner of the internet, however, requires some technical expertise. Individual forums represent vulnerable targets to distributed denial of service attacks, which can take down sites for weeks at a time.

And high-profile takedowns of dark web marketplaces, such as AlphaBay and Hansa Market, crippled organized crime groups.

Telegram, however, doesn’t present any of these problems.

Bad actors can get started by downloading the app. If a channel gets taken down, they can set up a new group in minutes. And conducting activities on Telegram’s existing infrastructure means criminals don’t have to deal with the many security headaches encountered on the dark web. All these advantages make this app a perfect tool for running illegal businesses.

Shoplifters’ University Raddle.me ranks as another popular alt-tech social network to take off in recent years.

The community split off from Reddit after the subgroup /r/LeftWithSharpEdge repeatedly violated the July–August 2021

site’s terms of service.

Today, Raddle.me bills itself as a group of “outsiders, malcontents and wayward dreamers,” while promoting an anti-capitalist and anarchist ideology.

For visitors, Raddle.me feels like a simplified version of Reddit. Users organize content in boards around various topics, such as “books,” “AntiWar,” and

for concealing stolen goods, and which brands represent the easiest targets. It’s not uncommon to find detailed how-to guides for conducting various scams.

Understanding common phrases used by shoplifters also represents valuable threat intelligence. For instance, an analyst might learn a common nickname

A recent Raddle.me conversation discussing the theft prevention measures of a major drugstore chain.

“EatTheRich.” Members can up- and down-vote content, pushing the most popular links to the top of the site.

It’s tough to put an exact number on the size of this community. Raddle.me doesn’t cater to advertisers or run much in the way of analytic software. But judging by the rapid growth in the number of posts and sub-groups, it appears to be thriving. The site’s administrators have also launched a dark web mirror that allows members to access the community with even more anonymity.

For security analysts, keeping tabs on the site can pay dividends. On the forum /f/Illegalism, for instance, members discuss theft prevention measures at various stores, techniques

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for their company’s brand inside a Raddle.me forum.

Searching for that same keyword could reveal other theft rings on another social network.

How to Monitor Alternative Social Networks Monitoring alt-tech social networks presents a challenge. In the case of more mainstream platforms, analysts could cobble together a collection of free online tools. Or they could piggyback off the marketing department’s social media listening software by buying an extra license.

Such quick fixes, however, likely won’t carry over to the world of alt-tech. For starters, software developers tend to develop their applications

with marketers in mind. Tools tend to cover just the largest, most popular networks. Or applications may only crawl online data sources once every few hours. Those limitations may be irrelevant for sales teams and marketing managers. But they can leave analysts blind as to what’s happening in the lesser known corners of the web.

In such cases, security teams may have to resort to more manual methods.

To get started, it’s not a bad idea to set up an account on these platforms. This can give some idea as to the types of people who use them. Most sites also feature keyword search functionality, which can be used to explore these communities.

This represents a free, though perhaps cumbersome, method to conduct investigations.

For teams looking to automate this process, new software does exist. In recent years, numerous businesses have popped up to automate the collection and analysis of social media platforms.

And more firms have started catering to the needs of security professionals.

These specialized tools have several advantages.

For starters, security software providers collect data from a large number of sources, including mainstream and alternative platforms. That reduces the chance of an analyst overlooking a relevant threat. Additionally, security software solutions tend to emphasize short crawl times, refreshing data from sources on a frequent basis. That allows analysts to detect and respond

to threats as quickly as possible.

The Future of Alt-Tech (and What It Means for Security Teams) Historically, deplatforming, network effects, and limited funding have crippled the viability of alternative social networks. But that has started to change.

Online startups have long struggled to keep internet power brokers, like Apple, Google, and Facebook, happy. This gets even tougher for sites with a laissez-faire approach to

of the problems facing these sites. Following the January riots at the US Capitol, Apple and Amazon cut ties to the service. That resulted in Parler going off-line for several weeks.

But even politically neutral sites struggle with the very real economics of running a social network. People want to be on the biggest platforms where their friends hang out. Content creators want to reach the most users. Advertisers want to reach the most eyeballs. For those reasons, it’s tough for upstarts to swipe market share from the incumbent players.

That said, leading figures in the alt-tech movement have started to tackle these issues. Entrepreneurs have launched rivals to mainstream Silicon Valley companies for all sorts of internet services, from site hosting to search engines. Combined with the rapid adoption of bitcoins and other cryptocurrencies, these platforms can ensure they’re never cut off from payment services. And this means critics of the alt-tech movement will have a much harder time deplatforming sites going forward.

One good case in point is the self-described “free speech” app Gab. After hosting posts linked to the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, synagogue shooting in 2018, GoDaddy and PayPal cut ties to the social network. That effectively forced Gab offline.

Since then, CEO Andrew Torba has worked to separate his platform from the Silicon Valley Big Tech ecosystem.

This includes hosting the site on internal servers rather than relying on third parties

Organized criminal groups may have once coordinated their activities on mainstream websites.

But today, these groups are far more likely to use alternatives like Raddle.me or Telegram. Security teams that fail to monitor these sites could be caught off guard by a threat that they later discover was published right in plain sight. content moderation or that cater to fringe communities.

On many occasions, once popular services, such as Voat, Hatreon, and 8kun, all went dark after payment processors and hosting providers suspended services. After all, most business partners want to avoid attaching their brands to any type of political controversy.

Parler, a Twitter-like social network popular among supporters of former president Donald Trump, presents a recent example

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Historically, deplatforming, network effects, and limited funding have crippled the viability of alternative social networks. But that has started to change.

FEATURE Alt-Tech Social Networks

A screenshot of Gab’s home page

as well as accepting bitcoins as payment.

Gab even went so far as launching its own web browser called “Dissenter.” The program blocks ads and trackers, protecting the privacy of users from advertisers.

Additionally, Dissenter creates a comment section for every URL online. Here, individuals can discuss the contents of a site with other Dissenter users. This amounts to a secret comment section for every web page, completely invisible to users on other browsers.

These efforts mean alternative social networks are becoming less vulnerable to the whims of internet gatekeepers. And near term, critics of a particular site’s ideology will have a tougher time shutting down its services.

Moreover, growing concerns over internet privacy benefit alt-tech sites. Scandals over the treatment of personal data have repeatedly plagued mainstream platforms.

Users have also grown more skeptical of corporations auctioning off their private information to the highest

bidder. All of which bodes well for upstarts.

Take Mastodon, for instance.

In 2016, German founder Eugen Rochko launched the

change the terms of service for its popular instant messaging application WhatsApp. Critics, however, charged that the changes would compromise user privacy. So over the following month, rival Telegram topped 63.5 million downloads, up 283 percent from the same period in 2020.

Longer term, it’s not hard to picture two separate internets running alongside one another.

It’s no secret America faces a crisis of political segregation.

People increasingly don’t marry, work with, or live alongside others who think differently from themselves.

Now that’s starting to show up in the world of social media, too. As a result, we have started to see the emergence of one set of social networks for people with liberal leanings.

And then we have another set of social networks for those with conservative views.

That presents a headache for security professionals. As alternative platforms beef up their infrastructure, they will keep growing their user base. That means these sites will become an even more valuable source of intelligence. And managers or executives who overlook this trend could be kicking themselves later.

Growing concerns over internet privacy benefit alt-tech sites.

Scandals over the treatment of personal data have repeatedly plagued mainstream platforms.

Users have also grown more skeptical of corporations auctioning off their private information to the highest bidder. All of which bodes well for upstarts.

As alternative platforms beef up their infrastructure, they will keep growing their user base. That means these sites will become an even more valuable source of intelligence.

July–August 2021

microblogging social network as a response to some of the harassment and censorship problems he saw on Twitter.

The service saw a surge of new users in 2018 following privacy concerns raised by the #deletefacebook movement.

Today, Mastodon claims to have over two million active users.

Telegram has also benefited from this exodus. In January, Facebook announced it would

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NEIL SPENCER is a market strategist for LifeRaft Inc. He has more than twenty years of security industry experience advising corporate and government clients.

His research focuses extensively on the role open online data sources can play in helping businesses safeguard their customers, employees, and facilities. You can read more of Spencer’s insights on the LifeRaft blog at liferaftinc.com/resources.

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Garett Seivold Garett Seivold is senior writer for LPM. A trained journalist, he has spent the majority of his career writing about security, risk management, supply chain, and loss prevention topics. He can be reached at GarettS@LPportal.com.

How Internet of Things Security Is Impacting Retailers I

Itzik Feiglevitch

nternet of Things (IoT) security is a growing concern for retailers. “IoT is one of the biggest trends in the market today,” said Itzik Feiglevitch, product manager for Check Point Software Technologies, at the RSA Conference in May 2021. Huge numbers of devices are expected to be added in the coming years to company networks.

And while Feiglevitch said they’re great—they increase operational efficiency and move companies into the digital world—a retailer also needs to take into consideration that “all of those IoT devices are now part of our networks, and they bring with them lots of security risks.”

According to Check Point’s research, a typical enterprise of 5,000 employees could have as many as 20,000 IoT devices.

“I know it seems like a huge number, but think of all the IP TVs, printers, surveillance cameras, or the sensors inside the buildings, the smart elevators, smart lighting—everything is connected to the enterprise network.”

digital signage; for insight into customer preferences and behavior; and for loyalty and promotion—using sensors to identify the time and place of the customer to better target assistance or incentives.

Connected sensors are being used for managing energy and detecting equipment problems, especially in grocery, and in warehouses and stores to optimize supply and fulfillment, as with RFID and smart shelves.

The global Internet of Things in retail was valued at $31.99 billion in 2020 and is expected to expand at a compound annual growth rate of 26 percent from 2021 to 2028, according to market analysis

by Grand View Research. “IoT is expected to revamp the retail industry, transforming traditional brick and mortar shops into advanced digital stores,” according to the report.

The surge in the number of interconnected devices in retail outlets and the decreasing prices of IoT sensors are expected to propel the growth.

“Retailers’ commitment to IoT innovation is contributing to the growth of connected devices, including both RFID tags and beacons … and the proliferation of smartphones and the use of mobile applications are driving the retail software segment growth.”

Problematically, many IoT devices are unmanaged. “They are connected to our network, but we don’t have any way to control those devices, to view them, and define what those devices can and cannot do inside our network,” said Feiglevitch. “If we go and search for those devices inside our Continued on page 62

IoT in the Retail Sector

Software

Market Size by Solution, 2017–2028 (USD Billion)

Hardware

IoT Uses in Retail IoT sensors are increasingly being used in retail to enhance the customer experience, such as with smart mirrors and July–August 2021

2017

2018

2019

2020

2021

2022

Source: Grand View Research

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CYBERSECURITY Continued from page 60

Justin Sowder

security management system, we will not find those devices.”

Most company-connected IoT devices are, in turn, connected to the wider internet—to allow vendors to deliver updates, for example.

Attackers, using standard scanning tools, can find those devices. “They know what to look for,” said Feiglevitch, noting that there are even search tools to help them—“a Google for IoT hackers,” he said. A casual “Shodan” search will turn up nearly 300,000 surveillance cameras connected to the internet.

Once found, connecting to those devices, and hacking into them, tends to be “quite easy,” Feiglevitch warned.

They often have no built-in Internet of Things security, run on legacy operating systems, have weak default passwords, and are difficult to patch. “Many don’t have basic security capabilities,” he said.

“When many of those devices were developed, no one thought about that.”

By accessing a device, hackers can manipulate it—to view a camera, for example—or use it, for crypto mining or as a bot for a botnet attack. It also can provide hackers a backdoor into the network because of an insecure connection.

“Users may not have the right knowledge about how to connect those devices,” said Feiglevitch. “They’re using the wrong protocols and insecure applications, so through those devices, hackers can get into the network.”

In exploitation tests, researchers have found it possible to create untold havoc, from taking over entire smart building systems to tricking medical devices to deliver incorrect doses of medicine.

And while vendors typically issue patches, Feiglevitch says those often don’t get implemented. Legacy, insecure

July–August 2021

devices are ubiquitous, he warned.

Getting a Handle on Internet of Things Security There are four pillars to address the risks that IoT devices pose to an organization’s network, according to Justin Sowder, a security architect for Check Point. ● IoT discovery and risk analysis. “Finding out what devices are out there, how much shadow IT is happening, and mapping out what we don’t know, is the first part—and getting as close as we can to an accurate representation of what’s in our environment.” ● Zero-trust segmentation.

“Moving into some sort of zero-trust model where we are isolating devices from the rest of our network and from each other,” said Sowder. ● Internet of Things security threat prevention.

“Aside from basic firewall prevention, we want to look at what we can do from a threat prevention side,” said Sowder.

“Organizations need to examine how they can keep the devices functioning in their designed roles while preventing traffic to things like command-and-control servers,” he added. ● Detection and response.

“Now that I know what my devices are, now that I have visibility into them, how do I detect those incidents, respond to them, and get the right people involved to take the right action with respect to those?”

In terms of solution design, Sowder advised that it should consist of three things, an IoT discovery engine, a solution that extracts information and ties it to security protocols, and a security gateway that enforces the security policies.

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“This flow should be completely automated: from a new device being connected or an existing device being discovered, to this Internet of Things security management that will extrapolate relevant data and tags to your security policies, and then down to an enforcement point,” he said. “It should be invisible to users, but discovery, protection, and enforcement in the security realm should nonetheless be happening,” he said.

An automated solution is preferable, he believes, to a slower, more heavy-handed cybersecurity approach in which all new devices are assigned a ticket and vetted and managed.

“That only encourages shadow IT,” he warned.

The need for retailers to have a robust process for gaining control over IoT devices is only growing, as IoT devices proliferate and there is increasing reliance on field devices that communicate back to network data centers.

That the infrastructure used to enable IoT devices is beyond the control of both the user and the IT department underscores that risk.

What’s Complicating Efforts to Gain Control?

Research indicates that some organizations fail to define exactly who are the leaders in charge of assessing and mitigating risk. Experts suggest that retail organizations may want to consider appointing a chief IoT officer since many projects lie outside of the domain of a CIO and IT department.

“IoT isn’t an IT project. It’s a business project that uses IT,” noted one panelist at an IoT session at a LiveWorx tech conference. Another agreed, saying that IT security professionals should be prepared to share Internet of Things security responsibility with other divisions across the enterprise, including physical security teams.

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ADT Commercial Innovative Anti-Theft Technologies Prevent Theft and Save Money A

s the pandemic continues to shift the industry landscape, many retailers are turning to innovative technologies like smarter electronic article surveillance (EAS) systems and elevated services to ensure every tool in their anti-theft arsenal is effective, affordable, and trouble-free.

Working with an experienced retail security partner is the first step in identifying the right EAS products and services for your retail space.

provide theft protection for small or difficult-to-tag items, like health and beauty products, sunglasses, delicate clothing, fragrances, and sporting goods.

Remote Tuning To be an effective deterrent against shoplifting, an EAS system has to work properly. If an issue with the system arises, seamless correction is a must.

More retailers are relying on Wi-Fi remote tuning for EAS systems as an innovative and cost-effective way to reduce on-site service visits. When you place a service call, the technician can remotely log in to your system to diagnose and, in most cases, reconfigure your system so it performs at its peak.

Concealed Pedestal Systems

The Right Tag EAS hard tags come in various shapes, sizes, and purposes, such as those developed for clothing, shoes, handbags, and sunglasses; others that fit atop liquor bottles; and benefit denial devices, like ink tags that damage or destroy an item if forcibly removed. Some of the newest EAS tags target high-value and high-theft merchandise, like electronics.

Advanced EAS Security Tags— Advanced EAS security tags for boxed goods allow retailers to stack multiple boxes on the shelf without obscuring the boxes’ message and branding. An adhesive-backed holder is attached to the item, arming the EAS box with the flip of a switch after it slides into the carrier. Once applied and armed, the tag detects illicit tampering or removal and will self-alarm if detached or if it passes through the store’s EAS detection pedestals before removal.

Self-Alarming EAS Tags—Self-alarming tags using infrared (IR) technology can

Consumers returning to brick-andmortar locations say they want retail experiences that provide a sense of safety and comfort that does not feel intrusive. For luxury brands, aesthetics and lifestyle continue to be highly valued among shoppers who want to indulge in experiences that instill feelings of happiness, familiarity, and openness.

Several high-end retailers are implementing concealed EAS systems that are less prominent at store entrances without sacrificing security.

Luxurious, wide entrances enhance a retailer’s exterior display area and are more welcoming to customers, while offering robust anti-theft technology and reduced nuisance alarms. The more advanced concealed EAS systems work with smaller, unobtrusive EAS tags often preferred by high-fashion retailers.

of items. After installing a system, retailers report a 60- to 80-percent reduction in theft.1 If properly maintained, systems typically last ten to fifteen years with minimal downtime, and some systems can last more than fifteen years.

Any cost-benefit comparison must take into account the cost of stock losses due to theft weighed against the initial and ongoing expenditures of a system.

For many store owners, the investment in operating and maintaining an EAS system is far less expensive than the ongoing cost of theft that can have wide-ranging impacts on the business. Not only does theft account for lost sales but it can also erode customer loyalty by causing legitimate customers to go elsewhere for better product selection because stolen products are no longer on store shelves.

As a result, EAS systems guarantee that companies’ products will be effectively protected against threats of theft that may pose a risk to their retail spaces.

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Cost Versus Savings EAS systems have earned a solid reputation for simplicity and effectiveness to protect against theft

1 Schulz, David P. “High-Tech Electronic Article Surveillance Tags Preclude Theft.” NRF, 1 Dec. 2016, nrf.com/blog/high-tech-electronic-article-surveillance-tags-preclude-theft.

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CIS Security Solutions The Evolution of Alarm Tethers I

t started in 2012 with a conversation about a simple recoiler or “pullbox” to secure handbags to fixtures, attached with a brass padlock.

The senior vice president of loss prevention for a major specialty retailer asked Peter Morello, president of CIS Security Solutions, “What good does it do me if they can just cut the cord and steal the handbag?”

Thinking, Morello said, “What if we can make it alarm?” Morello had already invented the Annunciator to protect cash drawers, multicolored validation ribbons, and Scratch and Secure Ink to protect receipts. From that conversation, the first alarming recoiling tether was born.

Solving Retailers’ Needs 2013—Gen2, the first alarming recoiling tether. It would alarm if the cable was cut. Items were still secured with a small brass padlock.

2015—Redesigned, the streamlined Gen3 “Mousetrap” alarming tether was created with a special magnetic lock. The “Mousetrap” was a huge success because it was smaller and needed to be deactivated with an IR remote.

2016—Morello asked the new senior VP of that same specialty retailer from 2012, how things were going with the new Gen3 tether. The VP said, “They are killing me. People are using their own magnets to take the handbags.” Morello said, “Let me work on that.” That’s when the Gen4 was introduced. CIS added a smart lock that could communicate with the PCB, causing it to alarm if the lock was released with an unauthorized detacher. To go with this new feature, CIS created the all-in-one handheld decoder with IR control and included magnet. Gen4 was made with a replaceable battery, but it involved

seven screws, which meant labor cost, so the company created an exchange program and replaced the batteries themselves, as a “go green” initiative.

2017—The director of security for a major designer brand asked CIS to make Gen4 stronger because of an increase in grab-and-run thefts.

CIS redesigned the tether again to increase the pull strength to 120 pounds.

2018—The new Gen5 was launched with the new pull strength and now with both separate alarm top and tether base that allowed for sustainability through replaceable components and batteries. You only have to replace the alarm top or the tether base if damaged, or change the battery with just one screw, saving millions in replacing devices and labor costs for retailers and helping reduce impact on landfills.

2019—Worldwide civil unrest and economic insecurity led to more theft.

Retailers were searching for a way to increase security for their high-end products, and searching for a way to keep the brazen flash mobs from stripping their stores. Some called on CIS to create a solution.

2020—This year saw the COVID-19 pandemic began as well as civil unrest, which brought with it personal protective equipment, higher shoplifting thresholds, protests, riots, looting, and store closures. With the helpful feedback from CIS' clients, Gen6 was created to deter and slow down the thieves. Gen6 has a bigger recoiler with a 49-strand flexible cable and a thick poly sleeve, making it hard to cut and visually deterring.

It had all the benefits of the Gen5’s sustainability and ease of use but made it harder to steal items. Gen6 was created from necessity.

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2021—Gen6 has Smart offshoots: Smart Padlock and Smart Release.

These ends allow retailers to deactivate and release the merchandise with one push of a button on the decoder. These components are innovative, time saving, labor saving, money saving, and sustainable.

What Are Your Needs?

CIS listens and understands clients’ needs for labor savings, ease of use, return on investment, sustainability, training, customer service, and, most of all, stronger security measures. CIS products coevolve with those needs.

As always, CIS is here when you need them. Email info@cisssinc.com or call 772-287-7999.

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DefenseLite Eliminate the Weakest Link in Your Retail Security Strategy M

any customers prefer a fully transparent, see-through solution that looks cleaner and more aesthetically pleasing to a building’s glass windows and doors. Unfortunately, this can result in security concerns for business owners, particularly in a world with social and civil unrest that occasionally leads to riots and looting, not to mention the crime resulting from the ongoing pandemic and high unemployment.

In the retail world, glazed windows and doors are the weakest link for preventing break-ins and smash-and-grab crimes.

There are numerous solutions, but only one provides the same level of security as unsightly roll-down grills and grates while remaining invisible to the eye and not alarming customers or employees.

That solution is DefenseLite®, a clear polycarbonate retrofit security shield system that installs over existing window and door glass, creating protection to keep the bad guys out. Not only does it provide security, but it also reduces street noise and adds a layer of thermal insulation to your glazing.

Every DefenseLite system is custom designed with two core constituencies in mind—the facilities manager and the loss prevention professional. No facilities manager wants property blighted by an unsightly, obtrusive security system, and no LP professional wants a subpar security system. This is one reason DefenseLite is an ideal solution.

DefenseLite shields are nearly invisible once installed thanks to a retrofit custom aluminum extrusion, but they also provide top-of-the-line defense against intruders and flying objects thanks to the proprietary, clear polycarbonate that is 250 times stronger than glass. It combines the best of both worlds, keeping the architect and the LP professional happy.

This comes down to a marriage of the right material to create a stronger and

more durable security shield than competitors. Each of DefenseLite’s robust American-made components contributes to its strength and low-profile appearance: ● T-21 thick-walled aluminum extrusions that allow this system to be retrofitted, creating a buffer zone to protect the existing glass. ● Heavy-gauge, UV-coated, and abrasion-resistant polycarbonate shields that keep intruders, noise, and dangerous weather out. ● High-bond elastomeric VHB tapes and stainless steel “flex” security anchors utilized to ensure that once installed, the DefenseLite system is weather sealed and is not going anywhere. ● BulletShield™ is the UL 752 rated bullet-resistant version of DefenseLite.

Furthermore, DefenseLite exceeds typical testing standards. While DefenseLite and BulletShield systems are tested at respected third-party testing facilities, each product is also

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rigorously tested internally to ensure it meets industry standards for forced entry and ballistic mitigation.

In the world of loss prevention, there is no single solution that will address every concern and weakness. However, DefenseLite and BulletShield are more than up to the job of preventing break-ins and smash-and-grabs while remaining virtually invisible to the eye and maintaining a comfortable environment for team members and customers. It’s a solution that cuts down on loss of inventory and eliminates the need to replace existing glass that would be shattered in a break-in. No specialty glass is needed, just an application of DefenseLite mounted onto an existing glazing system.

To learn more about DefenseLite and BulletShield, visit www.defenselite.com or email info@defenselite.com.

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Hanwha Techwin America Putting a Face to ORC

By Jordan Rivchun, Leader, Retail and Banking Solutions and Strategy, North America, Hanwha Techwin America

I

n the loss prevention world, there are many challenges, but perhaps none is bigger than organized retail crime (ORC) rings that target retail environments with Jordan Rivchun repeated, concentrated assaults. For these professional thieves, also known as “boosters,” this is not a crime of opportunity, it’s their day job. After they hit a store, they’ll move onto another one, perhaps in another city, in an endless cycle. They are relentless, costing retailers tens of billions of dollars per year.

Because these thieves know what they are doing, they evade video surveillance cameras by never looking up and they almost always wear hats to mask their faces from conventional ceiling or wall-mounted cameras. Often, they go into a store to discover where cameras and merchandise are located before they act. After the event, loss prevention professionals may have little to offer the police if they can’t present a clear face from a security system. It’s frustrating, but it’s a scenario that plays out every day in stores all over the world.

Fortunately, there’s a secret weapon that can change the game: the door jamb or mullion camera.

cameras, and they’re facing into the store, thieves never think twice while looking directly at them. It’s the LP professional’s ultimate weapon.

“If I had a choice of having only one camera in a retail store, I would choose a door jamb camera every single time,” said Norm Smaligo, president of the Oklahoma Organized Retail Crime Association. “They deliver a face shot every time.”

Beyond retail theft, these same cameras can be invaluable for other scenarios, such as child endangerment or missing children. Because of the unique perspective they provide,

“When it comes to ORC, we usually see many of the same people involved. Traditional security cameras frequently miss the face, which is the single most important piece of evidence we need. The Hanwha door jamb cameras are what delivers that all-important face shot that can lead to a conviction.”

– Norm Smaligo, Oklahoma Organized Retail Crime Association

Door Jamb and Mullion Cameras to the Rescue These small, unique cameras can be placed at eye level in the sides of a door frame (side jambs) or in the vertical casing that separates a door frame from other glass panels (mullions). Just because they’re small doesn’t mean they’re incapable of delivering crisp, clear, HD-quality video images. Mounted at the door, they can capture perfect face shots as criminals leave the building.

Even if someone is wearing a hat with the brim positioned very low, that person still needs to look up to find the door, and that’s when these cameras deliver time after time. Because they don’t look like

and the remotely mounted camera main module that holds the electronics.

The SLA-T4680VA 4.6mm pinhole 2MP lens module offers a 73-degree field of view and can pair with a single XNB-6001 2MP Covert Main Camera Module.

displaying the customer point of view upon entering a store, they are also used daily to “see what the shopper sees.”

Are the displays set up correctly? Is the store clean, and will it make a positive first impression? For these reasons and so many more, door jamb and mullion cameras are more popular than ever.

When multiple areas are to be covered, a four-channel 2MP PNM-9000QB Remote Head Camera Main module supports four covert cameras simultaneously and uses only one license in a VMS (video management system).

The PNM-9000QB includes Hanwha’s flagship Wisenet 7 SoC (system on chip) supporting full HD, 30 frames-per-second (fps) video with H.265/H.264 and WiseStream II compression technology.

It features Hanwha’s extreme WDR (wide dynamic range) for excellent performance in varying light and a full complement of video analytics and sound detection.

For more information, visit the Hanwha Techwin America website.

Hanwha Techwin Solutions There are two parts to a high-quality door jamb or mullion cameras system—the tiny lens module that fits in the door frame

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ww2.hanwhasecurity.com/markets/retail

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Knightscope Security Robots Protecting the Places We Live, Study, Visit, and Work

K

nightscope offers Autonomous Security Robots (ASRs) that provide next-level surveillance capabilities that deter, detect, and report unwanted behavior and criminal activity. This can be a daunting task for those attempting to identify the best use cases in their own security programs. Fortunately, we’ve operated well over 1 million hours in the field and hold contracts across six US time zones, affording us plenty of experience and lessons learned that we would love to share with you as your trusted advisor.

Here are the top seven use cases our clients have identified to help you to begin envisioning how this technology will work for you.

Deter substance abuse, vehicle break-ins, trespassing/loitering, vagrancy, vandalism, theft, and assaults. ● Deploy a 24/7 consistent patrolling presence with a robot exhibiting a commanding presence, distinctive LEDs, and clear security markings. ● Automated broadcast announcements, patrol sounds, and a bright flashing strobe light with appropriate signage throughout will make the presence of the robot known to everyone around.

● The

proven efficacy of the robots has reduced crime reports in areas by nearly 50 percent and minimized citations by as much as 70 percent, saving police time and eliminating distractions that keep them from more important tasks.

Knightsdcope Credited for for Reducting Crime Knightscope Credited Reducing Crime Jun-Dec 2018 (No K5) to Jun-Dec 2019 (One K5 Robot)

Calls for Service

277

10%

Arrests

249

Crime Reports

48

46%

26

11

120

27%

14

Citations

68%

Source: City of Huntington Park Police Department Los Angeles County, California

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Set “Be On The Lookout” (BOLO) alerts to help with early detection of potential workplace violence, banned individuals, and stolen or abandoned vehicles. ● Automated alerts for people and/or vehicles can be set with persons of interest and known persons list upload capability. ● Facial recognition, people detection, license plate recognition, thermal imaging, and/or signal detection capabilities can identify specific

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individuals of interest or anyone in an unauthorized area. ● Alerts are generated as a notification in the user interface or via email, text, or phone call to the appropriate persons.

Provide a highly visible, force multiplying effect as an extension of an existing security program. ● On the ground monitoring and eye-level 360-degree

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eyes, ears, and voice offer an exceptional vantage point for collecting important identifying information. ● The KSOC user interface enables a security team to simultaneously monitor multiple locations providing a force multiplier effect. ● Remote management of patrol schedules, audible alarms, and a two-way intercom allows authorized users control of the robots from anywhere in the country.

Secure a location on a limited budget. ● Knightscope technology is offered at a very cost effective $3 to $9 per hour, which compares favorably to traditional solutions. ● As a subscription service, we take care of everything so you can focus on your operations and have confidence in your budgeting with all support, maintenance, and repairs included in the contract price.

● Knightscope’s

subscription service is now also available for half-day duty in lieu of 24/7 coverage.

● Robots

can cover large patrol areas that may otherwise be neglected by traditional patrol services.

Sometimes it makes sense to use a robot instead of a guard. ● Consistent, reliable coverage that is immune to labor issues and turnover is desirable. ● Robots can be placed in posts that are particularly dangerous or involve a high threat-level to keep humans safer. ● The effective use of technology has a positive impact when budgets are limited.

Adding a supplemental or full-time monitoring service reduces risk. ● Not everyone has a fully staffed Security Operations Center (SOC) that operates 24/7. ● With Knightscope+, former military and law enforcement professionals will remotely monitor your location, actively provide risk assessments, perform audio deterrence, and escalate incidents when appropriate.

Deliver state-of-the-art protection for an entire facility (the works). ● Consider a K1 Stationary ASR for all ingress/egress locations for humans and vehicles. ● Multiple K3 Indoor ASRs to monitor locations within your facility. ● Multiple K5 Outdoor ASRs for your parking lot, campus, parking structure, and remote areas. ● Upgrade to include Knightscope+ active monitoring. ● Be sure to ask to equip your team with the KSOC mobile app in addition to the desktop version.

If your people, team, staff, faculty, patrons, students, tenants—and in general all humans—are the lifeblood of your organization, then they deserve only the latest and greatest in security. Knightscope has a proven track record of success in reducing or eliminating crime.

See a sampling of our successes at knightscope.com/crime.

No two deployments are alike, and we’d be happy to explore your specific needs and share more detailed information in a private demonstration with you. Request one now with one of our experienced professionals at knightscope.com/demo. or by calling 650-679-7626.

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Medeco The Investment in Your Security Is Only as Good as the Security of Your Keys R

etail management grows more complex every day. From pressure for sales and profit growth, to customer satisfaction, supply line management, personnel and environmental safety requirements and security concerns, and operations, loss prevention managers have never before had such a range of responsibilities. Unfortunately, success in one area is often achieved at the expense of another.

This is most obvious in many of the measures impacted by the vigorous and appropriate push to control retail shrink. Overzealous attempts to secure merchandise make it more difficult for associates to access the same,

ultimately resulting in a negative impact on customer satisfaction and sales.

Not enough control ultimately leads to increased shrink that is typically driven by internal theft—a result of every associate having improper access to valuable merchandise. All of this is fueled by the dizzying pace of associate turnover.

Key control and management are an often overlooked but integral part of any security system or policy. Ultimately, an investment in a security program is only as good as the security of the keys or credentials used in the system.

Even at sites where doors are controlled by electronic access control systems, such as push-button or

keypad locks, and employee badges or card readers, keys are still required for many other openings, such as storage units, inventory control cages, showcases, cabinets, and equipment.

Improve Security and Increase Efficiency What happens when one of those keys goes missing? How do you know who used the key last and never returned it? How much personnel time is spent tracking down keys or searching for a supervisor to gain access to a key, or distributing keys?What if you could improve operational efficiency daily by keeping keys in one secure location that only authorized individuals can access, and that do not require an administrator?

What if you had instant notification and visibility of who accessed which keys and when, and whether or not they were returned?

The Medeco IKC—Intelligent Key Cabinet—is a key management system ideal for keys and other assets that require a high level of security and accountability. A complete storage and control solution, the IKC is an electronically controlled steel cabinet that restricts access to keys, and can only be opened by authorized personnel using PIN, biometric fingerprint, or Prox Card authentication (optional). The IKC electronically keeps a record of key removals and returns—by whom and when. Exclusive iFob technology allows storage of all types of keys.

Visibility and Accountability The Intelligent Key Cabinet provides complete operational intelligence on July–August 2021

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key access and usage. Consider the following benefits: ● Accountability. Complete audit trail and reporting by users and key activities ensure user accountability and reduces lost keys. Fewer lost keys lead to lower expenses and improved security. ● Analytics. Complete reporting suite provides multiple reporting options creating real-time data. Reports can be automatically generated and sent to multiple users by email or SMS text.

Custom reports can be configured and exported to Microsoft Excel for added convenience. ● Security. Only authorized users can access the electronic key management system. Customizable user access groups allow for tighter control of higher security keys.

Biometric fingerprints, PINs, and/or Prox Card authentication allow access for added security and control. The IKC supports dual authentication, if desired. For added security, IKC captures a digital photo upon each user log in. ● Convenience. Allows employees to retrieve keys without waiting for a manager to provide access. Quick, easy-to-use software shows which keys are being used, and to whom they are issued. Flashing LEDs indicate which keys have been checked out.

The IKC system allows the return of any key to any location in the cabinet, and then learns the key’s new location. ● Built-in LCD screen for ID input ● Productivity. No more searching for or ● Supports two-factor authentication replacing lost keys—always know who ● Audible and visual alarms took which key, when. ● SMS alert messages ● Efficiency. The IKC improves ● Email alert messages employee and management efficiency ● Camera for security photo capture while increasing accountability, which ● Comprehensive reporting translates into a more secure facility and analytics with lower operating costs. ● Emergency fob release system The IKC offers multiple features to ● Multisystem networking meet any need: ● Medeco high-security mechanical lock for manual override ● Available in thirty-two and sixty-four port sizes ● Optional smart card reader and stand ● Add-on cabinets allow capacity to grow with your business needs The Intelligent Key cabinet is an integral part of any key control and loss ● Fingerprint reader LPM

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prevention program. More than just a way to store keys, IKC is a business tool that can lead to a substantial return on investment in increased security and productivity.

Visit medeco.com/ikc to learn more and watch a video overview of the powerful security behind the IKC.

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Protos Security Protos’ Vendor Management Strategy Due Diligence, Maintaining Consistency, and Network Expansion

P

rotos Security reshaped the industry with a unique approach of matching the best vendors for our clients’ needs through our managed service model. To ensure our vendors are held accountable and providing consistent, excellent guarding service, our cloud-based software tool unifies service levels by accurately monitoring performance in real time and ensuring our clients are billed for actual hours worked. Our extensive vetting processes and internal management procedures make our program oversight stronger than any other in the industry.

To ensure that we truly can serve our clients with the best fit, Protos has the largest nationwide security network. Currently, our vendor network comprises over 4,000 regionally based providers—and that number is growing. Protos’ diverse vendor network allows us to provide the right solution provider to handle various requests.

Commonly Asked Questions I’ve used companies that subcontract before. What makes Protos different?

Our vendors are regional service providers, typically founded by former police or military. As entrepreneurs, they thrive on operating successful businesses and have vast experience with security leadership. Like Protos, they have a vested interest in making sure clients are not only happy but being heard and understood.

Unlike Protos, though, many small guarding companies do not have the administrative overhead to

effectively track time/attendance and incident reporting.

This is where Protos Security's comprehensive cloud-based platform elevates their service, with features such as electronic work orders, timekeeping, and incident reporting. With all vendors using our platform, we can monitor every post in real time and accurately compile performance data. This provides the best possible combination of local entrepreneurship, backed by Protos’ focus on creating the best technology solution.

Are there advantages to using a managed service model for security guarding services?

Yes. We match the best security vendor to the client’s needs. We also

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don’t need to establish a new local presence or hire more officers to expand service, so we can staff posts faster than our competitors. Backed by our industry-leading technology, clients receive a standardized program with full transparency, realtime updates, improved visibility, and to-the-minute billing. These factors, along with our client-centric service first culture, places us above our competition in meeting—and often exceeding—client needs.

As a third-party provider, how can you outshine my in-house team?

Since 2006, we have been building our technology platform to make security management as efficient as possible while cultivating a company based on service excellence. We

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have sought out vendors that repeatedly perform at high-quality service levels and rewarded them with more opportunities for work whenever possible.

If the officers aren’t your employees, how do you effectively manage them?

Our software provides incentives for quality work at the officer and vendor levels. One example is the way we track time, including clocking in/out and arriving as scheduled. Officers are incentivized to arrive on time because our technology ensures that they only clock in when they are close to the client site, and their pay is based on this. Unlike many of our competitors, we bill for the actual minutes worked instead of projections. Our vendors are incentivized to ensure their officers are providing the best possible service because they know that we have a large network and could replace them if needed. We believe punctuality is proportional to quality, and a vendor with a good management structure will be shown to have a high success rate in ensuring officers arrive on time, among other key metrics tracked.

How do you ensure consistent service across so many vendors?

Protos employs quality assurance (QA) specialists to perform location checks every fourteen days to ensure proper service is provided. The results of these QA calls are then passed on to our vendors and client account managers for discussion, as necessary.

This constant feedback is part of the ongoing evaluation of our security vendors, and it's why high-quality guarding companies work hard to remain a valuable vendor with Protos.

What are the requirements to become a Protos security vendor?

Protos Security has strict standards for vendors. At minimum, our vendors must be licensed guarding companies (if

operating in a state that regulates guarding companies), perform preemployment drug screenings and background checks, have a program for ongoing random drug testing, and not subcontract security personnel from another company.

The Protos Security Vendor Vetting Process Application. Potential vendors complete a detailed form on the Protos website that includes a company profile, coverage areas, and points of communication. They also must submit documentation, including state licenses (if applicable), a certificate of insurance (COI), and W-9 information.

Initial Vetting. This includes verifying all documentation, checking references, and conducting online searches for bad press or other red flags.

Continual Vetting. The vetting process is ongoing for continuous performance improvement.

Bimonthly KPI Trend Report— Through our KPI data, our compliance team can determine trends and areas of improvement for each security vendor and discuss any concerns monthly. As a result, our vendors always have a clear understanding of their performance levels and service quality trends.

Client Account Managers—The status of every Protos post is tracked in real time by our dispatch team. Each week, client account managers and vendors receive automated reports containing tardy alerts, early clock outs, and the number of incident reports.

These ensure that everyone is aware of problems and provides the client account managers with the information they need to resolve issues.

Annual Review—Online searches can yield valuable information on a company or its owners. Our system reminds us to perform searches on Google and social media annually. We look for red flags

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about the company as well as its principal leaders.

Removing Your Administrative Burden Certificate of Insurance Record-Keeping. Protos tracks the expiration dates of COIs for all vendors. Expiration reminders are automatically generated twice a week starting thirty days prior to expiration. If the vendor does not forward a replacement COI, our system alerts us, and we reach out to the vendor for an update.

State License Information. In the US, forty-three states require guarding companies to be licensed.

As the company of record, we are required to have their license information on file. Our system will alert us to the upcoming license expirations which, in turn, leads us to work closely with our vendors to ensure their licenses are renewed.

Limiting Your Risk. Because Protos enforces license and insurance, and performs regular quality assurance tests, we can ensure that the quality of security coverage for your business is top-notch, thereby limiting your risk in hiring new providers.

About Protos Security Protos Security is a technology enabled security services company offering security guarding, monitoring, and device solutions for a wide spectrum of customers across North America. Protos prides itself on delivering high-touch service, actionable insights, transparency, and program flexibility for its clients. For more information, visit protossecurity.com.

Aleksandra Bataeva/ ShutterStock.com

PEOPLE ON THE MOVE To stay up-to-date on the latest career moves as they happen, visit the Professional Development page on the LPM website LossPreventionMedia.com.

To inform us of a promotion or new hire, email us at peopleonthemove@LPportal.com.

Eric Pidgeon, LPC, CFI is now director of EHS & security at 1-800-FLOWERS.COM. Steve Sell is now VP of retail sales at 3SI.

Pat White Orsoe is now a division LP specialist at 7-Eleven Speedway.

99 Cents Only Stores made the following changes: Al Aguirre is community engagement and AP associate, Alba Montiel is community engagement and AP market manager, Octavio Andres Garcia Torres is market AP leader, and Ana Zavala is AP market manager.

Brittany Jeffery is now a regional AP manager, Caleb Castro Cabrera was promoted to senior AP investigator (France), and Daniel Malak is now a senior district manager of AP at Abercrombie & Fitch.

James Mullaney, CFI was promoted to senior manager of AP at Advance Auto Parts.

Nathan Bandaries was promoted to corporate AP manager, ORC and Jim Nickols is a district AP manager at Albertsons-Safeway.

is program manager, physical security implementation (UK); Jo Day, CPP was promoted to senior security program manager (UK); Kyle Skardon was promoted to senior program manager EMEA security and LP (UK); Leah Brown was promoted to physical security program manager; Richard Samm was promoted to fraud investigations manager (UK); Kennarios Kirk, Sr., Cory Smith, and Geoff Gilbert-Differ were promoted to senior regional LP managers; Emir Sezairi, Steve Sciortino, Joe Troy Jr., MBA, Sam Gann, LPC, Andrew Jonas, Katelyn Hall, LPQ, LPC, Andy Spears, LPC, Tylyn Reeves, Timothy Kneidel, CFI, Chris Dunne, CPP, Oliver Niworowski, CFI, and Jon Doyle CFI are now regional managers of LP; and Brittney Kotteles, Dustin Yost, LPQ, Shawn Appleton, Bryon Kelly, Mason Drawbond, LPC, Ashley Drawbond, Anastasia Prasad, and Michael Salamone Jr. are now multisite LP leads.

Taylor Fritzsche was promoted to LP supervisor at American Eagle Outfitters.

Sismai Jadai was promoted to general services leader for LP at Angeloni (Brazil).

Ian Amato, LPC is now manager of global supply chain security at Apotex (Canada).

Jasmine Chan, CFI is the new director of retail risk at Aritzia (Canada).

Davis He is now security expert at Alibaba Group (China).

Daniel Hanson is senior manager, corporate logistics at Alshaya Group (United Arab Emirates).

Amazon announced the following changes: George Adams Jr. is now global relations manager, brand protection; Patrick Lajoie, PSP was promoted to security program manager, Central Americas Region (Canada); Deron Tentyon was promoted to regional aviation security manager/credentialing manager; Elliot Woolley is now LP manager (UK); Pawel Pajaczek

Brian New was promoted to head of field operations for risk management and AP at Banfield Pet Hospital.

Randall Andrews, MS was promoted to corporate security supervisor at Best Buy. Frank Benesz, LPC was promoted to director of AP investigations and data analytics, and Jeana Pantoliano, CFI is now AP systems, reporting, and technology analyst at Bloomingdale’s.

Nathan Kaylor is now a regional AP manager at Boddie-Noell.

Francois Guay, BAA is the new director of LP at Bouclair (Canada).

Rob Evans is now group LP manager at Brandbank Group.

Ash Warren, MBA, ARM, CFI was promoted to senior manager of safety, and Jose Vasquez, CFI and Aubree Mori are now district AP managers at Burlington Stores.

Marcos Melo is now a regional LP inspector at C&S (Brazil).

Bethany Forshaw is now manager of LP systems & intelligence analysis at Capri Holdings Limited (UK).

Greg Dolcich, LPQ was named division AP manager at Casey’s.

Chris Carmody was named director of health, safety, and security at Ashley Furniture Industries.

Harrold Abraham is now a regional LP manager at AutoZone.

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Chrystiano Calheiros is now LP coordinator at Carajás Home Center (Brazil).

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Mehmet Akpinar is now an internal auditor at CarrefourSA (Turkey).

Urszula Zielińska is the new national manager for safety and LP at CCC SA (Poland).

James McDonald is now VP of corporate security at CEVA Logistics.

Tony Cucchiaro was promoted to regional LP manager at Chico’s FAS. Terri Keevers is now a fraud investigator and analyst at Coles (Australia).

Paul Dixon is now a profit protection analyst at Compass Group (UK).

Renato Lopes is now an auditor at Costa Rica Malhas (Brazil).

Scott Kamlet was named director of AP at Crate and Barrel.

Christopher Knight was promoted to senior director corporate security, Matt Johnson was promoted to divisional AP director, Matt Farley was promoted to regional AP leader, Brian Tolbert, LPC is now a multidistrict AP leader, and Vianey Martin and Ken Marasco are now district AP leaders at CVS Health.

Donald Ward, CFI, LPC was promoted to LP manager at DICK’S Sporting Goods.

Henning Mohr is now an internal auditor at Dirk Rossmann GmbH (Germany).

Stephany Donoso Hernandez was promoted to head of national security at Falabella Retail S.A. (Chile).

Joe Lemoine is now a market investigator at Family Dollar.

Diane Ambrogio is now a fraud prevention analyst at Fetch Rewards. Sadık Ateş, MBA is now LP manager at Getir (Turkey).

Joe Suarez was named a regional LP manager at Goodwill Industries of Southern California.

John Goldyn was made VP of LP at Gabe’s.

Helen Singleton is now data center area security manager at Google (Australia).

Katie Jeffree is now a territory profit protection manager (Australia), and Georges David is now an area LP manager (France) at JD Sports Fashion.

James Kerry, LPC is now secure by design specialist, Nicki Houghton is now fraud and investigations lead, and Dominic McCoy, Kelly Laurance, David Johnson, LPC, and Laura Swinburne are new profit protection area managers at John Lewis & Partners (UK).

Lisa Timberman was promoted to director of national accounts at Johnson Controls.

Gabriele Venuti is now south Europe retail security manager (Italy), and Billy Rustmann and Greg McGee are new regional security managers at Gucci.

Suneet Pareek was promoted to regional security & compliance manager Greater China (Hong Kong), and Karen Osorio was promoted to security and compliance manager, Americas at H&M. Sonia Duffy was promoted to national fraud investigator at Halfords (UK).

Sean Ross was promoted to senior manager of AP at HD Supply.

Bill Bolton was promoted to regional field investigator, Alex Sostre is now market AP manager, and Elizabeth Bolton and Cesar Evangelista are now multistore AP managers at The Home Depot.

Amanda Meyer was promoted to senior manager of LP training and investigations, and Sarah Myers was promoted to corporate internal investigator, Midwest at Kohl’s.

Scotlon Hughes, ASP was promoted to division assistant AP/safety manager at Kroger.

Aaron Saye is now LP manager, Pacific at Lagardère Travel Retail (Australia).

David Wallace is now senior fraud data analyst at LexisNexis.

Andres Nuno was promoted to LP systems and data manager at Lids.

Rafael Antonio Sanabria Muñoz was named project director at Homecenter (Colombia).

Tiago Schumacher was promoted to LP analyst at Lojas Renner (Brazil).

Joseph Rinker and Mark Seifert II were promoted to district LP managers at HomeGoods.

Mirta Rodriguez is now an operations specialist at the Loss Prevention Research Council.

Mark Sutherland was promoted to national LP manager, and Tera Tylliros, LPC was promoted to LP manager, analytics & operations at Indigo (Canada).

Lisa Kennedy, CFI was promoted to regional AP manager at Louis Vuitton.

Jeferson Barrille is now a LP coordinator at Infracommerce (Brazil).

James Simpson, LPC was named director of LP at Inserra Supermarkets.

Sarven Yaldizciyan and Dominic Scopesi were promoted to field investigators at JCPenney.

LPM

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Emily Akino, LPC was promoted to divisional AP director; Tiffany Wagner and Charles-Leonard Beland were promoted to investigator, investigation and fraud (Canada); Kevin Peck and Charles Pankey are now district AP managers; and Christopher Brown and Randall Stirewalt, LPC are now multiunit senior AP managers at Lowe’s.

July–August 2021

PEOPLE ON THE MOVE Mike Hartson was named director of field AP and risk at Lumber Liquidators.

Joe Palinkas, CFE, CFI, LPC was promoted to compliance specialist, investigations at PPG Industries.

Melinda Blake, CFI is now a regional manager of AP at Luxottica.

Indra Harya Wibowo is now a fraud investigator, risk prevention at PT Trans Retail (Indonesia).

Macy’s announced the following changes: Elisha Toye, CFI Legacy is the new director of AP for Herald Square; Nicholas Trischitta, LPC was promoted to Herald Square flagship AP manager; Michael Monaghan, LPQ was promoted to senior director of AP for Herald Square/NYC Division; Derick Trotter, Chandler Oliver, Charles Fitzgerald, Bryan Scarlata, Michael Smith, Kevin Jones, Jose Longoria-Martinez, and Holden Snyder are now multistore AP managers; Jonathan Ferrufino was promoted to lead multistore task force; Carrie De Casas was promoted to senior investigator; and Rebecca Thompson was promoted to senior ORC investigator.

Hugo César González Castillo is now a LP analyst at Mercado Libre (Mexico).

Prabhu Karunakaran is the new state head of LP & investigations at Reliance Retail CSCM & Jio Mart (India).

to senior manager of field investigations; Norman Wilson, William Ore, and Alfredo Garcia Jr. were promoted to AP business partners; and Kyle Graser was promoted to field investigator at Target.

Rafael Manuel Jiménez Ramírez is the new national director of analysis and control of security risks at Tecnológico de Monterrey (Mexico).

Nikita Patel was promoted to senior manager of member and sponsor relations at the Retail Council of Canada.

Luca Piva is now an area security manager for Northern Italy and Switzerland at Risparmio Casa (Italy).

Hector Pearson was promoted to senior director of AP; Victor Wichi, CFI, LPC and Edward Hargrove are now regional AP managers; Matthew Guy is now senior leader of investigations; and Ralph Palacios was promoted to lead AP shrink investigator at Rite Aid. Allen Cade is now manager of LP at Rivian.

Samuel Donato is the new supervisor of LP, and Maria Tim LePelley, CFI was promoted Fernanda Azevedo is now senior LP to senior manager, area LP, and analyst at Mercado Livre (Brazil).

Janette Turner is now an area LP manager at Ross Stores.

Liaqat Ali is now LP supervisor at METRO (Pakistan).

Sergey Matveev is the new head of security at Rusagro (Russia).

Sean Marshall, CFI, Tammy Mellies, and Jim Skawinski JD Robert Mirakaj were made regional safety, risk, and was named LP managers at Mobilelink. director of global risk intelligence Jonathan Hsieh and protection was promoted services to global at Salesforce. director of LP at Nike.

Jérémie Lemay was promoted to area LP investigator at Sephora (Canada).

Samuel “Bo” White, LPC is now regional AP manager, Southeast, Larry Clark, CPP is now an area and Michael J. Kelly is now a security manager at Southern district AP manager at Nordstrom.

Glazer’s Wine & Spirits.

Greg Jobe, CPP, CFI and Veronica Joaquin Farrell is now manager, Stafford, CFI were promoted to partner & AP at Starbucks. senior managers, enterprise LP and Malcolm Gendel is now AP safety at Office Depot. manager at Stockx (Australia).

Prashant S. Pillai is the new Kimberly Sanders is the new director of security & risk at director of investigations operations; Ola (India).

Melissa Murphy was promoted

July–August 2021

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Tony Zenari, CFI, CECI is now a regional LP manager at Tilley’s.

Jennifer Briggs, MBA was promoted to AVP LP director at TJX.

Alicia Williams, Julio Zapata, and Juan Suazo are now MarMaxx LP investigators; and Matt Hollingsworth, LPC was promoted to market LP manager at TJX. Alaina Kring, CPhT was promoted to senior manager of ORC; Lisa Walcott, MBA was promoted to senior manager of inventory control; and Steven Onderdonk is now an area LP manager at Ulta Beauty.

Corey Finke is now a regional AP manager at Victra – Verizon.

Kris Johnson was named environmental, health, safety & environmental sustainability manager at Walgreens.

Jeremy Carr, LPQ was promoted to investigations specialist, digital/omni systems at Walmart.

Heidi Minnaar, IRMCert, was promoted to group head enterprise risk management and compliance (acting) at Woolworths Holdings (South Africa).

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Whether you’re an LP professional looking for a new opportunity or an employer looking for new talent to fill a position, LPjobs.com is a resource you cannot afford to miss utilizing if you are truly committed to finding the best job or the best job candidate!

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Resource Guide

For companies who would like to showcase their solutions in this section, please contact LPM’s Media Strategist Ben Skidmore at 972-587-9064 or via email at BenS@LPportal.com.

Resource Guide to Products and Services

This section provides readers with information on select products and services from retail asset protection solution providers. If your company is considering new technology or programs, please check with these vendors as well as the other advertisers throughout the magazine.

& MORE

AFA PROTECTIVE SYSTEMS, INC. SINCE 1873

• Fire Alarm Systems • Design, Installation & Service • UL Listed & FM Approved Central Station Monitoring • Test & Inspection Services

At AFA, we deliver superior levels of customer service.

If you don’t believe us, ask our customers! www.afap.com (866) AFA-NATL

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July–August 2021

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PARTING WORDS

Jim Lee, LPC Executive Editor

Welcome Back G

etting back to normal, right?

Whatever normal is. At least back to where we were before COVID-19. It is fun again to get to see people after almost two years. That means traveling again. You may have forgotten some of the travel perks. I made a couple of trips in the past month and was reminded.

Here are just some of those I was thinking about and actually experienced again.

Air Travel The year 2021 is the year of the ox.

That means good luck and the year of relationships.

The airport seemed more crowded, and there were fewer airline personnel. It was also a fact here at my airport that a few of the parking lots were closed. They need to hire some people.

Wow, what happened to getting through airport security quickly? There were almost as many in the TSA PreCheck line as in the normal screening line.

Okay, so I didn’t have to take my shoes off.

I let my airline club membership lapse and found out the price to renew has jumped dramatically. I think I’ll pass.

Some things never change.

Most everyone still crowded around the jetway door regardless of their status for boarding. I never have understood the urgency to get on board, with the exception of sneaking an oversized bag on the plane.

Oh, yes, I still wore my mask.

Wonder when that will change?

July–August 2021

The plane seemed more crowded. I should have upgraded to first class. There were still plenty of center seats available in coach.

Delays are just a part of the deal with flying, particularly in the summer. One thing has not changed. When the flight attendant asked those who were not in a hurry to stay seated and take a different flight so those at risk of missing their connection could depart, no one complied.

It seems most travelers still can’t wait to get off the plane. So much for common courtesy.

Hotel If you get to your hotel too early, you are going to get a room farthest from the elevator.

If you get there too late, you likely get a room next to the noisy elevator. What’s a good time to check in?

I got enraged over this next one. I loaded up my briefcase and travel bag and walked to the elevator that took me to floor where my room was located.

Upon trying my card key and, with hands full, I couldn’t get the door to open. I always get two keys, so I tried the other key—no luck. I went back to the front desk with hands full of bags.

Maybe I should have put my bags by the door. I might have needed my hands for gestures at the front desk clerk.

I always have such a struggle with room temperature. It’s either too hot or too cold. I opted for too cold and a blanket.

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After a nice dinner and great company, when I returned to the hotel, the only open space to park was in the back. Even the handicapped spaces were taken.

The hotel still had those “free” breakfasts—a banana, apple, fruit juice, bagel, pastry, muffin, maybe some oatmeal. Not a lot of choice for a diabetic.

I bet you can think of a few “perks” of traveling yourself. How about a handshake on that? Or is it a fist bump, elbow bump, or can you really shake hands?

Welcome back to traveling and seeing people again. It’s all worth it!

2021 The year 2021 is the year of the ox. That means good luck and the year of relationships.

Our luck at the magazine is that this is the twentieth anniversary of publishing LP Magazine. We will celebrate our anniversary at our annual meeting at Sanibel Island, Florida, in early November. We are very proud and feel fortunate to have had so much help from the retail industry over these past twenty years. Thank you.

This year also marks twenty years since the 9/11 attacks on America. Our world changed forever on that day. I keep the second issue of the magazine in a case by my desk as a reminder. The cover depicts a fireman holding an American flag standing in the rubble of the towers. Let us always remember those lost and say our prayers.

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Driving New Data-Driven Outcomes To learn more, visit sensormatic.com/sensormatic-iq or call 800-642-7505 Copyright © 2020 Johnson Controls. All rights reserved. SENSORMATIC SOLUTIONS and the product names listed in this document are marks and/or registered marks.

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