January - February 2018

JANUARY–FEBRUARY 2018 | V17.1 LOSSPREVENTIONMEDIA.COM

LOSS PREVENTION MAGAZINE THE AUTHORITY ON ALL THINGS ASSET PROTECTION

POWER TO THE PEOPLE

RITE AID USES A CROWDSOURCING CRIME-SOLVING TOOL TO AMPLIFY INVESTIGATIONS

THE EVOLUTION OF KEVIN VALENTINE’S CAREER WITH SIGNET JEWELERS ORC IS WORRISOME, WORSENING… AND AT RISK OF BECOMING IGNORED? KEY FINDINGS FROM EUROPEAN RESEARCH ON COLLABORATION ON FOOD WASTE

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TABLE OF CONTENTS 6 EDITOR’S LETTER

A Look Inside this Edition

By Jack Trlica

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10 RETAIL SPONSORS 12 INTERVIEWING

Power to the People

Random Lessons from the Room: Part Four

By David E. Zulawski, CFI, CFE and Shane G. Sturman, CFI, CPP

Rite aid uses a crowdsourcing, crime-solving tool to amplify investigations

20 EVIDENCE-BASED LP

By Garett Seivold, Contributing Writer

Checklists Matter

By Read Hayes, PhD, CPP

22 LPM EXCELLENCE

LPM “Magpie” Award: Applauding Excellence

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Featuring Adel Sayegh and Tina Sellers

From LP to Internal Audit to Enterprise Risk Management

32 CERTIFICATION

Stepping Up Your Game as an LP Professional Interview with Kenn Dilworth, LPC

The evolution of Kevin Valentine’s career with Signet Jewelers

42 FUTURE OF LP

How to Become a Subject-Matter Expert

By James Lee, LPC, Executive Editor

By Tom Meehan, CFI

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44 ASK THE EXPERT

Intrepreneurship within AP Is a Retailer’s Competitive Advantage

ORC Is Worrisome, Worsening…

And at Risk of Becoming Ignored?

Interview with Maurizio P. Scrofani, CCSP, LPC

50 PERSPECTIVES

The Year Ahead in LP

By Jacque Brittain, LPC

52 LPM DIGITAL

The latest data and results from the NRF’s 2017 ORC survey

ORC Research and Security Lawsuit

By Garett Seivold, Contributing Writer

By Kelsey Seidler

54 CALENDAR 55 PEOPLE ON THE MOVE 56 ADVERTISERS 56 SUBSCRIPTION FORM 57 VENDOR SPONSORS 58 PARTING WORDS

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Collaboration on Food Waste Reduction

What If We Had Never Meet

Research results and insights from Europe

By Jim Lee, LPC

By Colin Peacock, ECR Community

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EDITOR’S LETTER

A Look Inside this Edition T his issue of the LP Magazine print edition includes articles from multiple sources representing a wide range of subjects. I thought it valuable to comment on some and ensure that you know the breadth of information vehicles we provide the industry.

The cover feature on Rite Aid’s use of a crowdsourcing tool is an example of taking advantage of new social media tools to help solve retail loss (see page 15).

Bob Oberosler is one of the loss prevention industry’s leaders who tends to be on the cutting edge of technology—in this case implementing a tool that, as he puts it, finally allows him “to play on offense” rather than defense with offenders.

Another of the industry’s leaders is Kevin Valentine, CFI, LPC, who accomplished something not many LP professionals can claim—spending his entire thirty-five-year career with the same retailer. Valentine started with Sterling Merchandise as the only LP person and retired at the end of 2017 as senior vice president of internal audit, loss prevention, and enterprise risk management for what is now Signet Jewelers,

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one of the world’s largest specialty jewelry retailers. He offers his career insights in our interview on page 23.

We are running the lead article from our recent edition of LPM Online, our newest magazine that publishes on even-numbered months in between the print editions. The article “ORC Is Worrisome, Worsening…And at Risk of Becoming Ignored?” on page 35 looks at the results of NRF’s latest ORC survey and the implications for retailers. If you haven’t seen this ORC-focused issue of LPM Online, there’s a summary of all the articles on page 39. You can read the entire edition by going to LPM-online.com.

Finally, we have reprinted an article from our sister publication LP Magazine Europe about research related to retailer collaboration on reducing food waste (page 45). One of Europe’s leading research organizations, the ECR Community Shrinkage and On-Shelf Availability Group, has long led the way in looking at loss from supply chain through consumer sales. Their findings are having a significant positive impact on loss reduction and profit protection on both sides

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of the Atlantic. This article is one example of the great articles published by LP Magazine Europe.

Visit LPportal.eu to read more about what’s going on with our industry in Europe.

Stay in Touch

There’s so much going on in our industry and so many ways people want to consume information, which is why we not only provide a print edition but also a vibrant daily newsletter tied to our comprehensive website, as well as our new digital-only magazine.

We hope you are accessing all our channels in order to have the widest view of the loss prevention industry. But if you are only reading print or only getting our newsletter, we continue to strive to provide the best original content, news, and information available. You may subscribe for free to any of our channels by selecting the Subscribe Now link on our website at LossPreventionMedia.com or going directly to LPMsubscription.com.

Jack Trlica Managing Editor

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EDITORIAL BOARD Erik Buttlar Vice President, Asset Protection, Best Buy

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

Jim Carr, CFI Senior Director, Global Asset Protection, Rent-A-Center

John Matas Vice President, Asset Protection, Investigations & ORC, Macy’s

Ray Cloud Senior Vice President, Loss Prevention, Ross Stores

Chris McDonald Senior Vice President, Loss Prevention, Compass Group NA

Francis D’Addario, CPP, CFE Emeritus Faculty Member, Strategic Influence and Innovation, Security Executive Council

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

Charles Delgado, LPC Regional Vice President, Store Operations, Academy Sports Scott Draher, LPC Vice President, Loss Prevention, Safety, and Operations, Lowe’s Scott Glenn, LPC Chief Security Officer, Sears Holdings

LOSS PREVENTION MAGAZINE 700 Matthews Mint Hill Rd, Ste C Matthews, NC 28105 704-365-5226 office, 704-365-1026 fax MANAGING EDITOR Jack Trlica JackT@LPportal.com EXECUTIVE EDITOR James Lee, LPC JimL@LPportal.com EDITORIAL DIRECTOR Jacque Brittain, LPC JacB@LPportal.com MANAGING EDITOR, DIGITAL Kelsey Seidler KelseyS@LPportal.com

Melissa Mitchell, CFI Director of Asset Protection and Retail Supply Chain, LifeWay Christian Stores Joe Schrauder Vice President, Asset Protection, Walmart Stores

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Adrian Beck Read Hayes, PhD, CPP Tom Meehan, CFI Walter Palmer, CFI, CPP, CFE Colin Peacock Maurizio P. Scrofani, CCSP, LPC Garett Seivold Shane G. Sturman, CFI, CPP Bill Turner, LPC David E. Zulawski, CFI, CFE CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER Kevin McMenimen, LPC KevinM@LPportal.com

Tina Sellers, LPC Director of Asset Protection, Retail Business Services LLC, an Ahold-Delhaize Company

Barry Grant Chief Operating Officer, Photos Unlimited

Quinby Squire Vice President, Asset Analytics and Insights, CVS Health

Bill Heine Senior Director, Global Security, Brinker International

Mark Stinde, LPC Vice President, Asset Protection, 7-Eleven

Frank Johns, LPC Chairman, The Loss Prevention Foundation

Robert Vranek Vice President, Loss Prevention, Belk

Mike Lamb, LPC Vice President, Asset Protection, The Kroger Co.

Keith White, LPC Senior Vice President, Loss Prevention and Corporate Administration, Gap Inc.

DIRECTOR OF CLIENT RELATIONS Lisa Carroll LisaC@LPportal.com DIRECTOR OF DIGITAL OPERATIONS John Selevitch JohnS@LPportal.com SPECIAL PROJECTS MANAGERS Justin Kemp, LPQ Karen Rondeau DESIGN & PRODUCTION SPARK Publications info@SPARKpublications.com CREATIVE DIRECTOR Larry Preslar ADVERTISING MANAGER Ben Skidmore 972-587-9064 office, 972-692-8138 fax BenS@LPportal.com SUBSCRIPTION SERVICES

Loss Prevention, LP Magazine, LP Magazine Europe, LPM, and LPM Online 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.

NEW OR CHANGE OF ADDRESS LPMsubscription.com or circulation@LPportal.com POSTMASTER Send change of address forms to Loss Prevention Magazine P.O. Box 92558 Long Beach, CA 90809-2558 Loss Prevention aka LP Magazine aka LPM (USPS 000-710) is published bimonthly

by Loss Prevention Magazine, Inc., 700 Matthews Mint Hill Rd, Ste C, Matthews, NC 28105. Print subscriptions are available free to qualified loss prevention and associated professionals in the U.S. and Canada at LPMsubscription.com.

The publisher reserves the right to determine qualification standards.

International print subscriptions are available for $99 per year payable in U.S. funds at circulation@LPportal.com. For questions about subscriptions, contact circulation@LPportal.com or call 888-881-5861. Periodicals postage paid at Matthews, NC, and additional mailing offices.

© 2018 Loss Prevention Magazine, Inc.

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INTERVIEWING

Random Lessons from the Room: Part Four

by David E. Zulawski, CFI, CFE and Shane G. Sturman, CFI, CPP

W

e ended our last column with a short discussion of the value of developing a timeline of events to organize the case and help to link relationships. There are a number of investigative link tools to illustrate relationships between people and businesses, which can help to flesh out the timeline of events and give a visual representation to an investigation. These can be easily found with a search for investigation link tools.

Develop a Theory of the Case

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s famous fictional detective Sherlock Holmes said several interesting things about developing a theory of a case. While the detective was fictional and Arthur Conan Doyle was not an investigator, he was still able to capture fundamental truths about conducting an inquiry. While many cases are not real mysteries, those that are can be solved using Holmes’ process to deduce the solution.

© 2018 Wicklander-Zulawski & Associates, Inc.

can streamline our selection of what is likely to be important.

As we begin to collect evidence and understand process and the culture in place, it is important to remember the people that work in the area are there every day imbedded in the work. There is policy and how the company thinks a task is accomplished, and then there is what really happens, which can be a very different thing.

“One should always look for a possible alternative, and provide against it. It is the first rule of criminal investigation.”

“It’s a capital mistake to theorize before you have all the evidence. It biases the judgement.”

– Sherlock Holmes in A Scandal in Bohemia First, understand the problem that must be solved. Here, we are considering more complex investigations than producing a simple refund or register void. In a complex investigation, there needs to be a complete understanding of the loss and how it was able to occur, and it must be addressed by thinking globally about the implications to the organization including any legal issues.

This will potentially require research into the process involved and the culture surrounding it. Much of that information can be mined from company data and interviews with those involved in the process, but the information must be collected in a systematic way making no assumptions. The organization has a tremendous amount of information available to the investigator about process culture and persons, which can be important to reaching a successful conclusion.

Collect the Facts

– Sherlock Holmes in The Adventure of Black Peter What on the surface might look like incriminating circumstantial evidence may mean something entirely different if looked at from a different perspective. Take the time to evaluate evidence in other ways to try to prove the person innocent.

“Circumstantial evidence is a very tricky thing,” answered Holmes thoughtfully. “It may seem to point very straight to one thing, but if you shift your point of view a little, you may find it pointing in an equally uncompromising manner to something entirely different.”

– The Boscombe Valley Mystery When investigating a case, it is the investigator who is the outsider, the novice, who must be taught by the “experts” how the process works and perhaps its many permutations. It’s always better to watch something take place rather than simply being told about it since that is often how the task is most often accomplished.

“As a rule, when I have heard of some slight indications of the course of events I am able to guide myself by the thousands of other similar cases which occur to my memory.”

“I am glad of all details,” remarked my friend, “whether they seem to you to be relevant or not.”

– Sherlock Holmes in The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle

– Sherlock Holmes in The Adventure of the Copper Beeches

As we begin the collection of our facts in the investigation, it does not mean we ignore our investigative experience in doing so.

Cases tend to evolve in similar ways and circumstances, which

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Zulawski and Sturman are executives in the investigative and training firm of Wicklander-Zulawski & Associates (w-z.com). Zulawski is a senior partner, and Sturman is president. Sturman is also a member of ASIS International’s Retail Loss Prevention Council.

They can be reached at 800-222-7789 or via email at dzulawski@w-z.com and ssturman@w-z.com.

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Always probe for the exceptions to what is always done and what happens before or after these exceptions to fully continued on page 14 LOSSPREVENTIONMEDIA.COM

available. This might result in discovering an error in the “fact” or a mistake in our interpretation of it.

Either way, the case is strengthened in searching for the truth.

understand why they occur. It’s possible exceptions are the result of extra work, delays, or someone triggering them to take advantage of the situation. As the inquiry evolves, collect evidence, documents, forms, or samples that may become relevant later. Remember that later may be too late to recover them. Consider if diagrams or photos might be useful in adding context to a process or alibi. And note how people interact—this can speak volumes about internal relationships at play.

Eliminate the Least Likely Theories Unfortunately, some of the recent miscarriages of justice in the United States were the result of failing to reexamine the theory of the case when there were facts that didn’t support the conclusion the prosecution proposed.

Develop Theories to Explain the Facts

When a fact appears to be opposed to a long train of deductions, it invariably proves to be capable of bearing some other interpretation. If a fact is opposed to our theory, we must reexamine our view and modify our conclusions to take it into account.

“Eliminate all other facts, and the one that remains must be the truth.”

“It is a capital mistake to theorize before one has data. Insensibly one begins to twist facts to suit theories, instead of theories to suit facts.”

“It is an old maxim of mine that when you have excluded the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.”

– Sherlock Holmes in A Scandal in Bohemia

– Sherlock Holmes in The Adventure of the Beryl Coronet

– Sherlock Holmes in The Sign of Four

It is the investigator’s responsibility to modify a theory so that it fits the facts, not to ignore the facts because they don’t suit his thoughts. This should make us look at other possibilities to explain the facts

LP MAGAZINE

Sometimes there is a nagging hangnail in an investigation that just doesn’t seem right. These always bear looking at since anyone defending the target of the inquiry is going to rely on this detail to

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refute the investigative conclusion. Examining this fact from every angle will help protect the integrity of the investigative conclusion and show its unbiased nature.

Working with another investigator or supervisor who plays devil’s advocate strengthens a case by forcing the investigator to answer the difficult questions and look at the case from an opponent’s point of view. The military often uses a “red team” to examine a possible strategy or to plan for an enemy response. Answering questions shows the weak areas of the investigation and helps the investigator prepare for the case presentation to management, prosecutors, and ultimately the subject himself.

This presentation to another will help the investigator become prepared for possible explanations by the subject as he protests his innocence. The investigator has completed the investigation and his confidence in the outcome should be buoyed as he prepares to meet with the guilty party.

“… but none the less you must come round to my view, for otherwise I shall keep on piling fact upon fact on you until your reason breaks down under them and acknowledges me to be right.”

– Sherlock Holmes in The Red-Headed League By looking at this errant fact in great detail, we can accomplish several things. First, we may correct investigative assumptions and conclusions, opening a new theory of the case. Second, we may find that the “fact” was incorrect and does not support our case theory. Third, we may limit the possible usefulness of the contrary fact to the subject or his attorney by eliminating all the possible excuses it might imply. And finally, the further investigation and examination of these facts establishes the fair nature of the investigation.

“It is more than possible; it is probable.”

– Sherlock Holmes in Silver Blaze A case prepared carefully—where all the facts lead to a single conclusion, and possible excuses have been prepared for—is a mighty force for the subject to deal with in the interview room or at a hearing. The investigation has discovered and established the solution.

“What one man can invent, another can discover.”

“Nothing clears up a case so much as stating it to another person.”

– Sherlock Holmes in The Adventure of the Dancing Men

– Sherlock Holmes in Silver Blaze

Don’t Miss LPM Online An All-Digital Magazine with All-New Content

LPM Online is an all-new magazine experience.

LPM Online publishes every other month on even-numbered months in between our print editions. The inaugural edition went live in August.

You can view it and our current edition on the LPM Online tab on our website, LossPreventionMedia.com, or by entering LPM-online.com in your browser.

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FEATURE

POWER TO THE PEOPLE

RITE AID USES A CROWDSOURCING CRIME-SOLVING TOOL TO AMPLIFY INVESTIGATIONS

By Garett Seivold, Contributing Writer

POWER TO THE PEOPLE

O

ne day in October of 2017, a man of medium build entered a Rite Aid in one of the nation’s largest cities, approached the register, and demanded cash.

As the drawer was being opened, the subject flung himself over the counter, grabbing whatever cash he could. He fled on foot, leaving behind a shaken cashier, and by the time police arrived, the unknown subject had safely dissolved back into the surrounding community.

Unfortunately, often, this type of story ends right here.

But this real-life crime drama has an unusual second act, which picks up a few days later when a woman some miles away checks her social media feed and sees a surveillance snapshot of the Rite Aid robber with a note about a $5,000 reward for information leading to his arrest. The face in the picture is familiar. She clicks on the link to Solveacrime.com and starts filling out the website’s tip form. She types in information on the suspect, and it is submitted to Solveacrime.com for follow up. A few days later the subject is apprehended.

Just like that, a very different ending to the story—and a conclusion that is becoming increasingly common in robbery and assault events at Rite Aid stores, according to Robert Oberosler, group vice president of asset protection at Robert Oberosler Rite Aid. Oberosler is an advocate of Solveacrime because this crowdsourcing tool is quite effective in closing more cases than before and doing so in record time. It is also a strong deterrent by putting criminals on notice that if you rob a Rite Aid, your picture will be plastered everywhere online.

The site is less than a year old but is already proving to effectively

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The site is less than a year old but is already proving to effectively leverage the power of social media for retail victims of crime.

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leverage the power of social media for retail victims of crime. “It’s unbelievable the amount of views a crime posting will get in a geographic area, and the number of times it’s forwarded on social media to someone else,” remarked Oberosler.

“We’ve seen posts with several thousand views in the first hour and as many forwards.”

Tips solicited through the site have directly resulted in numerous apprehensions for Rite Aid and a more than twofold increase in its case-closure rate. “We’re now closing over 50 percent of our violent crimes within a week,” said Oberosler. “It has become one of the most interesting and quick successes that I have ever had with a new solution and I’ve been in AP for forty years.”

That the platform’s value to retailers will grow alongside the number of crime posts and tipsters is why many law enforcement officers, as well as people who are responsible for asset protection for major retailers, feel they should fully utilize this important new crime-solving technology tool. They see that it can, as Oberosler says, “put a lot of pressure on the ORC operators stealing for resale as well as let them know we know them and are sharing information about them that will help us identify and make them accountable for their actions.”

Most importantly, Oberosler sees the solution as capable of reshaping LP’s role vis-a-vis crime.

“Our industry plays defense, and we do it pretty darn well. Once in a while we’ll be on offense, and we’ll do some surveillance and, with law enforcement, take down some big fencing operation, but for the most part and most of the time, we are on defense,” explained Oberosler.

“But this tool allows me to play on offense.”

The most surprising upside has been the speed with which tips come in and cases get solved. “Law

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POWER TO THE PEOPLE enforcement has been astonished at some of our results, especially with the quickness. Many cases are solved in a couple of days. In one case we went from posting a crime, to getting a tip, to apprehension by law enforcement in three hours,” said Oberosler. He added, a smile notable in his voice, “It’s fun to play offense.”

How It Works

Solveacrime is premised upon two undeniable truths. First, if you can put information in front of enough people, you can extract something in return. Evidence of this abounds, most notably in crowdfunding platforms like Kickstarter and GoFundMe, where enough people gave enough tiny donations to fund a $13,000 inflatable replica of Lionel Ritchie’s head and $18,633 for a griddle that imposes a pirate symbol into pancakes.

The second truth is that crime is an endless source of fascination and/or concern. Be it community-watch members warning one other about a car break-in or throngs drawn to the latest television crime series or a James Patterson novel, the appetite for “whodunit” is endless.

Solveacrime combines those forces—the power of social media and the insatiable interest in crime.

“This is the first crowdsourcing, crime-solving system, which empowers people to upload incidents of crime to get help with solving them,” according to Dario Brebric, president of Captis Intelligence, which operates the Solveacrime platform.

Rite Aid pays a subscription to post crimes via Solveacrime. com. Out of the 2.8 million users registered to receive crime alerts, a crime posting is then sent out via email to individuals in the relevant geographic area. From there, it spreads. “Viral crime solving” is the company’s pitch.

It’s like Crimestoppers, in that the goal is to solicit tips from the public

“We’re now closing over 50 percent of our violent crimes within a week. It has become one of the most interesting and quick successes that I have ever had with a new solution—and I’ve been in AP for forty years.”

– Robert Oberosler, Rite Aid

LP MAGAZINE

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to solve crimes. And it’s akin to local news reports that ask for the public’s help, but again, the scale is different, according to Brebric. “Local news might show one or two a broadcast, but what about the other 100 crimes? We can carry an unlimited number of videos, which reach hundreds of thousands of people daily. In a city like Los Angeles we can generate 250,000 views in one to two days,” he said.

Available services also go beyond the solicitation of crime tips, including information from analytics that monitor who looks at a crime posting, who they share it with, and comments that are made about a crime—the “chatter.” “These all provide additional investigation points,” explained Brebric. A client retailer can, for example, run a daily query to reveal every time someone had mentioned their store name in connection with any number of keywords, such as “robbery” or “drugs.”

Ultimately, Brebric suggests that harnessing the power of the public may help to alter the perception among criminals of the risks and rewards of retail crime, as well as the perception of retailers toward investigations and crime prevention.

“Retailers have so many crimes that they normally would have to write off as ‘we can’t find this person,’ but we can get them tips that lead to law enforcement apprehensions that they’ve never been able to have,” said Brebric. “Retail has never before had a conduit providing them such a large crowdsourcing presence.”

Brebric sees the platform’s value as being more fundamental then simply solving more cases of retail crime. He believes it provides a missing puzzle piece that has long plagued the asset protection industry. In his twenty years of experience developing enterprise security systems—for casinos, retail, and other large organizations—he has always

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POWER TO THE PEOPLE perceived a basic flaw. “I have sold the best there is—cutting-edge cameras, effective storage and retrieval systems—and at end of the day the question is always the same: who is that criminal that my million-dollar surveillance system got a nice clean picture of? There has never been a good way to answer that.”

It was that missing piece that Brebric says led him to develop Solveacrime.

“It’s always been about that—and the fact that law enforcement can’t keep up with the demand and the number of videos that are ripe for investigations.”

Many in law enforcement also see potential in “crowdsolving” and think it will increasingly play an important role in crime prevention. “Social media is a fantastic tool, and in concert with banks, retail stores, or whomever the victims of crime are, it’s imperative that law enforcement takes advantage of it,” said Curt Crum, special services manager in the criminal investigation division of the Boise (Idaho) Police Department and president of the Coalition of Law Enforcement and Retail Conference (CLEAR).

Crum sees value in all of the many different models of intelligence sharing and platforms for posting incidents—free ones, subscriber-based, industry, law enforcement—especially for addressing high-profile crimes.

“There is a need for all of it,” he said.

The Internet and social media are forever changing all aspects of society—asset protection included.

“I’ve talked to a couple of peers, and they’re already putting their nose in and saying ‘this could really work,’” Oberosler said.

“I’ve been in AP for a long time, and we’ve never collectively had a platform that could help provide a solution to a national issue.”

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“Retailers have so many crimes that they normally would have to write off as ‘we can’t find this person,’ but we can get them tips that lead to law enforcement apprehensions that they’ve never been able to have.”

– Dario Brebric, Captis Intelligence

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Downsides?

Live for a little more than seven months, retailers are early in the learning curve about Solveacrime, according to Brebric. “It’s still a young audience, but major retailers are starting to become aware, and as a concept it makes a lot of sense to them,” he said. There is one common point of concern, however. “They want to be sure that the store can remain anonymous, and that exactly when and where a crime happened doesn’t have to be disclosed.”

Especially for a high-end retailer in a tony shopping district, the idea of advertising that a crime took place is a real worry—and one that the site accommodates. Retailers can remain anonymous, and other identifying features about a crime don’t need to be included. “The retailer has the option because he has the keys. What information they want to release about an incident is up to them,” explained Brebric. “Some retailers, for personal, branding reasons, will choose to remain anonymous.” In those cases, a retailer will typically share a series of still images that are edited to remove any indication of where the crime took place, and identify only the zip code where it happened. “Then they will throw the question out to the crowd, of ‘do you know who this person is?’ and they still get tips.”

But while stores can post crimes anonymously, they may not want to. Rite Aid, for one, is finding value in fueling its reputation as a retailer that will go to great lengths to catch a criminal.

Although the tool is still in its nascent stage, certain strategies are proving to be helpful at maximizing tips. Not surprisingly, offering a reward is one of them. “Rewards are a big enticer. You can get some tips with zero dollars; but $500 to $1,000 is sort of the minimum for a major crime to get people to turn others in,” explained Brebric, who added that,

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POWER TO THE PEOPLE category area, the interior, and then into the parking lot. The model identifies a final “Zone 5” as the public sphere, where retail has historically had limited influence.

“In AP we’ve done pretty well in the first and second zones, for example, but we’ve never really played in Zone 5, everything beyond the parking lot,” said Oberosler. “But this is a tool that we’re using to influence social media and to make apprehensions. I really think it’s going to be able to give us a Zone-5 influence that we’ve never had before.”

with a sufficient reward, retailers can overcome almost any traditional loyalty.

“For a $5,000 reward, we’ve had people turn in their own mother and brothers.”

The importance of getting at least one good facial image to share is also becoming increasingly clear. Having a variety of images from different vantage points is critical and helps clients better leverage Solveacrime.

On the developer side, Brebric said they’ve gotten better at selecting the registered users to whom they send videos, so they don’t inundate people with crime posts while maximizing tips.

“We’ve learned how big a blast radius we need to be the most effective.”

Read Hayes, PhD, CPP, director of the Loss Prevention Research Council, identifies five zones of influence where it is possible to apply Solveacrime to impede retail theft. The shelf point/product asset, for example, is the first zone that can be influenced to deter crime. It expands out from there, into Zones 2 through 4—the

The Internet and social media are forever changing all aspects of society—asset protection included.

GARETT SEIVOLD is a journalist who has covered corporate security for nearly twenty years. He has been recognized for outstanding writing, investigative reporting, and instructional journalism.

He has authored dozens of survey-based research reports and best-practice manuals on security-related topics. Seivold can be reached at GarettS@LPportal.com.

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EVIDENCE-BASED LP

by Read Hayes, PhD, CPP

Checklists Matter

Dr. Hayes is director of the Loss Prevention Research Council and coordinator of the Loss Prevention Research Team at the University of Florida. He can be reached at 321-303-6193 or via email at rhayes@lpresearch.org. © 2018 Loss Prevention Research Council

B

efore starting an incision, confirm the patient’s identity.

Clearly mark the exact surgical site. Ask about allergies.

Discuss any anticipated blood loss. Introduce yourself by name. Know your fellow surgical team members. These are some of the nineteen tasks on the World Health Organization (WHO) Surgical Safety Checklist, a short list of actions to be completed before surgery to cut errors and save lives.

The growing use of medical practice checklists now enjoys broad empirical support: multiple randomized controlled trials support their use. But—and this is a key point—evidence shows checklist users need to understand the purpose behind all checklist (CL) components, buy into them, embrace the CL practice, and have their leaders emphasize them over time. And this should all sound familiar.

Checklists are simple and important for LP/AP as well.

Standardizing and executing some form of checklist enhances high-risk, high-reward individual and group planning and efforts.

Think about these and more your organization can devise or are already using: ■■ Developing or adjusting your LP/AP program, including objectives, framework, strategy, budgeting, execution, and continuous improvement ■■ Offender apprehension handling and reporting ■■ Employee investigation handling and reporting ■■ Operational audits across the enterprise Another CL key—consider moving your audits and checklists to steadily more-convenient smart platforms if not already doing so since this further increases full compliance over time.

buying has on bringing stolen, counterfeit, and altered product into your supply chain and the harm these products can do to your customers and your organization.

To this end, LPRC conducted surveys to provide more insight into possible motives and protocols for buying from other than the original product maker. The important findings are below.

■■ Product suppliers are concerned about the gray market because it takes profit from them; distresses their direct customers that may have to compete against gray market resellers; and can introduce stolen, counterfeit, or otherwise compromised-quality goods into the marketplace.

■■ Some retailers (or at least individual buyers) endorse the gray market since it can help them compete by providing quality goods at competitive prices due to slight wholesale cost differences. Others are not against it since they can use the wholesale “wire” to move items they overbought or no longer want or need out of their organizations. They may also find occasional opportunistic bargains.

■■ Buyers feel tremendous pressure to buy off the “wire” to boost margins and feel almost all gray market-sourced goods are licit and safe.

■■ Some retailers are against the gray market since it encourages competitors that do not have the same overhead (or sometimes ethics) to introduce stolen or otherwise illicit product (sometimes product stolen from retailers) into their supply chains.

■■ Europe experiences the same problems with gray market goods, but EU law precludes products sold to non-EU countries being diverted into EU countries. However, some retailers are defying this premise.

■■ High-tech suppliers, such as Nortel, Xerox, Cisco, Lexmark, and HP, have set up an alliance to tackle gray market issues.

■■ Retailers should work with their supplier partners to address consumer service and the near-term and long-term impact of gray markets.

■■ Suppliers, retailers, and wholesalers should adopt industry practices and written agreements including random inspection protocols to help preclude the movement of stolen, altered, and other illicit goods.

Featured Research

Standardizing and executing some form of checklist enhances high-risk, high‑reward individual and group planning and efforts.

We all know partnerships are mission critical to effective total-enterprise protection. Intracompany partners like buyers and merchants, IT, logistics, store operations, and real estate should be kept up to speed on the latest crime and loss issues, numbers, and relative protective efforts and why and how you devised them.

Your buyer partners are important as you battle to keep stolen, counterfeit, and altered goods (SCAG) out of your organization.

Your product manufacturer partners should be treated the same in this regard. At the Loss Prevention Research Council (LPRC), we have been tasked with looking at the influence wholesaler/diverter

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Recommended Reading

The Prevention of Crime by Delbert Elliott and Abigail Fagan, published by Wiley Blackwell, provides a scientific look (tied into prevailing theory and tested empirically) at practical and overall crime prevention methods.

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LPM EXCELLENCE

LPM “Magpie” Awards: Applauding Excellence

The LPM “Magpie” Awards offer a means to celebrate industry accomplishments on an ongoing basis, recognizing the loss prevention professionals, teams, solution providers, law enforcement partners, and others that demonstrate a stellar contribution to the profession.

The ability to influence change is a product of drive, creativity, and determination, but

it also requires a unique ability to create a shared vision that others will understand, respect, support, and pursue. Each of the following recipients reflects that standard of excellence, representing the quality and spirit of leadership that makes a difference in our lives, our people, and our programs. Please join us in celebrating the accomplishments of our latest honorees.

Excellence in Community Service

Excellence in Community Service

One of ten children, Sayegh was born in a small village outside of Amman, Jordan, and immigrated to the US at age six. “I’ve never forgotten the poverty I endured as a child,” said Sayegh. “Those experiences inspired my deep conviction that my life’s mission is to offer children, mired in seemingly hopeless poverty and despair, uplifting hope and inspiration to truly believe in their incredible potential while never ceasing to strive for success in life.”

Sayegh’s dedication to give back inspired the USS Foundation, which he established. From hosting free educational programs to combat organized retail crime to sponsoring innovative initiatives helping those less fortunate, he continues to do his part in making the world a better place.

“Our highest calling in this life is to recognize the numerous blessings that have been poured upon each of us and in turn to reciprocate those blessings by showing compassion and generosity to those who have not been afforded the same opportunities in life due to situation and circumstance. Giving back is the only real way I can demonstrate my gratitude, instill the right lessons in my own family, and positively impact the future generation that will one day lead our communities.”

Sayegh feels that compassion is the quality that drives true leadership. “A compassionate perspective allows for giving from the heart—and those are the gestures that make the most-lasting impact. Hold yourself to a higher standard, and you’ll witness your peers and colleagues rise to the occasion to meet you there.

“The path of a leader isn’t an easy one, but as you learn to lead and inspire others, I can say without a doubt that it’s one of the most rewarding experiences in this life.”

“During my career I’ve benefitted from moving around the country learning different cultures and geographies,” said Sellers. “I’ve had great mentors and leaders to learn from, but I’ve also been fortunate to lead teams of hard-working, professional people every step of the way. I enjoy giving back.

I feel so blessed to have had the career and life that I’ve had, and am driven to help others move ahead as well.

“When I came to Delhaize America, I learned more about the hunger crisis in our own country, where 41.2 million people live in food-insecure households. That’s when I began to volunteer with Food Lion Feeds, packing food staples for those in need. This was truly an awakening to the needs of my own community, where I’ve volunteered to serve meals, donated food for holiday distribution, packed school backpacks with food and school supplies, and collect all the travel toiletries from my work travels to donate to our local shelter. Our loss prevention team also recently helped build a house with Habitat for Humanity, and some of us participated with the Food Lion leadership team to set a Guinness World Book of Records for making over 10,000 bagged lunches in one hour.

“Always do something that feeds your spirit. Find time to do whatever recharges you, and you’ll be better at work, in your community, and even within your own family. But leave room for community work—as asset protection professionals we’re called to serve, and our lives are more fulfilled when we do.”

Adel Sayegh, President/CEO, Universal Surveillance Systems

Tina Sellers, Director of Asset Protection, Retail Business Services, an Ahold Delhaize Company

Nominations Are Encouraged at Excellence@LPportal.com We want this to be your program. Those of you working as LP practitioners witness these exceptional performances on a regular and ongoing basis, and we strongly encourage you to provide us with nominees for each of the award categories. We encourage creative nominations and want the program to cast a positive light on the many tremendous contributions of the loss prevention community. Nominations can be submitted via email to excellence@LPportal.com.

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INTERVIEW

FROM LP TO INTERNAL AUDIT TO ENTERPRISE RISK MANAGEMENT THE EVOLUTION OF KEVIN VALENTINE’S CAREER WITH SIGNET JEWELERS

By James Lee, LPC, Executive Editor

INTERVIEW EDITOR’S NOTE: Kevin Valentine, CFI, LPC, retired at the end of 2017 as senior vice president of internal audit, loss prevention, and enterprise risk management for Signet Jewelers. He spent more than thirty-five years with the company in various management roles.

During his career, Valentine was active in the loss prevention industry supporting LP Magazine, the Loss Prevention Foundation, and the Loss Prevention Research Council.

EDITOR: Who is Signet Jewelers, and what brands make up the company?

VALENTINE: Signet Jewelers Limited is the largest specialty jewelry retailer in the US, UK, and Canada. Signet operates approximately 3,600 stores primarily under the name brands of Kay Jewelers, Zales, Jared The Galleria Of Jewelry, H.Samuel, Ernest Jones, Peoples, and Piercing Pagoda. Signet also operates JamesAllen.com. The company’s annual sales of approximately $6.4 billion derive from the retailing of jewelry, watches, and associated services.

EDITOR: How did Signet come about?

VALENTINE: Signet Group PLC was incorporated in England and Wales on January 27, 1950, under the name Ratners (Jewellers) Limited. The name of the company was changed on December 10, 1981, to Ratners (Jewellers) Public Limited Company, on February 9, 1987, to Ratners Group PLC, and on September 10, 1993, to Signet Group PLC. The group expanded rapidly by acquisition during the period 1984 to 1990. It first entered the US market in 1987 by acquiring Sterling Inc., a company based in Akron, Ohio. Kay Jewelers Inc. was acquired in 1990 and Marks & Morgan Jewelers Inc. in 2000.

On September 11, 2008, Signet Group PLC became a wholly owned subsidiary of Signet Jewelers Limited. Signet also moved its country of domicile from the United Kingdom to Bermuda on the same day, although it retains headquarters in Akron, Ohio.

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In February 2014, Signet Jewelers Ltd. agreed to buy Zale Corporation.

In July 2017, Virginia Drosos was appointed as the new CEO of Signet Jewelers Ltd., replacing Mark Light who had served as CEO since October 2014.

In August 2017, it was announced that Signet Jewelers Ltd. agreed to buy R2Net, owner of online jewelry retailer James Allen.

EDITOR: You advertise yourself as the world’s largest retailer of diamond jewelry. What are some of the statistics that relate to that claim?

VALENTINE: This is based on the volume of Signet’s sales and the overall percentage of those sales that are diamonds.

EDITOR: In how many countries do you have retail operations or manufacturing locations?

VALENTINE: Signet has retail operations in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. Signet also has a diamond liaison office in India, a diamond-polishing factory in Botswana, and a design center office in New York.

EDITOR: Describe your career path and previous responsibilities inside the company.

VALENTINE: Originally when I was hired as the director of loss prevention, the company was called Sterling Merchandise. We were a privately held company with seventy-three stores. I was the company’s first loss prevention person and was given the task of building a loss prevention program with no staff. There was literally nothing except a table, a straight-back chair, and a two-drawer, empty filing cabinet.

In 1985, I was able to justify hiring my first regional loss prevention investigator and was also given the responsibility of the inventory control department and the telecommunications department. In 1986, an investment group purchased the company, and we went public, which allowed us to start expanding and acquiring other jewelers across the US. Becoming part of the due-diligence team as we continued to

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make acquisitions became a very exciting and fulfilling experience.

In 1987, the company was purchased and became a wholly owned subsidiary of UK-based Signet Jewelers Limited, which operated jewelry stores in the UK. Because of the company’s growth, in 1989 we started an internal audit department, and I was promoted to director of loss prevention and internal audit Sterling Jewelers, another company name change.

We also started a store retail and corporate audit program.

Signet has retail operations in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom.

Signet also has a diamond liaison office in India, a diamond-polishing factory in Botswana, and a design center office in New York.

Then in 1992, I was promoted to the vice president of loss prevention, internal audit, and inventory control with the responsibility of 500 stores in seven years, having grown from seventy-three.

In 2002, the internal audit department became the project management office for Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) compliance. In 2012, I was promoted to vice president internal audit and enterprise risk management (ERM) Signet International, which included all LP, internal audit, risk management, and physical security in the US, UK, India, and Botswana. At the same time, I started to report functionally

LOSSPREVENTIONMEDIA.COM

INTERVIEW

Progressive departments can be an integral part of the leadership teams within the organizations and have the ability to impact companies’ results. LP can definitely have a voice, thereby affecting change and direction. This doesn’t happen by chance. You must earn it by adding value that can be measured. to the audit committee of the board of directors of Signet, with administrative reporting to the CFO. What was unique about this was that this was the first time a department was over not only our US operations but also international.

My last promotion was in 2015, when I was promoted to senior vice president of internal audit, loss prevention, and enterprise risk management Signet International, which was a result of continued growth of the company along with the acquisition of Zale, which took the company to over 3,600 locations and $6.4 billion in revenue. So in over thirty years, I had the pleasure of being part of this growth from a seventy-three store, privately owned jeweler to the largest retail jeweler in the world.

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INTERVIEW EDITOR: You own multiple responsibilities in the company.

Describe your organization and the various staff and roles reporting to you.

VALENTINE: During my career, I have had the opportunity to have many great team members that like myself have worked their way up in the retail jewelry industry. The following individuals have well over eighty years combined experience in the industry and with my retirement have some new roles. Mark Neapolitan, senior director of loss prevention, is responsible for all the field LP teams in the US and UK. Chris Hackler, senior director of physical security, is responsible for the entire store, corporate, distribution center, and our factory in Botswana. Tom Kimble, senior director of internal audit, is responsible for all corporate audit and store audit for the US and UK. Scott Robinson, senior

I was the company’s first loss prevention person and was given the task of building a loss prevention program with no staff.

There was literally nothing except a table, a straight-back chair, and a two-drawer, empty filing cabinet.

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INTERVIEW director of enterprise risk management, is responsible for all Signet responsibilities for ERM and SOX compliance.

EDITOR: With your long tenure in your company and the retail security industry, how do you view the change that has occurred as an LP and risk management executive in this industry?

VALENTINE: Progressive departments can be an integral part of the leadership teams within the organizations and have the ability to impact companies’ results.

LP can definitely have a voice, thereby affecting change and direction. This doesn’t happen by chance. You must earn it by adding value that can be measured.

operations, and management. There are two sides of risk—looking at risk to control the probability and/or impact of an event or to maximize opportunities. At the retail level, it is managing risk of loss to the customer experience. There is not an LP policy or procedure you want to put into place that takes away from that positive experience and results in a sale. That’s a challenge.

EDITOR: Given the global nature of your business, how do you protect the supply chain from source to manufacturing to delivery to the store?

EDITOR: What are the challenges of managing risk at a specialty retailer dealing with expensive lines of merchandise?

VALENTINE: We utilize very sophisticated software and well-trained people that have the ability to identify and locate product not only where it is at but also the location within a specific area.

VALENTINE: You need to have an enterprise risk management process that is created and agreed to by LP,

EDITOR: Inside the store specifically, what technologies

and procedures are in place to prevent both internal and external losses?

VALENTINE: Stores are risk ranked depending on a number of factors, and that drives what technologies and procedure we use. It starts with strong physical protection compliance— everything is under lock and key—and then it is supported by the appropriate technologies, in other words, alarms, CCTV, remote interactive monitoring, security officers, and so forth. In addition, we do extensive counting of product with the assistance of an automated merchandise piece-count system that allows us to determine that there is no loss on a daily basis.

EDITOR: How have these technologies and systems evolved over the years?

VALENTINE: First, LP technologies and systems are now fully integrated, providing data that supports the point of sale, merchandise systems, and

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INTERVIEW

It isn’t about one single accomplishment but rather the sum total of what was accomplished over the years, with the same company.

Being with a retailer with such a tremendous story of growth, adapting to those growth needs, and being able to contribute meaningfully was very rewarding.

marketing efforts. These technologies have allowed LP to add value to the retail business. Second, vendor relationships have become more important as they continue to help develop solutions to our complex problems. Vendors have really evolved into true business partners and solution providers. When we look at an issue, it is as simple as where you are, where do you want to go, and how do you get there. The first two are relatively easy.

The third one is the work. Working with solution providers who understand that is important.

EDITOR: Do you have a vision of how they may change in the future?

VALENTINE: I can’t stress enough that these areas must have an IT expert that is

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INTERVIEW connected and helping to develop the department roadmap. If not, you will be lost.

EDITOR: Retail in general has changed significantly in recent years as it relates to e-commerce and omni-channel retailing. Are you seeing similar changes in jewelry retailing? If so, how is that changing your role?

sexy

VALENTINE: Many years ago, I can remember we opened a stand-alone distribution center for e-commerce. It was thought of as a separate channel. Boy, has that thought changed! It is now the total customer experience, highlighted with the expectations for the need for instant sell and pick up. The biggest challenge is how to manage the omni-channel logistics online orders and manage your inventory for a maximum sell through, fulfilled to the buyer’s home, online sent to store for in-store pickup, orders submitted through other distributors and their logistics infrastructure, not to forget the merchandise return process. Having a lot of involvement from the internal audit side to ensure that all these new systems have adequate controls in place is a must. It is a total change from the only option of brick and mortar.

MAKING BRASS

SINCE 1986

EDITOR: What would you regard as your proudest accomplishments during your career as an LP executive?

We’re also pretty good at building custom KeyControl® programs that reduce overall operating costs.

VALENTINE: I would say it isn’t about one single accomplishment but rather the sum total of what was accomplished over the years, with the same company. Being with a retailer with such a tremendous story of growth, adapting to those growth needs, and being able to contribute meaningfully was very rewarding. I had very supportive bosses that gave me many opportunities for continuous growth and as a result accomplished many wonderful things. My success was possible because I was blessed to work with fantastic team members that were very talented and committed. As a result, we were able to consistently and systematically drive value, which created an environment resulting in very low department turnover.

EDITOR: You are a member of the board for the Loss Prevention Foundation (LPF). Describe your role as a board member and head of the audit committee.

VALENTINE: When Gene Smith, then foundation president, asked me to be on the board, I was honored and excited to work with such a distinguished group. As a board member, my role is to work with the other board members in helping to focus on the organization’s mission, strategy, and goals. Unlike many other industry-related groups, LPF requires a full board vote to be accepted as a board member. What an honor to be recognized by your industry peers.

As the audit committee chair, my role with other audit committee members is to have open communication with the independent auditor, accountants, management, and the board of directors. We meet with management and the independent

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INTERVIEW continued from page 29

auditor to review and discuss the foundation’s annual financial statements and quarterly financial statements, as well as all internal control reports. We also appoint, retain, and oversee the work performed by the independent auditor retained for the purpose of preparing or issuing an audit report or any related work.

EDITOR: What are your views on education and continuing education for LP associates?

VALENTINE: I am a strong supporter of education and continuing education for team members. A number of department team members at Signet have taken advantage of the tuition reimbursement and have received either a bachelor’s or master’s degree as a result. As a department, we pay for our team members to receive their LPC or CFI certifications. There are a number of groups that provide great continuing education, such as National Retail Federation, Retail Industry Leaders Association, Jewelers’ Security Alliance, the Institute of Internal Auditors, ASIS, CLEAR, and the Risk Management Association to name a few, and we encourage team members to attend frequently. I would also stress that team members understand the business from start to finish and most importantly the financial side of the company they work for, not just their department.

EDITOR: Your retirement was recently announced. What is next for Kevin Valentine?

VALENTINE: I plan on staying active in the industry. I also have done some consulting in the past, and I will be doing more in the future. My responsblities at Signet required a lot of travel over the years, and I plan to spend more time with my family. I am also a partner in a cigar shop called Royal 10 Cigar in North Royalton, Ohio, so I will be more active in that. And as you know, I really enjoy golf and just need an excuse to go fishing.

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CERTIFICATION Interview with Kenn Dilworth, LPC Dilworth has over twenty years of loss prevention and security experience with Best Buy, Marshalls, and his current employer Publix Super Markets. During his career he has held several management positions including asset protection officer and retail LP auditor. Dilworth retired from the US Navy after twenty years of service, during which he received a Navy Accommodation Medal for humanitarian work in Guantanamo Bay Cuba. In addition to his LPC, which he received in 2017, he has also earned his LPQ, certified protection officer (CPO), and certified security solutions (CSS) certifications.

Stepping Up Your Game as an LP Professional Why did you decide to pursue your LPC certification?

break. I knew I needed “muscle memory” to be disciplined and focused to ensure I would not give up. I studied, completed the quizzes, and reviewed my answers. When I identified sections where I had the greatest opportunities, I made sure I would spend extra time reviewing it.

When I felt ready to take the exam, I reviewed my notes again and again until it became automatic. The night before the exam, I made sure I had a good night sleep, then had a light breakfast and watched my sugar and sodium intake. I arrived at the testing center thirty minutes early to check in. As I reviewed the exam, which was worded completely differently from course quizzes, I made sure to reread the questions thoroughly before making any selections. If I had not taken extra time to study and really know the course material, I would not have felt comfortable enough to pass the exam. When I had completed the exam and reviewed all my answers, I closed my eyes and push the exam “Complete” button. When the system said, “Passed,” I was very excited and proud.

I had already completed the LPQ in 2015 and personally wanted to improve my loss prevention knowledge and professional development and add to my self-confidence. At the start of 2017, I made obtaining LPC certification a goal.

No matter what it would take, I was going to try very hard to achieve this goal. I didn’t just want the designation; I wanted to really know the material. Even now, I often review my notes.

Was the LPC coursework what you expected?

I knew in advance this course wasn’t going to be easy.

Several colleagues of mine who have obtained their LPC certifications told me it was very informative. After reviewing material contents, I knew it was going to be very demanding and challenging. The course material is highly relevant in all aspects of my job. I expected a lot and received a lot.

The exam was very challenging because the questions were worded differently than course quizzes. I was well prepared because of my dedication and focus on passing the exam.

Looking at your own personal background and knowledge, what information in the course helped you the most?

This course is not cheap.

But the experience and knowledge you gain from the material and passing the exam is priceless! I would highly recommend this course to everyone in the retail LP profession.

Finance, budgeting, supply chain, crisis management, logistics, and pharmacy are sections that helped me the most.

This information made me feel comfortable and provided a broader understanding that will make me a more rounded business partner.

What was the most eye-opening information that was part of the curriculum?

How it is very important for LP professionals to stay focused within their companies’ long-range business strategy plans. Also, how important it is to partner with others, including store personnel, law enforcement, vendors, and even competitors.

Talk about the process of going through the coursework and taking the exam.

What benefits have you seen from taking the course?

First, I had to figure out an action plan on how I was going to complete the course. I tried a couple of things until I found the right course of action for me. I dedicated a time and place to study the material and gathered the supplies I would need, such as 3x5 cards and other equipment like my iPad, cell phone, and printer. Sometimes I would go a couple of days nonstop until I just had to take a short

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The whole process, from studying the course materials, taking the quizzes and the practice test, and eventually taking the exam itself, helped me with both my confidence and self-esteem, not to mention gaining a lot of knowledge that will make me a better LP professional. |

LOSSPREVENTIONMEDIA.COM

It let me know that I can accomplish anything if I just set my mind, stay focused, and remain totally committed.

IMPROVE

If you could offer one key takeaway to someone currently considering getting certified, what would it be?

When you obtain your LPC certification, you not only demonstrate your level of knowledge and competency in the retail LP industry to your peers and your employers, but also show that you are committed to advancing your own career through ongoing education.

IN STORE SECURITY

How would you compare the foundation certifications to other educational courses that you’ve taken?

There is no comparison. With both the LPQ and LPC certifications, I greatly improved my on-the-job knowledge. Also, the certifications force me to continue with my learning, so I can stay current in the retail industry and be a better LP professional.

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How has certification changed your expectations of loss prevention as a career, for yourself and for others?

Having this certification will afford me more opportunities to be promoted in the LP field over those without it. In addition for me personally, I often questioned whether I really needed the LPC certification. After completing this course, I now know this was the correct decision. By having my LPC designation, my peers now know that I have stepped up my game to another level.

Would you recommend certification to others?

I would absolutely say if someone is serious about their own growth, the LPC designation would be a great investment. This certification will not only provide you the confidence you’ll need moving forward but also let others know, especially in the LP industry, that you are serious about making their companies profitable by reducing their losses.

This course is not cheap. But the experience and knowledge you gain from the material and passing the exam is priceless! I would highly recommend this course to everyone in the retail LP profession.

Newly Certified

Following are individuals who recently earned their certifications.

Recent LPC Recipients Jason Anderson, LPC, Sears Holdings Douglas Del Campo, LPC, Amazon.com Wayne Frutchey, LPC, Gordon Food Service Jason Kinder, LPC, Sears Holdings Douglas Rajala, LPC, Amazon.com Max Salata, LPC, Goodwill Industries of South Central Wisconsin Ryan Schild, LPC, Amazon.com David Sherer, LPC, TJX Louisa Strange, LPC, Amazon.com

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Recent LPQ Recipients Nadia Godfrey, LPQ, Indigo Books and Music Steven Novak, LPQ, EDD Donald Scott, LPQ, Walmart Stores

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FEATURE

ORC IS WORRISOME, WORSENING… AND AT RISK OF BECOMING IGNORED?

By Garett Seivold, Contributing Writer

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ORC IS WORRISOME, WORSENING…

O

rganized retail crime (ORC) is a significant source of loss for US retailers. Exactly how significant is notoriously difficult to tease out, but new data from the National Retail Federation (NRF) puts average losses at $726,351 per $1 billion in sales, with a median loss of $260,870.

In addition to high losses, retailers are also witnessing a growing amount of ORC activity in their stores, according to the NRF’s 2017 Organized Retail Crime Survey released in November. Two out of three responding retailers said ORC has worsened in the last twelve months compared to the twelve months previous, with 30 percent reporting a “significant increase” in ORC. Fewer than 7 percent said ORC has decreased during the same period.

“Organized retail crime continues to be one of the biggest challenges to retailers of all sizes…with Bob Moraca criminals getting smarter, more brazen, more aggressive,” according to Bob Moraca, CPP, CFE, MBA, vice president for loss prevention at the NRF. As for what’s driving the increase, ORC investigators on the front line point the finger at problems well beyond a store’s front door. “It’s drugs,” said Mike Powell, an ORC investigator for Kroger.

“There is no doubt the oxy epidemic is driving ORC business.” Nathan Bandaries, an organized retail crime manager at Albertsons, agrees. “Ninety percent of the boosters we catch are on drugs. They wake up desperate because they only have a matter of hours to ‘get well’—to go steal and navigate to their dealers. It’s a cycle that repeats itself, day after day,” said Bandaries.

That desperation may partly be behind the increase in aggression that retailers described in the NRF survey.

Twenty-seven percent said ORC thieves exhibited “much more” aggression and violence over the last twelve months; 21 percent said “somewhat more.” Moraca explained, “More and more, these criminals are coming in and menacing

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Losses Attributed to ORC Are Rising $726,351

2017

2016

$700,259

$453,940

2015

0 200,000 400,000 600,000 *Average loss per $1 billion in sales in previous 12 months (Source for all figures: National Retail Federation)

800,000

In the Last Year, ORC Activity Has Increased 5.7% 0.9% 26.4%

36.8% 30.2%

Slight Increase

Significant Increase

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Slight Decrease

Significant Decrease

ORC IS WORRISOME, WORSENING…

As for what’s driving the increase, ORC investigators on the front line point the finger at problems well beyond a store’s front door.

“It’s drugs,” said Mike Powell, an ORC investigator for Kroger.

“There is no doubt the oxy epidemic is driving ORC business.” employees, pushing and shoving customers, shouting at everyone to get down on the floor, and those kinds of things. We haven’t seen this type of violence in a long time.”

Despite retailers reporting worrisome and worsening data, resources to fight it may be on the verge of stagnating. Only 40 percent said their companies are allocating more resources to fight ORC, down from about half of retailers that noted increased spending in both 2016 and 2015. Only 17 percent are currently adding staff resources, a marked decline from 2016 when more than 40 percent of retailers added personnel to fight ORC. Those figures are worrying as a consensus of experts suggests that highly trained and dedicated security teams with a sufficient budget, often working with law enforcement to identify and prosecute offenders, have proven to be the most reliable way to impact ORC rings.

The leveling off of resources to fight ORC may be a consequence of another point of concern in the new NRF data.

Although select years have seen spikes, the percent of retail respondents that think top company leaders appreciate the severity of ORC is largely unchanged over the last decade.

“The trend is moving away from staffing at the retail end, and some retailers have lost their ORC programs altogether,” noted Sgt. Rich Rossman, vice president of the Coalition of Law Enforcement and Retail (CLEAR), a partnership created in 2008 to encourage cooperation between retail corporations and law enforcement agencies. The problem is compounded by the rise in violent crime in some areas of the country, which has forced law enforcement to shift its attention away from property crime investigations toward public safety, he added.

For retailers, being able to identify the bottom line impact of ORC is crucial to combat it, according to Rossman. “Some retailers have done a phenomenal job—and are adding to their ORC programs. Those are the ones that can peel back the layers of the crime to identify its true impact.

For example, when a crew goes in and wipes out ten SKUs, looking a little deeper at that and understanding that because products are not on the shelves, they’re losing that revenue.”

It’s that type of full accounting and understanding of the problem that retailers risk losing if they scale back funding and staffing ORC units, LP MAGAZINE

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according to Rossman. “That’s all dependent on whether retailers dedicate the resources and manpower that’s required,” he said.

A good understanding of losses to ORC versus amateur shoplifting provides an important foundation to a successful LP effort to prevent external theft, notes a 2016 report for the ECR Community Shrinkage and On-Shelf Availability Group, Amplifying Risk in Retail Stores. “It matters for a number of reasons, the most important of all being that research has shown that the impact of interventions designed to stop or minimize theft vary considerably in their effectiveness depending upon the type of offender,” according to the report by University of Leicester’s Adrian Beck. “Deterring and indeed detecting professional thieves often requires a very different approach.”

Perhaps the worst-case scenario for LP is a sort of death spiral, in which fewer resources allocated to ORC makes it more difficult to identify ORC as being the cause of loss, which in turn suggests that ORC is becoming less significant, which leads to less management concern. The cycle might then repeat: even fewer resources,

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ORC IS WORRISOME, WORSENING…

Those figures are worrying as a consensus of experts suggests that highly trained and dedicated security teams with a sufficient budget, often working with law enforcement to identify and prosecute offenders, have proven to be the most reliable way to impact ORC rings. even less ORC data capture, even less management concern, and still fewer resources.

One data point in the new survey may suggest that this is a real possibility.

In the last twelve months, 56 percent of retailers said they had identified stolen merchandise or gift cards being sold online, down significantly from 75 percent in 2016. The NRF report concludes, however, that “this could be due in part to diminishing resources allocated to fight ORC and recover stolen merchandise.” If retailers cut their number of ORC investigators, then it’s natural they will identify less of their goods online.

The data point also runs counter to what law enforcement and ORC investigators focused on the problem are witnessing. “The primary change has been the availability of so many social networks on which you can now pass off the product. It has opened up so many avenues for people to get rid of their product,” said Sgt. Rossman, who is in the organized retail crime division in the Broward County (Fla.) Sheriff’s Office. “In the years past that was hard; you had to go to a fence. Now you can be a booster and your own fence—and

get rid of your stolen products through social media.”

At retailers that are leading the fight against ORC through dedicated ORC units, investigators highlighted the same challenge, including Kroger’s Mike Powell. “Social media has brought about a huge change in ORC because it doesn’t matter what level of criminal you are, it gives you an outlet.” Several experts noted the persistent challenge of fighting back against e-fencing because

continued on page 40

Retailers Have Reported Steady Growth in ORC Victimization in Last Decade 100%

75%

78%

85%

94%

88%

95%

50%

25%

0% 2005

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new online outlets pop up as soon as others disappear.

The risk that ORC could slip as a priority is a concern, and so is the number of states that have raised the limits for felony theft, which may threaten the seriousness with which law enforcement perceives the issue. “For example, in California, because of Prop 47, data could show fewer incidents. But that doesn’t mean it’s happening less,” according to Aaron Moreno, senior

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2017

ORC IS WORRISOME, WORSENING…

LPM Online Digital Magazine Focused on ORC The December 2017 edition of LPM Online was focused on organized retail crime (ORC), which included this feature article by Garett Seivold. Below is a look at the other excellent articles in our digital magazine that publishes on even-numbered months. All editions of LPM Online can be accessed at LPM-online.com.

Organized Retail Crime Is a Community Concern Curt Crum is a career law enforcement officer with the Boise (ID) Police Department and president of the national Coalition of Law Enforcement and Retail (CLEAR). LPM’s Jim Lee, LPC, gets Crum’s insights into the community problem of ORC.

ORC: Arming Ourselves with Education LPM’s Jacque Brittain, LPC, provides a preview of a new ORC education course created by the Loss Prevention Foundation with help from a team of LP industry experts.

Cargo Theft: Our Industry Problem One of the asset protection industry’s experts on retail supply chain provides a compelling argument for why cargo theft is not just a trucking and insurance problem but an LP industry problem that must be addressed.

Inside the ORC Interview Dave Thompson, CFI, offers a written treatise on Wicklander-Zulawski’s perspective on interviewing ORC offenders as well as a video discussing the subject.

An Update on Emerging Issues in ORC The Loss Prevention Research Council (LPRC) has been looking at ORC since the early 2000s. In this article the LPRC team provides an update on what they’ve learned along the way and where ORC is heading.

Rise of the Robots?

Mobile security devices may sound like something out of Star Wars, but retailers are starting to implement robotic technology.

The Unintended Consequences of California’s Proposition 47 on Retail Theft This podcast features a panel of experts on how increasing the felony threshold has negatively impacted retailers.

Intelligence: The Most Important Tool in the Fight Against ORC Read about one company’s solution to preventing retail crime through information, intelligence, and collaboration.

If you’ve missed any of our previous LPM Online editions, go to the Archives page at the end of the digital magazine to see what you’ve missed. Be sure to be an LPM digital subscriber, so you are the first to know when new issues are available. If you haven’t already, sign up on the SUBSCRIBE NOW link at LossPreventionMedia.com.

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ORC IS WORRISOME, WORSENING…

Perhaps the worst-case scenario for LP is a sort of death spiral, in which fewer resources allocated to ORC makes it more difficult to identify ORC as being the cause of loss, which in turn suggests that ORC is becoming less significant, which leads to less management concern. continued from page 38

director for government relations at the California Grocers Association. “It’s because it’s gotten to the point that a lot of stores don’t report the incident because the person is long gone and it’s going to be a misdemeanor anyway.”

In light of the evolving threat and uncertain support, most leaders in the fight against ORC stress the need for consistency—in soliciting top

management’s attention, in tracking trends, in educating stakeholders, and in forging and strengthening partnerships.

“Is there more emphasis on ORC nowadays? Absolutely. Are we more knowledgeable about losses due to ORC? Yes. But we have to continue learning about ORC because it is constantly changing, in what boosters are taking, in what fences are buying, by region, and in what crimes are being committed,”

Management Appreciation, Understanding of ORC Is Largely Unchanged Do you believe your company understands the complexity and severity of ORC?

2007

2012

2017 40

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GARETT SEIVOLD is a journalist who has covered corporate security for nearly twenty years. He has been recognized for outstanding writing, investigative reporting, and instructional journalism.

He has authored dozens of survey-based research reports and best-practice manuals on security-related topics. Seivold can be reached at GarettS@LPportal.com.

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said Bandaries. “Another aspect is the education piece. Law enforcement, prosecutors, politicians—we have to keep educating these groups,” he said. Kroger’s Mike Powell echoed the point and added that providing continuing education on ORC to store staff is important so that LP departments can better understand the impact and scope of ORC in their stores.

Like several other experts, Sgt. Rossman sees the latest ORC data and current challenges within the context of the longer fight. “In the last five to ten years, ORC has come to the forefront, and we’ve made progress in coming together to meet the challenges it raises—and the partnerships have gotten better,” he said.

“But the problem was there ten years before that, and it will be here ten years from now, and if we retreat at all, it’s going to get much worse,” Rossman warned.

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At LPM Media Group, our mobile and digital solutions move meaningful connections from possibility to reality.

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FUTURE OF LPVIEWPOINT ACADEMIC

By Tom Meehan, CFI Meehan is the chief strategy officer and chief information security officer for CONTROLTEK. Previously he was director of technology and investigations with Bloomingdale’s, where he was responsible for physical security, investigations, systems, and data analytics. He currently serves as the chair of the Loss Prevention Research Council’s innovations working group. Prior to his 13-year tenure at Bloomingdale’s, he worked for Home Depot in loss prevention, and has had various technology, loss prevention, and operational roles at several other companies. He can be reached at tom.meehan@controltekusa.com.

How to Become a Subject-Matter Expert

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from working with it over the years.” But then it dawned on me—I asked questions, knew whom to partner with, researched, studied, read books, and took the approach of a lifetime student. If I am in a meeting and don’t know enough about a topic, I make an effort to learn about it. Even as I took on more responsibility, I never stopped reading and learning. I have a yearly goal of reading a book a week.

The colleague who asked me these questions, like many young AP professionals, has a distinct advantage over when I started twenty years ago—the Internet was not what it is today.

Nowadays, you can look up anything and read about it instantly.

In many cases you can watch a video at no cost. Social media allows you to hear what others are saying about a topic and connect directly with SMEs. You can even ask about a topic online to gather more understanding.

If you feel like you’ve become an expert or SME, you should probably not be the first one to call yourself that. Let others recognize you. I remember the first time someone called me to ask for advice on how to monitor social media. I never thought of myself as an expert. It’s great to be seen as one and called one. But I should also mention that if you are an SME, don’t deny it when someone calls you that—it can be viewed as false humility.

ork experience doesn’t necessarily mean you are a subject-matter expert. It could mean you know more than some people. A true subject-matter expert (SME) must have deep understanding of a particular process, function, or technology; must have studied the field; and must have spent hundreds—even thousands—of hours mastering a specific business topic. An easy way to define an SME is that this is a person who knows a great deal more about the topic than others with comparable experience. That being said, you may still be called an expert just by understanding more than others.

SMEs often share their knowledge freely. In retail, asset protection needs true SMEs more than ever. Our industry is changing at a rapid pace, and as AP professionals we need to stay relevant. The challenge is that technology’s rate of evolution is exponential, whereas people tend to move incrementally when it comes to learning new things. Often it’s the adoption and usage curve that slows AP down. Additionally, the implementation of new technology can be daunting.

As retail changes, take advantage of learning new technologies, methods, and strategies.

Embrace the change and never stop learning.

Your To-Do List

Here are some steps that I believe helped me become a subject-matter expert in a few areas: ■■ Never stop learning.

■■ Read a lot to include books, news, blogs, audiobooks, and podcasts. All of it counts.

■■ Ask questions.

■■ Know the experts in your field and network with them.

■■ Set a goal for yourself of mastering the topics that interest you.

Recently I was asked how I manage to write for magazines and blogs, speak at shows, and do podcasts. The short answer is to put yourself out there. Start to write about what you know and submit to various outlets. If you know what you are talking about, people will notice it and will invite you to share your opinions and experiences.

As retail changes, take advantage of learning new technologies, methods, and strategies. Embrace the change and never stop learning. Follow blogs, read this magazine, and listen to podcasts.

All of the information is yours to take. Be good to your peers and share what you know. If you do that, we will all become better.

Earn It

I am often asked how I learned about a particular technology or process. I will share a few examples. Several years ago I was asked about interview and interrogation techniques by a newer, younger, brighter AP person. She was eager to learn and asked great questions. I explained the standard process to get certified and how to watch others, ask questions, and practice. The next day I brought her into my office and showed her my bookshelf because I forgot one thing: “I read a lot.” I didn’t realize it until that point that I had virtually every book on interview and interrogation there is, and I read them all, some more than once.

Another question she asked was how do I know so much about security systems and CCTV. At first I said, “I just know

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ASK THE EXPERT Interview with Maurizio P. Scrofani, CCSP, LPC

Intrepreneurship within AP Is a Retailer’s Competitive Advantage

Scrofani is a well-known supply-chain asset protection professional with over twenty-five years’ experience in retail and manufacturing. He is a prolific writer and frequent speaker at regional and national conferences.

Scrofani is a consultant and general partner with MPS Ventures. He was recently named vice president of supplychain security and intelligence for ALTO US. Scrofani can be reached at maurizio@mpsconsultants.com.

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s financial budgets continue to be strained, it becomes most important for loss prevention and asset protection professionals to do more with what they have or in some cases continue to do what they do with far less. This requires more than a sharp pencil and a level of interdepartmental collaboration. It requires creating, doing, and thinking of solutions that have not been thought of or at times not been tested.

We sat down with Maurizio Scrofani, CCSP, LPC—someone who has demonstrated creative leadership—to ask him how he managed to find success as an entrepreneur inside the retail enterprise.

there is still a great deal of stigma that AP or LP is still a cops-and-robbers group that generates expense not profit.

You have to ask yourself, why does legal report to human resources versus the other way around? Why do companies see HR having a CHRO and not seeing the holistic value of a CAPO or CSO? Asset protection usually reports up to operations or finance, and the pyramid head is COO or CFO. The level of detail and demand to not just go deep and wide is an expectation in AP. The challenges the AP group continues to face with budgets, regulations, legal, supply chain, and visibility is dwarfed by how quickly AP executives need to shore up their cyber and technical skills to stay relevant.

When did you first decide to step out of your sandbox?

I was in my first management position and realized that there were questions I wanted answered that I could not find in my own area of control. I decided to learn about areas that other departments would complain about or find fault with.

It became sort of a journey looking for the Holy Grail.

Which industry do you think will promote more intrepreneurship-style behavior?

You must have come across quite a bit of scrutiny? How did you work through it?

At first there were those who wanted to be part of this renaissance, folks who were all about “feed tuna mayonnaise.”

You could feel the energy building up and the wind in your sails. That atmosphere is contagious, and you began to see other departments taking risks and looking in their own files for great ideas they had mothballed that were still quite relevant.

Once you got past the discussions and had to design, fund, and implement, the oligarchs would jump in and ask all the right questions: What are the intended consequences? What are the long-term financial strains? Is this scalable and sustainable?

Those were the great questions most cloud walkers enjoy answering. However, to your question, there were those who felt it would impact their fiefdoms. Those were the traditional folks who came across as obstructionists. People in that very small group are usually in positions of power or high-level influence. It took a great deal of political prowess, building bridges, gaining allies, and learning almost a different language. If you don’t have patience, you will implode and be dismantled. It sometimes felt like an episode of Survivor or Game of Thrones.

The good news is that there are far more long-term, true, senior leaders who get it than those who don’t. Once you get to the finished product with the anticipated results, you tend to win everyone over.

Do you believe LP is well represented in the C-suite circle?

Yes and no. I do believe there are a few that have access to the corner office based on merit, accomplishment, or a great deal of politicking. But for the most part,

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All of them. Retail department stores will continue to evolve and acknowledge that customers are looking for experiences and not just products. A customer can order online and can return it in many different ways without necessarily leaving their homes.

Manufacturers are also becoming most innovative in not just selling but also buying. They have layered software programs that allow them to make the best secure, fast, and cost-effective decision in a cross-continent environment.

Grocery continues to look for innovative ways to manage spoilage and hot shot loads. They are a tight-margin industry that is always looking for a better mousetrap.

Pharma is so highly regulated that they run the most detailed and layered programs in the consumer spending space.

They may have some additional capital, but their expense continues to be strained by regulations requirements.

I have met experts from all areas, different continents, and can say that we are in a positive multi-industry renaissance.

What do you think these intrepreneurs will bring to the market in the next three to five years?

I believe the customer will create the shift in paradigm as they always do. Just look at omni-channel today versus ten years ago when the phrase did not even exist. The customer pulls the industry, and the industry morphs to what the client demands.

I continue to see software and hardware integrating to allow for data to assist in making better decisions. I continue to see LP experts moving into hardcore data collection, analysis, and creating control tests as a true scientific control experiment is managed.

I am excited and started buying popcorn as the next several years will be a movie that is going to be great and well worth the price of admission.

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FEATURE

COLLABORATION ON

FOOD WASTE

REDUCTION WHAT DOES IT REALLY TAKE?

By Colin Peacock, ECR Community

COLLABORATION ON FOOD WASTER REDUCTION EDITOR'S NOTE: This article first appeared in the Autumn 2017 edition of LP Magazine Europe.

I

n the English language, the word “set” reportedly has the most number of different meanings—464 according to the Oxford English Dictionary. The word “run,” with 396 meanings, is apparently making a strong bid to catch up, and somewhere not far behind is probably the word “collaboration.”

Even just in the context of retailing, it has many meanings. To some, it can mean working with those you would traditionally see in a commercial relationship as your adversary. To others, collaboration is about one party complying with the needs and requests of the other party. While to others, it can mean working together towards one common purpose for the benefit of each party.

Given the sheer number of mentions of collaboration in retail publications, conferences, and talks, the ECR Community Shrinkage and On-shelf Availability Group felt there was an opportunity to bring some clarity and definition to what is really meant by collaboration, with a particular focus on reducing food waste in retail.

To this end, a team of academics and practitioners from the world of fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) manufacturers and retailers have been working together for the last eighteen months, with the support of food waste experts from Oliver Wyman, to identify the true “DNA” of collaboration.

In this article, we will detail why we chose food waste as the focus of our research on collaboration. We will then share what we have found to be some of the key barriers to collaboration and then some of the early insights from the project.

We will close by describing a possible next step for retail loss prevention professionals.

The Value of Using Food Waste as a Case Study

We chose food waste for two main reasons: 1. Food Waste Matters. One-third of food produced for human consumption is wasted. It is now an industry priority,

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and bold waste-reduction targets have been set by a number of bodies, including the Consumer Goods Forum.

2. Collaboration Is in Demand. Top retail managers have called out the need for collaboration. George Plassat, the CEO of Carrefour, said, “Food waste is a collective challenge in which all stakeholders must take action.” That comment was further underlined by Dave Lewis, the CEO of Tesco, who said, “At Tesco, we’re committed to tackling food waste not only in our own operations but also through strong and effective partnerships with our suppliers

One-third of food produced for human consumption is wasted. It is now an industry priority, and bold waste-reduction targets have been set by a number of bodies, including the Consumer Goods Forum. and by helping our customers reduce waste and save money.”

In short, food waste is not only highly relevant to our member organisations and the shoppers they serve, but also seen as a priority by senior business leaders who have called out improved collaboration as a strategic priority. Thus, it made sense for the ECR Group to focus this project on food waste.

Understanding the Barriers to Collaboration

Despite the apparent relevance and sense of urgency for greater collaboration on food waste, many attending the workshops organised by the ECR Group expressed frustration at the current state of

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collaboration. As one member put it, “We all know what we have to do together to reduce food waste, but it’s not happening.”

They then went on to ask, “What does it really take for us to get to a better state of collaboration?”

To begin to answer this question, the research group had to first identify the major barriers to improving collaboration.

Five key obstacles were thought to be particularly relevant: 1. Incentives. The reward and recognition schemes for most suppliers’ category managers and retail buyers do not include food waste, thus collaboration is rarely included as a metric or consideration in their assortment discussions, annual contracts, or daily interactions on supply.

2. Competing Internal Priorities. Fresh suppliers are being asked to collaborate with multiple stakeholders within each of their customers, each with slightly different requirements that have different impacts on food waste.

By way of example, the supplier and the supply-chain manager of a retailer may wish to increase the case counts from twenty-four units per case to forty-eight units to reduce packaging costs and the number of journeys to the store. However, the supplier’s category manager and the retail buyer may want smaller case counts from twenty-four units to twelve units to increase sales and the depth of distribution. If retailers and suppliers cannot be perfectly aligned internally on their requirements, collaboration will be problematic.

3. Data Sharing. Collaboration can only happen when data is shared, yet accessibility to the right level of inventory, food waste, and sales data by store and by SKU is a barrier, with some retailers choosing as a principle not to share data.

4. Benefit Sharing. While multiple case studies consistently demonstrate that collaboration can unlock huge value, often projects can stall at the very start when organisations fail to reach agreements on how to split any benefits that may be realised.

5. Consistency and Capacity.

Collaboration is about long-term thinking; however, suppliers’ category

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COLLABORATION ON FOOD WASTER REDUCTION managers and buyers are often tasked to think short term. Further, the capacity required for collaboration, in terms of days and hours, can simply not be available.

The Role of Better Collaboration in Food Waste Reduction

There is much that retailers and producers can do to reduce food waste without the need for collaboration with other organisations. However, there are also some transformational changes that can only be delivered when organisations collaborate. Below are a few examples.

Range and Assortment

Joint product innovation from initial conceptualisation to eventual product launch that considers and designs in potential food waste reduction benefits, for example, longer shelf life, shorter supply chains, or reduced case sizes.

■■ Joint development of range and planograms by type of store and format using metrics such as the fresh case cover (FCC) that can prevent food waste. By way of explanation, the FCC “score” is a function of the weekly sales rate, the shelf life, and minimum case sizes, and can help the range and space planners identify the SKU/store combinations with the greatest risk to food waste. To mitigate that risk, the planners can reduce the range to potentially increase the sales rates of each remaining SKU. They can seek ways to extend shelf life or work with the supply chain to reduce minimum case sizes.

■■ Joint development of innovative packaging and display fixtures that can improve shelf life and give the impression of abundance without the need for excessive volumes of product on display and the consequent higher risk of food waste.

■■

Planning ■■

Joint forecasting of forward sales through the combination of available information that also includes past waste performance data.

■■

Joint planning of promotional volume to also include using food waste data from previous promotions.

Supply Chain

Joint short-term demand generation activities to sell excess quantities to the consumer to try and avoid waste.

To illustrate the benefits and results from collaboration, the ECR Group has started to collect evidence from joint projects. Below are examples of three case studies:

■■

Collaboration can only happen when data is shared, yet accessibility to the right level of inventory, food waste, and sales data by store and by SKU is a barrier, with some retailers choosing as a principle not to share data.

Case Study 1. One retailer responded to the news from its suppliers of a bumper harvest of cauliflowers with the development of new in-store demand-generating promotions (recipes, extra displays, and price discounts) that helped sell through to the shopper the more-than-forecasted volumes, ensuring that produce was sold, and not left to rot.

■■ Case Study 2. One manufacturer worked with a retailer to create a new product made up of unused raw materials, thus saving those materials from being wasted. This new line item is now being sold in the retailer’s stores.

■■ Case Study 3. One manufacturer and retailer partner worked together to improve the percentage of every crop that was purchased by consumers ■■

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by repurposing and processing the off-standard and oddly shaped products into other products such as ready-made meals and frozen varieties of the product that would then be sold in the retailer’s stores. This collaboration prevented significant quantities of product being fed to animals or thrown away while also improving profitability for both organisations.

Towards Better Collaboration

While the ECR Group has yet to finalise the full details of the maturity model, three major findings have already emerged from the research.

Finding 1: Collaboration on food waste must be declared a business priority by the organisation. Organisations that are mostly likely to be strong collaborators on food waste are also likely to have declared at the CEO level that food waste reduction fits their company strategies. In these organisations they will have: ■■ Awareness that food waste reduction is critical to the achievement of the company’s corporate goals and must be prevention focused and end to end—from farm to fork.

■■ A vision and an alignment on how to systematically share sales and food waste data.

■■ Confidence that there is a business case for collaboration that ensures a win-win for both suppliers and retailers.

■■ An approach that is well structured with aligned rules of engagement for collaboration.

Further, those organisations that have recognised the importance of collaboration on food waste will typically: ■■ Promote internally a collaborative mindset where multidisciplinary thinking and collaboration are actively fostered and incentivised.

■■ Identify the right people in the right positions to be dedicated to delivering successful collaborative work.

■■ Ensure there is full transparency of key performance indicators, such as cost and time, across the whole supply chain.

■■ Ensure the full availability of timely, accurate, and formatted inventory data.

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COLLABORATION ON FOOD WASTER REDUCTION Invest in state-of-the-art data systems that allow for seamless interaction between each organisation with strong user acceptance.

■■ Invest in state-of-the-art professional mid-to-long term forecasting systems for volume planning and utilisation across the supply chain.

■■

Finding 2: Category and partner selection needs to be very intentional.

Once the need and fit of collaboration has been established and the capability to achieve this has been put in place, organisations should then consider who are the right partners and what are the most appropriate categories for collaboration. Key considerations will be: ■■ The overall size of the joint businesses.

■■ The legacy and levels of trust from previous collaborations.

■■ The relevancte of the category sales volume to each organisation.

■■ The significance of the waste reduction opportunity for the category to each organisation.

Finding 3: Organisations need to be set up correctly in order to collaborate effectively. Organisations embracing strategic collaboration will most likely succeed when: ■■ There is buy-in and prioritisation of the collaboration effort by senior management.

■■ There are clear, tangible, and measurable objectives in place.

■■ There is clarity on benefit allocation to all parties, both within organisations as well as between third-party organisations.

■■ There is capacity for collaboration and the right level of seniority, experience, and tenure in the teams, with a good balance across functions and organisations.

■■ There is clarity on roles and responsibilities, with a clear responsible, accountable, consulted, and involved (RACI) model for each major change intervention.

■■ There is good chemistry between the teams, ensuring high-quality cross-team exchanges and mutual trust.

■■ There are frequent and disciplined joint meetings.

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High Shrink/Low Potential From Collaboration

High Shrink/High Potential From Collaboration

Category / Vendor Segmentation Low Shrink/Low Potential From Collaboration There are commonly defined key performance indicators (KPIs) being reported.

■■ There is a shared incentive system supporting aligned behaviours and common goals.

■■ There is regular and seamless exchange of predefined data sets.

The next step for the ECR research working group is to pilot the maturity model. They then plan to publish the findings of the research and launch the self-assessment tool on 30 November 2017 in Prague.

■■

Implications and Possible Next Steps for Retail Loss Prevention Professionals

Those familiar with the ECR team will be aware that it has been a consistent champion of the benefits of collaboration between retailers and manufacturers on retail loss. The ECR team believes that improved collaboration can deliver some transformational changes that could reduce retail loss: ■■ New Supply-Chain Design and Controls. If products arrived in store via a more controlled and secure method, could losses and risks be reduced and sales improved?

■■ New Packaging. What if product manufacturers could be inspired to design packaging that shoppers and store managers love and thieves hate?

■■ Security Features. Could product manufacturers add and include security features before the product arrives in store to reduce loss and improve sales?

In the nearly twenty years since its establishment, the ECR Shrinkage Group has documented some good examples

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Low Shrink/High Potential From Collaboration of successful collaboration on shrink.

However, the group would also accept that collaboration between retailers and manufacturers has not yet met the lofty aspirations they had in mind when the group was first established.

Reflecting on this most recent project on collaboration on food waste and the insights shared in this article, it is clear why progress has been slow—collaboration is most certainly not a walk in the park. On a positive note, the research is now pointing to new ways of thinking about improving it. A suggested action for you and your team to consider would be to use the ideas in this article to initiate a new collaborative project with one of your vendors that produces high shrink products.

Step 1: Analyse the collaboration opportunity by category. Analyse and then segment the product categories across stores based on the extent to which you believe that collaboration with a vendor may improve shrink and profitability.

Detailed on page 31 is a simple way to consider the relationship between the extent to which a particular category experiences shrinkage and the degree to which opportunities for collaboration are considered to be present.

By way of an example, many grocery retailers incur significant losses on joints of lamb. Thus, this product would be in one of the top two quadrants. Considering whether the benefit of collaboration would be high or low requires an understanding of the root causes of the losses on this product and the extent to which the team believe any improvements upstream in the supply chain, such as case sizes, packaging, security tagging, and so

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COLLABORATION ON FOOD WASTER REDUCTION forth, could reduce losses. If the potential from these upstream interventions is high, then joints of lamb would fit into the top right quadrant. This exercise should then be completed for all the selected categories in a store so that the critical few belonging in the top right quadrant are identified.

Step 2: Prioritise and communicate upwards. With product categories segmented, the loss prevention team should then prioritise them and communicate the opportunity for collaboration to the broader business leadership team, especially the trading and buying teams, seeking their support for a new, multidisciplinary approach to tackling the problem of shrink in this category.

Specifically, the loss prevention team should seek approval from the broader business for: ■■ Agreement on a systematic data-sharing strategy with selected vendors.

■■ Investment to appoint a dedicated project leader from within the organisation.

■■ Alignment on the choice of vendor that is to be partnered with.

To consider which vendor to select, the team could choose to reflect on the key findings highlighted in this article and answer the following questions: ■■ Is collaboration with their retailers on losses a strategic priority for the vendor?

■■ Does the vendor regard the retailer as a viable partner?

■■ Is the vendor set up and capable of being a collaborative partner?

For most vendors, partnering with their retail customers will be a strategic priority if there is evidence that collaboration can lead to sales and share growth for their products and the category. The loss prevention team should consider how they can help articulate the sales growth opportunity to their vendors by sharing their per-store sales and on-shelf availability data.

Thus, the emphasis of the vendor selection phase is on understanding the relevance to the vendors of a collaborative project with you and your organisation and the vendor’s respective capability and capacity to help deliver changes.

Step 3: Use the ECR road map to co-discover new interventions together. To kick-start your engagement with a vendor, invest in a one-day workshop with a multidisciplinary team from your organisation—buying, supply chain, stores, and so forth—and a mirror team from the vendor, including category development, packaging design, and logistics. The workshop, over one day, should aim to follow the actual journey

One manufacturer worked with a retailer to create a new product made up of unused raw materials, thus saving those materials from being wasted. This new line item is now being sold in the retailer’s stores. of a high-shrink product from the moment it is received at a distribution centre or the back door of a store through to the moment the item has been sold and taken out of a store by a shopper.

After visits to the warehouse and stores, the participants should document the actual process and then brainstorm how it could result in increased shrinkage and lost sales, prioritising those failures deemed to be the most important. These failures can then be analysed to determine the underlying root causes, and once these are unearthed, participants can then brainstorm to co-discover new interventions to either implement LP MAGAZINE

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straightaway in all stores or to pilot in just a few.

The findings should then be presented to senior management for approval and prioritisation. With alignment secured, project managers should then be assigned to ensure that the changes are piloted, deployed, or if found to be unsuccessful, shelved.

This one-day workshop approach is now embedded as a way of working for many ECR members and has been used on a diverse range of high-loss categories, including but not limited to mobile phones, products sold at delicatessen counters, razor blades, cosmetics, spirits, and designer men’s shirts.

Closing Points

The aim of this ECR article, and the others in this series, is to promote new ideas and thinking that you can debate and discuss within your organisation.

In this article, we shared early findings from a research project developing a maturity model that would define what great collaboration looks like on food waste. Is food waste a relevant priority for your organisation? Do the headlines in this article on what great collaboration on food waste looks like strike a chord with your understanding of collaboration?

We also shared a next step suggesting that you consider initiating your own collaborative project with a vendor of a high-shrink item where the team believes that a collaborative project could unlock transformational results. What would be the top five categories and vendors you would select to prioritise for a collaboration project?

Finally, if this article has stimulated you into action on this topic, we would be delighted to hear from you and the results you have been able to deliver.

COLIN PEACOCK is a visiting fellow at the University of Leicester and the strategic coordinator for the ECR Community’s Shrinkage & OSA Group. Prior to these appointments, he had a thirty‑year career at Gillette and Procter & Gamble. Peacock can be reached at colinmpeacock@ecr-shrink-group.com.

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PERSPECTIVES

The Year Ahead in LP

By Jacque Brittain, LPC

Brittain is editorial director for LP Magazine. 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.

Looking Forward with Open Eyes and Open Minds

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his is truly a transformative time in retail. With mounting expectations on product availability and escalating demands on service and convenience, the way people shop is changing—and with it the strategies necessary to attract and retain customers. Innovation has become a requisite to retail survival, with new technology offering both our greatest opportunities and our greatest challenges. But the changes that we face are more than just a few new and different widgets that will push the envelope. This is all part of an evolving retail culture that is changing the way that we do business.

What does this mean for loss prevention? What are the primary challenges the industry may face this coming year, and how might we rise to meet them? For perspective and input into where 2018 may take LP, we turned to executive leadership from three leading retail solution providers to help identify some common themes.

Ryan Carter CEO, InstaKey Security Solutions

William Santana Li CEO Knightscope

Ed Tonkon President, Zebra Retail Solutions

Was there a key trend or development in 2017 that you think will drive the loss prevention agenda in 2018? Or might something new steal LP’s focus in the year ahead?

CARTER: With a reduction in overall brick-and-mortar growth and an increasing aim at omni-channel expansion, loss prevention will need to realign their resources more toward product visibility and inventory controls. Individual consumer buying habits continue to evolve, and there is a growing need for more visibility of the available inventory. As consumers, we’ve already done our research and know what we want. We want to experience the purchase in-store but know it’s there before we go.

With this increased transparency comes inherent risk. Credit card and cyber-security threats are on the rise and can severely affect profits but more dramatically alter brand loyalty and future purchases. Loss prevention must continue evolving preventative measures for protecting these critical areas of the business.

Terrorism, active shooters, and the opioid epidemic are all growing and raising substantial concern for employee and consumer safety. Planning and preventing these types of safety

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threats is a monumental challenge for loss prevention and if done inaccurately can shake the stability of the brand, personnel, and future offerings. Security measures, training, and working in conjunction with law enforcement can help, but it will be loss prevention’s preparedness and responsiveness that will best reflect community responsibility.

SANTANA LI: We are once again moving forward in a new age of technology, and this will continue to demand our focus and attention. In 2017 we began scaling operations of autonomous security robots nationwide after numerous successful deployments in California and believe this will be an escalating trend in 2018. We’ve been able to assist law enforcement in issuing an arrest warrant for a sexual predator, helped loss prevention apprehend retail thieves, helped stop a vandal at a corporate campus, and put a stop to a fraudulent insurance claim.

We’re just getting started in providing our nation’s more than 2 million law enforcement, loss prevention, and private security professionals new, unprecedented capabilities in situational awareness—new tools to help them to do their difficult jobs much more effectively.

TONKON: Inventory accuracy and visibility will continue to drive the loss prevention agenda as retailers address the complexities of omni-channel commerce. This is vital to developing a winning retail strategy today and directly benefits loss prevention efforts by helping organizations understand what items are missing. Inventory accuracy is critical for supporting an omni-channel solution that provides real-time visibility to a single view of products across all channels. It begins with data integrity throughout the merchandise supply chain and the ability to track at the item level what happens from when it arrives at the store.

As you look over the risk landscape in 2018 and consider the many challenges currently facing LP, are there any areas where you think LP might need to step up its game?

SANTANA LI: Implementation of technology, which is a two-fold problem. First, having the courage to take on new technologies proactively and aggressively—the pace is way too slow, and there needs to be a much greater sense of urgency.

The second is much more complicated—the lack of innovative technologies to actually implement. This is an industry starving for real game-changing innovation but also an industry starving for those willing and able to drive that same innovation. This needs to change.

It’s also infuriating that we live in a society where going to work, going to the mall, going to a movie theatre, or even going

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to school comes literally with a risk of being shot or killed. A fundamental change is required. I can assure you that no amount of “thoughts and prayers” from our political leaders is going to fix this growing problem. LP folks need to think broadly about risks—not just losses.

TONKON: Technology is being embraced more rapidly than ever before, and the race to support the many facets of an omni-channel solution is driving most retail investments. But as history has shown, this race can lead to the need for greater loss prevention efforts because some retailers’ risk assessments were not fully considered at the time of implementation. As a result, initiatives such as “buy online/pick up in-store” and touchless in-store purchasing have exposed greater risks than initially understood.

Another key trend is in the world of big data, moving beyond data analytics to prescriptive analytics and the need for qualified professionals. Over the last four years, we have worked with the Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) to mentor students at the University of Texas at Austin McCombs School of Business Master of Science in Business Analytics program. This leading global program develops data scientists that RILA matches with major retailers to analyze major loss prevention challenges. With efforts like these, all industries will enable the faster transition of data into actionable information.

CARTER: We as an industry are unprepared for the opioid epidemic, which doesn’t discriminate and can affect any individual and community. It’s unsafe and creates uncomfortable and challenging situations for us all. As loss prevention professionals, we will need to identify with it, accept it’s here, learn more about it, and figure out how we can adapt to provide a safer and more secure shopping environment for our communities.

Technology advancements are coming fast and furiously.

As you look at the year ahead, do you see technology reshaping retail or loss prevention? If so, how?

TONKON: Retail is already being reshaped by changing consumer expectations. Organizations need real-time visibility and location solutions, which transform the physical to digital, so they can sense what’s happening in their operations, analyze that data to deliver insights, and act on those insights to make smarter decisions. Retailers specifically require real-time visibility across all purchasing channels to ensure they have what the shopper wants when and how they want it, or shoppers will buy somewhere else.

In loss prevention, this transition is well underway as companies move to utilizing technology and analytics that will sense, analyze, and notify store associates to act immediately on a real-time situation. These actions are geared to prevent a loss or situation from occurring in the first place because of the ability to capture data and recognize that an occurrence outside of a certain threshold is taking place so that a message can be sent to a store associate equipped with the mobile device to take action in real time.

The proper training of store associates will be the last step to make this ubiquitous. We’re seeing the emergence of new technologies such as robotics, advanced video analytics applications, behavior recognition, and the application of blockchain for food safety benefit loss prevention as well as other functional areas of retail.

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SANTANA LI: We here in Silicon Valley are working on game-changing technology that will drastically impact the entire LP landscape in the future—but would challenge the premise of the question as it’s not as fast as it needs to be. Our long-term ambition is to make loss prevention the hero in the organization. What happens when the technology is mature enough to effectively eliminate the majority of shrink—and that massive amount of money goes straight to the bottom line of an organization? What if most losses were eliminated, and we could reduce prices of goods for everyone nationwide? When that happens the shopping experience, financial performance, job satisfaction—all of it changes dramatically.

CARTER: Artificial intelligence (AI) applications and augmented-reality shopping experiences are going to continue to reshape our buying habits and purchase landscapes. As more transparency is shown during a customer’s journey, such as inventory availability, store accessibility, and un-attended kiosks, the more opportunity can arise for risk and shrink. We all want to have the latest and greatest smart devices, apps, and experience, but at what point is the experience leading us versus us leading it?

These are interesting questions to be posed and prepared for, and solutions designed to help support our evolving technology.

There is a lot of industry talk about changes in retail strategies to drive revenues. Do you see any emerging retail strategies impacting loss prevention?

CARTER: Loss prevention will need to realign resources more toward protecting product visibility and inventory management.

Having a transparent inventory knowledge bank that is accessible to any consumer could result in future threats, shrink, and inventory shortages in brick-and-mortar, further driving consumers toward omni-channel solutions. As loss prevention puts more emphasis on protecting the entire supply chain, better controls for omni-channel accessibility, diversified sales platforms, and transparency will continue to meet the ever-growing demand. I also believe that ongoing cultural changes, collaborative communities, and experiential visitations will also help to regain brick-and-mortar presence, delivering quality of experience or quantity of availability.

SANTANA LI: We are currently working on (not yet released) an AI concierge feature to add to our autonomous security robots allowing for a two-way dialogue between the machine and a human. What if the loss prevention team could provide a unique and engaging shopping experience while simultaneously securing the facility? There’s nothing like the ROI on a safe and happy customer.

TONKON: Let’s start with the touchless checkout that’s been implemented by many retailers, which eliminates the need to go through an associate-staffed point-of-sale. Depending on company policies, there are different methods for assessing and minimizing risk, but a standard method has not yet been established. Former methods for lowering risk associated with certain high-priced items are being challenged so that retailers can provide a more engaging experience, requiring that different prevention factors be implemented that utilize new technology. The good news is that these emerging technologies can be applied to a wider and more effective set of retail situations and ultimately lower the total loss factor at retail. This will be exciting for the loss prevention leaders of tomorrow.

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LPM DIGITAL Kelsey Seidler Kelsey Seidler is managing editor, digital. She manages the magazine’s digital channels that includes multiple daily e-newsletters featuring original content and breaking news as well as pushing content to various social media platforms.

Seidler recently earned her master’s degree in technology and communications through the University of North Carolina’s School of Media and Journalism. She can be reached at KelseyS@LPportal.com.

ORC Survey and Security Lawsuit

F

ollowing are a few article summaries that can provide you with a small taste of the original content available to you every day through our daily digital offerings, which are offered free through LossPreventionMedia.com. In addition to our daily newsletter, a comprehensive library of original content is available to our digital subscribers at no cost to you.

Visit our website to gain access to all of our content. You can also follow us on Facebook, Twitter (@LPMag), and LinkedIn.

is a decided preference to steal products that include a mix of high-end luxury items and everyday commodities.

Top Stolen Items While each retail sector tends to see its own version of products based on the type of products sold, below is the list of top stolen items by category according to the 2017 survey: ■■ Designer clothing ■■ Denim pants ■■ Razors ■■ Infant formula ■■ Designer handbags ■■ Laundry detergent ■■ Cigarettes ■■ High-end liquor ■■ Jewelry ■■ Teeth whitening strips ■■ Allergy medicine Thirty-four states now have ORC laws in place; however, many retailers cite state legislation changes that are made to reduce prison populations, such as Proposition 47 in the state of California, that they believe have directly resulted in increased retail crime. Thieves that keep up with the laws know value limits in order to avoid felony charges if caught. This, among other issues, has led to 70 percent of responding retailers believing that federal organized retail crime legislation is needed.

2017 Survey Reveals Organized Retail Crime’s Top Items Stolen

By Jac Brittain, LPC

The 2017 Organized Retail Crime (ORC) Survey, an annual survey conducted by the National Retail Federation, continues to show the impact that organized crime is having on the business of retail. Each year the study explores the many ways that organized retail crime continues to grow and evolve based on input from retailers across the country, detailing new challenges and persistent issues that retailers face. It also explores resources and policy changes implemented to combat organized retail crime.

According to the 2017 study, organized retail crime is once again on the rise, and those involved in ORC incidents are showing an increased propensity toward violence. More than 25 percent of retailers reported that those involved in organized retail crime are exhibiting a greater tendency toward violent behavior.

Yet according to respondents, knowledge surrounding the issue and resources to help fight ORC remain minimal.

Resources are down as other areas of the business are demanding greater attention by retail executives. With competing priorities in the retail business this year, only 20 percent of respondents believe that top management fully understands the complexity and impact of the ORC problem, and 62.3 percent of companies said they have no loss prevention employees that are focusing primarily on ORC issues.

All of this directly points to the need for increased awareness and educational opportunities related to the problem.

According to the 2017 study, shoplifting including organized retail crime is the top source of inventory shrinkage for the second straight year, outpacing employee theft, administrative errors, and other forms of shrink. ORC criminals look for items that can be stolen and quickly resold. As a result, there

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Organized Retail Crime by Location According to the 2017 survey, the top locations in the country currently experiencing incidents of organized retail crime include: 1. Los Angeles 2. New York City 3. Houston 4. Miami 5. Atlanta 6. Chicago 7. Orlando 8. San Francisco/Oakland 9. Orange County, California 10. Northern New Jersey As the retail business evolves, so does the need for improved skill sets and improving internal talent at every level of the retail business. Loss prevention is certainly no exception. Ultimately, this will demand both greater focus and broader perspectives from those that serve the industry. |

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Product Showcase Expectations for the future loss prevention team may include more employees with loss prevention as part of their job description, while their overall role may include many additional responsibilities. By the same respect, it is the responsibility of every retail leader to remain keenly aware of those issues that have the greatest impact on the business.

Read the full report at nrf.com/resources/retail-library/2017-organized-retail-crime-survey.

A Security Lawsuit Is a Legal Landmine

By Garett Seivold

Nine seconds after three armed men entered a convenience store in Rochester, NY, one of them shot security guard Brian Brown in the face. “Thirty-six pellets went into my eye; the rest went into my head,” he told local WHAM 13 News. “They’re still in there.”

Naturally, a lawsuit against the store’s parent company followed. Can you guess the outcome of this security lawsuit based on facts and circumstances?

Verdict Search, an ALM Media company, described several salient issues the jury had to consider in this case. First, the jury heard plaintiff attorneys argue why the store should be held liable for inadequate security: ■■ In the ten years before Brown was shot, six shootings and 126 robberies had occurred at the store and other area stores.

■■ The store’s cash wasn’t regularly removed to a bank and accumulated in the store’s safe.

■■ Store employees could open the safe, rather than using a drop safe that could only be opened by armed security personnel during cash pickups.

■■ The parking lot was too dark.

Next, the jury heard the retail store’s argument for why it was not responsible for the security guard’s injuries: ■■ The store had retail security procedures that were more stringent than those of other convenience stores in the area.

■■ Cash pickups were arranged so that the store’s employees would not have to risk leaving the premises with large amounts of cash.

■■ The store’s parking lot was well lighted.

Because it provided this level of security, the guard’s assailant was entirely liable for the shooting and Brown’s injuries, according to the store’s defense attorneys.

So what do you think? There was certainly some he-said/she-said in the case with respect to perspectives on the parking lot lighting. However, keeping too much cash on hand is a well-established contributor to store robberies. Does it sound like the store was found liable for the guard’s injuries? If so, what do you guess was the amount of the damage award?

The verdict: the jury said the facts of the case suggested that the store negligently failed to provide adequate security and that it should pay Brown roughly $1.2 million (Brian Brown v. Wilson Farms Inc., et al., Monroe NY Supreme Court, 2012).

A store robbery is a tragic event, but it typically involves relatively small monetary losses. The average loss in a convenience store robbery was $699 in 2014, for example.

Some crime prevention analysts think it is possible that retailers can lose sight of their significance because of the small dollar amounts involved.

However, unlike other crimes that may have a greater impact on the bottom line, robbery puts employees in physical danger, which requires management to move it ahead of others on the risk scale.

In addition to the potential of a million-dollar judgment, there are other reasons robbery prevention makes fiscal sense. Medical payment, when crime is the cause of a worker’s injury, averages nearly $14,000. Only burns and motor vehicle accidents result in higher medical payouts, according to the National Council on Compensation Insurance.

Including lost work time, legal expenses, and other costs, some industry estimates are that the average cost to employers of a single episode of workplace violence can cost between $25,000 and $250,000.

Curtailing available cash is critical in high-risk locations, according to legal experts.

During evening and late-night hours of operation, cash levels should be kept to a minimal amount per cash register to conduct business. Transactions with large bills over $20 continued on page 54 LP MAGAZINE

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Organized Retail Crime in Idaho 3rd Annual Conference

CALENDAR

Washington Group Plaza, Boise orcaid.org

continued from page 53

January 14–16, 2018 National Retail Federation Big Show Convention & Expo Jacob Javits Convention Center New York City nrfbigshow.nrf.com February 13, 2018 Cyber Security Summit Silicon Valley DoubleTree Hotel, San Jose, CA cybersummitusa.com February 19–21, 2018 Innovision 2018 Pier Sixty-Six Hotel & Marina Ft. Lauderdale, FL innovisionconference.com February 25–28, 2018 Retail Industry Leaders Association Retail Supply Chain Conference Phoenix (AZ) Convention Center rila.org February 28, 2018 Cyber Security Summit Atlanta The Whitley, Buckhead cybersummitusa.com March 13–15, 2018 Jewelers’ Security Alliance 40th Annual Security Seminar Las Vegas, NV jewelerssecurity.org March 22, 2018 Cyber Security Summit Hyatt Regency, Denver, CO cybersummitusa.com April 24-26, 2018 International Organization of Black Security Executives 2018 Spring Conference JCPenney Headquarters Plano, TX iobse.org April 29–May 2, 2018 Retail Industry Leaders Association Asset Protection Conference Gaylord Palms Resort Orlando, FL rila.org May 15, 2018 Cyber Security Summit Ritz-Carlton, Dallas, TX cybersummitusa.com June 11–13, 2018 National Retail Federation NRF Protect Gaylord Texan, Dallas nrfprotect.com

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should be prohibited. Stores should also limit use of solitary workers, especially at high-risk stores during high-risk times, experts advise.

Security Lawsuit = Legal Landmine?

Legal exposure is amplified for retailers because of the need to have store associates control members of the public. It is a difficult issue made trickier because it can be challenging to find a balance between loss/crime prevention and security-lawsuit prevention. Retailers must develop strategies to prevent theft, or else thieves will eat into profits; yet, in a specific incident, a business stands to lose much more in a lawsuit than from a thief or shoplifter.

In the retail sector, which bears the brunt of security lawsuits, companies risk million-dollar lawsuits because they don’t put sufficient resources toward training retail security guards and ensuring they are adequately supervised, according to security consultant John Christman, CPP, former vice president and director of security for Macy’s West. What should you teach them?

Here are a couple of training points suggested by recent case law.

Do we warn loss prevention staff and employees who perform security functions not to enlist members of the public in apprehending or subduing a suspect? The case: an employee at a major big-box retailer confronted a suspected shoplifter, and a physical altercation ensued, during which the worker called out for assistance from store patrons standing nearby. The suspect then stabbed one shopper who came to the worker’s aid. Afterward, the shopper sued the store, claiming that it had failed to protect him. Because businesses have an obligation to protect patrons from a crime they know is occurring or about to occur, the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled to allow the victim to pursue his claim against the retailer.

Do we focus on training security officers to stop shoppers only when they are confident that they have committed a crime? Failure to prove a charge of shoplifting leads to the majority of lawsuits against retailers, according to

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a review of 235 lawsuits by researchers at Pennsylvania State University. The case: a manager at a Charleston, SC, children’s toy store watched a woman put cookies in her tote bag while shopping and arrested her as she exited the store. However, it turned out that the Russian woman had paid for the merchandise and had only placed it in her tote temporarily, something not uncommon in her native country, according to published reports. A jury ordered the retailer to pay the woman $1.2 million.

Note: the second leading cause of claims against retailers is “arrestee subjected to mistreatment during investigation,” according to the study.

More on LossPreventionMedia.com

For more original news content, see the following articles: ■■ Target’s Minimum Wage Increased.

What Does that Mean for Theft?

■■ 7-Eleven’s Loss Prevention Strategy Recognized in 2017 Retail Touchpoints Superstar Awards ■■ Email Scams Just Keep Coming ■■ What Is Sensor Fusion, and How Should Retail Use It? ■■ Phone Scams Remain on the IRS Dirty Dozen List of Tax Scams for 2017 ■■ Retail Worker Safety and Health during the Holidays ■■ Criminological Theory and Loss Prevention ■■ California Campaign Seeks to Fix Prop 47 by Making Serial Theft a Felony ■■ The Busiest Shopping Days Are Here. Loss Prevention Tips to Help You Prepare ■■ Are You in the Clear Zone? Robbery Prevention Strategies for Retailers ■■ Physical Security IS Data Security ■■ 3 Ways Retailers Can Cut through the Data Deluge

LPM Voice

5 Recent Cases of Retail Robbery and Theft ■■ Savvy Retailers Find Value in New Benefit-Denial Technology ■■ As Help Fighting Shoplifting Wanes, Where Should Retailers Turn?

■■

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PEOPLE ON THE MOVE Nicolás Leiro Padilla was promoted to senior district asset protection manager at Abercrombie & Fitch.

Randel Baker and Dusko Tadic were promoted to regional loss prevention managers at Amazon.

Robert LaCommare, CFI was promoted to vice president, asset protection & safety with Ascena Retail Group.

Mitchell Quito Sr. was promoted to senior corporate manager of investigations at Bed Bath & Beyond.

Ryan Waldow is now a regional loss prevention manager, and Michael Bice, CFI is now a market investigator and auditor at Family Dollar.

David Gibson, LPQ is now a corporate investigations analyst at Neiman Marcus.

Adam Oberdick, LPC was promoted to North America manager, digital loss prevention at Nike.

Ben Barnes, CFI was promoted to regional loss prevention manager at Food Lion.

Stephen Rabbitt was promoted to corporate loss prevention project specialist at Nordstrom.

Ty Boulter is now a loss prevention district manager at Forman Mills.

Sean Trepiccione was promoted to distribution safety and risk manager for Ollies Bargain Outlet.

Scott Ziter was promoted to vice president of risk management at Golub Corporation/Price Chopper Supermarkets.

Erik Buttlar has been promoted to vice president of asset protection at Best Buy.

Romeo Acevedo, LPQ is now corporate loss prevention specialist at Guitar Center.

Tim Kicha is now central investigations manager at Bloomingdale’s.

Jesse Young is now a regional loss prevention manager at Gymboree.

Chanalue Knibbs is now a regional loss prevention manager, and Brian Maxwell was promoted to regional loss prevention manager at Burlington.

Andrew Kerley was promoted to national fraud investigator at Halfords (UK).

Kevin Stone, CFI is now manager, organized retail crime at Columbia Sportswear Company.

Damien Barne was promoted to head of profit protection at Compass Group (UK and Ireland).

Brendan “Ben” Dugan, CFI is now ORC & corporate investigations, Brian Marsh is now a regional loss prevention manager, and Kevin Moring was promoted to senior manager of asset insights and analytics, operations and strategy at CVS Health.

Michael Doyle, CFI is now a regional loss prevention manager at Dollar General.

Andrew Zahorsky, LPQ was promoted to acting regional loss prevention manager at Pacific Sunwear.

Joseph Wojcik is now a senior investigator at Pappas Restaurants.

Mark Reaves, CFI was promoted to director of loss prevention and field audit at Payless ShoeSource.

James Brown was promoted to corporate loss prevention manager at Prada USA.

Michael Tortorici is now a regional loss prevention manager at Hannaford Supermarkets.

Seth Hughes is now senior manager of asset protection operations at REI.

Daniel Cano is now a regional loss prevention supervisor at HEB.

James Bequette is now a zone asset protection manager at Rent-A-Center.

Ken English, LPC is now a district asset protection manager at The Home Depot.

Adam Eaton is now director, loss prevention corporate initiatives at Ross Stores.

Jeremy Girard was promoted to ORC market investigator, and Pete Tollinchi is now a district asset protection manager at JCPenney.

Todd Isenhour, LPC was recently promoted to director of human resources field operations, north division, and Matt Mothershed, CTPRP was promoted to senior information security analyst, third party risk management at Lowe’s.

Corey Holland is now a loss prevention area investigator at Saks Fifth Avenue Off 5th.

Kate Bryte was promoted to regional loss prevention manager at Save Mart.

Rocco Speziale, LPC was promoted to director of asset protection, home services, and Howard Cude was promoted to zone asset protection manager at Sears Holdings.

Rhonda Olney was promoted to corporate loss prevention manager, investigations/investigative systems at Sears Hometown and Outlet Stores.

Matt Aldmeyer is now regional sales director, Midwest at Se-Kure Controls.

Emilio Maldonado is now a regional loss prevention manager at Signet.

Carlos Oviedo, LPC is now a district loss prevention manager at Smart & Final.

Kevin Ach, LPC and John Schroeder, CFI are now vice presidents, and Jeff Mangold, CFI and Shawn Lunneborg, CFI are now field directors at Steinhoff Risk Solutions.

Rachel Herndon is now an assets protection director at Target.

Brian Csorba, CFI and David Broom, CFE, CFI, LPC were promoted to directors of loss prevention at T-Mobile.

Sam Burnim and Justin Kresser, CFE are now regional asset protection leaders at Under Armour.

Cheryl Demski, CFI is now a regional loss prevention manager at Vans.

Steve Mick, MBA was named vice president of asset protection at Victra.

Diana Workman, CPhT is now an asset protection district manager at Walgreens.

Scott Pickrel is now an area loss prevention manager, and Chad Miller was promoted to asset protection manager eCommerce at Walmart.

Jerry Oppedisano is now an area loss prevention manager at 24 Hour Fitness.

To stay up-to-date on the latest career moves as they happen, sign up for LP Insider, the magazine’s daily e-newsletter, or visit the Professional Development page on the magazine’s website, LossPreventionMedia.com. Information for People on the Move is provided by the Loss Prevention Foundation, Loss Prevention Recruiters, Jennings Executive Recruiting, and readers like you. To inform us of a promotion or new hire, email us at peopleonthemove@LPportal.com.

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PARTING WORDS

What If We Had Never Met W

Jim Lee, LPC Executive Editor you. When you are employed, you have what you think is a long list of friends, associates, partners, bosses, and subordinates. When you don’t have a job, you may find the list has remarkably shortened. Move forward with those willing to really help, and take some friendship actions.

e are not here just to fill space or be in the background in someone else’s life. Nothing would be the same if you did not exist. Everybody you have had a relationship with and every place you have been would have been different without you. There is a connection, and we are affected by those experiences, decisions, and relationships. Some believe that “things happen for a reason,” that there is some mysterious energy that causes an action or creates a result. Maybe there is; maybe there’s not. But for sure each of us has had an effect on others because of what we have done.

Take my cat, for instance. Yes, I have a cat—not to the delight of my wife I must add—and here is how it happened.

One day this mommy cat strayed into my backyard with a litter of five kittens. The mommy cat looked hungry, so I set some food out. They all kept coming back, so soon I was in the backyard trying to become a cat lover and was hooked.

The runt of the group seemed to be the most playful and would literally beg for affection. I admit it made me feel good to rub the little kitten’s head and provide food and a little safety. Knowing that at some point the kittens would go away and one by one not come back and that cats last one, maybe two, years living in the wild, I decided I would give the runt kitten a home. My little friend the cat is now nine years old, and both our lives have been different due to my decision to feed mommy and the kittens.

Friendship Actions

Start with being good to yourself. You need to be your own best friend and be kind to yourself. You are not a bad person; you are just temporarily out of a job, and you and your friends are going to help change that.

Stop yourself when you start thinking of what you coulda, woulda, shoulda done. Instead, focus on what you can, should, and will do going forward.

Ask your friends for help. Sounds pretty basic, but many people are afraid or embarrassed to do so. Your friends want to help, and it makes them feel good to help you.

Tell your friends how much you appreciate their support and guidance and how much you care that they care to help you.

Be willing to share your problems with your friends, whether they are financial, emotional, marital, or job related. It is likely your friends have suffered through similar problems and can relate. By sharing, you gain perspective and find solutions.

Listen to your friends. They will tell you that bad things sometimes happen to good people.

Give yourself time. You will not feel the effects of this bad thing forever. It is true that time will heal this wound, your distress will pass, and new opportunities will come because you have friends who are willing to help you.

Your friends know that their lives would have been different without you, and that is the driving reason for their eagerness to help you. For many, that is what friendship really is. Remember that you have not finished the best part of your life.

Relationships

Just as it is in our work world, we meet people, establish relationships, make friends, and our lives are changed forever.

Sometimes it is not all good. Many say these are difficult economic times, and the risks are high that job losses will affect you or one of your friends. Let’s say it is you, and suddenly you are out of a job. Trying to make it through unemployment is very stressful. Trying to make it through on your own is even worse.

Your friends can provide support and companionship when you are feeling down and likely can help you in your job search. But don’t be alarmed or disappointed with the number of “friends” who are—or are not—willing to help

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