TRAIN THE TEMPS

November 3, 2016 by Leave a Comment

employeesAs I sit here on this Halloween night, thinking about how great it was when I was a kid to pillage the neighborhoods for candy and treats, I can’t help but also think about the next 60 days. The real fright comes now for all of us in the retail game. We’ve got so little time to do so very much. We all have new receipts pouring in, plan-o-grams that need setting, bulk stacks that need stacking and bins that need filling; all with the mad hopes of grabbing every possible dollar from now until December 24. A big part of that plan, for most, is hiring temporary help to get us through. Have you ever thought about how these temporary workers can impact your LP goals? With a little training and guidance, they can be one of your greatest holiday assets.

So, what LP practices should you train your temporary workers on? For starters, keep things simple. If you try and overload them with knowledge, you’ll get nowhere fast. I usually run with 5 big topics and expand upon them as needed.

  1. Customer service!

This should be priority number one! Honestly, this should be the priority for all training, regardless of status… Customer service is the absolute, hands down, no way around it, best possible way for you to discourage shoplifting. A thief loves to operate in the shadows. If a pesky employee is always there to lend a hand, well you’ll probably be putting a wrinkle in their plans. Make sure your temp hires understand that the service levels in your store should always surpass any other retailer. A customer should never be ignored, but enthusiastically greeted and assisted as if they were family. You’ll make more money from bigger baskets and the thieves will just hate you for it.

  1. Hot Spots

You know your building better than anyone, so you should know what the thieves love. Is it that rack of personal electronics on the rear aisle? Perhaps those new high end jackets you’ve got this year? Maybe even this month’s new footwear craze. Whatever it is, you undoubtedly know what it is. Well, Mr. Manager, make sure your temps know that information too! Explain what the hottest theft items are and have them be on the lookout for any suspicious activity near those items. Maybe they should call you if they see someone putting all 30 hover boards in a basket… just a thought.

  1. Look for suspicious activity

Easy for you and I; not so much for a high school/college kid’s first temp job in a retail store. Explain what this means to your temp crew. You know what your shopper looks like and how they shop. Train your temps to look for those tell-tale signs of potential funny business. You know, wearing the heavy coat, but it’s 85 and sunny outside (Maybe only in Louisiana’s winters…), clearing pegs, and all those other little bits of information that could help identify a thief.

  1. What to do?!

Well, your temps are paying attention to those hot items, happen to see a customer conceal an item, or they just have suspicions, what do they do now? GO TACKLE THEM! Or not… depending on your insurance, I guess. No, that’s a terrible idea, what they really should do is know how to react to such behavior should they observe it. This falls back to the very first training point above; go give em’ some good ole’ fashioned customer service. Don’t try to “watch” them, be overt with their presence. Your legit customers will love it, and if that person really did have fraudulent intentions, your temp just saved you some shrink dollars. Now, I would throw into this that if they do observe a crime, they need to know to report this to you immediately, preferably while the suspect is still in the store for you (or another manager) to handle.

  1. Safety

Did you really think we were going to talk about LP training and leave out our old friend safety? I never understand seeing debris or trash on the floor in a retail store. All those people working and no one can pick that shirt hangar off the floor? Does it really take an old lady to trip on it before we throw in to the trash? In my experience, GL/Worker’s Comp claims shoot through the roof this time of year. Make sure your temp crew understands your view/mantra/creed/constitution/mandate/stone tablet of what you expect in regard to safety. It’s not OK to climb on a gondola/shelf. It’s not OK to take a joy ride on the lips of the forklift. General frowned upon to ride a pallet-jack like a skateboard and also probably bad for business to leave water spills on the floor until someone decides to mop them up with the back of their shirts. Train them to be focused on unsafe actions/conditions and you may see a reduction in claims this season.

Not much work usually goes into training temporary workers, especially in a retail store. Normally, by the time you start to remember everyone’s name, it’s time to cut them all loose. Do yourself a favor and resist the urge to push people out to the sales floor with an index card’s worth of training. By putting just a little emphasis on LP practices in your temp training, I’ll guarantee that you’ll get a return on that small investment of time.

Filed Under: Featured Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

IS YOUR BACK DOOR PROTECTED?

November 3, 2016 by Leave a Comment

store-doorEver given any thought to your receiving area and your back door? How often do you open it and walk away? Do you require a manager be present when it’s open, or do you “trust” your warehouse crew with a key? Have you ever considered that an unattended back door could not only cause shrink, but also compromise the safety of your customer and employees? If you answered yes to any of those questions, you may have a problem.

Last year around Thanksgiving, I was scheduled to receive a pallet of television sets for Black Friday.  Three days before the big day and they were nowhere to be found, only my inventory system said they were received on a truck that had already been processed. That pallet was worth $7,500 so I started to panic; checking the few outside containers I had, both warehouses, the sales floor, anywhere I could think of. When I couldn’t locate them, I went to the camera system on the day that I should have received them. Sure as I’m sitting here, I saw my employee roll a pallet of TVs off the truck after watching for a little while. I saw the employee place the pallet where it should have gone, but then a few hours later, I saw another employee wheel them out the back door.

I knew instantly that they had been stolen. There’s no reason for them to go outside, and there was no reason for that particular employee to be in the warehouse. You know what else I saw? That my back door was wide open, and there wasn’t a manager anywhere to be found. Long story short, the employee confessed to stealing/reselling them. When asked how he’d known that he could get away with the crime, he stated that he always saw the back door open. Without a manager present, it became common knowledge amongst a certain group of employees that you could just walk whatever you wanted right out the back door.

Outside of basic employee theft, an unattended back door could also be an invitation to a robbery. Think about this for a minute; you’re a desperate criminal and you’ve decided that you plan to rob Store X. You’ve cased the place for a week now and learned that the safe is in the rear office, in close proximity to the warehouse. You’ve also noticed that the back door is constantly left wide-open with no one (witnesses) around. So would you:  a) walk through the front door and announce a robbery for all the customers, employees cameras to see, or b) park in the rear of the store, enter through the open warehouse door and possibly catch the manager alone in the cash room? I’m no criminal, but I’d probably go with the second option.

Perhaps that is the worst-case scenario. Perhaps instead of robbing you of cash, a thief just sees an easy way to slip out of the store with large quantities of merchandise undetected? If your back door in constantly open with no one around, your regular thieves will absolutely take notice, and take advantage of it. So the next time you see your back door open, be the voice of change and help secure your store, your product and guarantee the safety of people in it. 

Filed Under: Featured Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Shoplifting And The Holiday Season

November 1, 2016 by Leave a Comment

grandmaIt is not surprising that CVS is once again the recipient of a lawsuit.  The history of legal suits against the chain is not new.  Black and hispanic shoppers are regularly profiled by the chain according to this Daily news report, and now CVS is targeting the elderly.  During the holiday season, stores do hire more personnel for their store to offset shoplifting, but targeting a specific group is a violation of their constitutional rights as United States citizens.  Profiling has been an ineffective practice that stores and in this case CVS keep engaging in, and which brings them no solution to the problem.

For more about this and other stories, follow the links below.

10 bizarre things Americans steal during the holidays

Shoplifting ends up costing the average consumer an extra $50 during the holiday season.

Americans tend to get sticky fingers around holiday time.

Shoplifting is a major problem for retailers around the holidays, says Ernie Deyle, the co-author of the Checkpoint Systems’ Retail Holiday Season Global Forecastreleased in October, and an industry consultant. Indeed, 37% of a store’s annual shrink loss — shrink is the revenue companies should receive minus what they do receive, due in large part to a combination of losses from shoplifting, employee theft and fraud — happens during the holiday season.

There’s more theft during the holidays for a number of reasons: Increased store traffic leads to more shoplifting, and people tend to rationalize shoplifting around this time: “It’s much easier to do so when a child’s Christmas present is at stake rather than an extra bathing suit for the summer,” the report reveals. Plus, stores tend to carry pricier merchandise during the holidays, “so even if the same quantity of merchandise was stolen, the value of the merchandise stolen is higher,” the report reveals.

Grandma and Grandpa, shoplifters? CVS thinks so

Public enemy No. 1 at your local CVS: Grandma and Grandpa.

Seven discrimination lawsuits filed Monday against the pharmacy chain in courts across the city include the revelation that a CVS “Loss Prevention” handbook warns employees that senior citizens on a “fixed income” present a “special shoplifting concern.”

Attorneys from the Manhattan law firm Wigdor LLP brought the suits on behalf of former employees arguing that the policy is “tantamount to an admission of discrimination against older customers.”

The lawyers, Michael Willemin and David Gottlieb, have testimony from 16 whistleblower ex-staffers who claim that CVS stores across the city discriminate by profiling elderly shoppers, as well as blacks and Hispanics.

CVS’s 2014 “Loss Prevention” training guide says that “each store may have special shoplifting concerns based on it’s location, type of customer, etc.,” according to court papers. Sticky-fingered seniors are listed as one “special concern,” the suit says.

Rare to have older kids join adults in shoplifting

When it happens, officers must use discretion

Adult shoplifters employ all sorts of methods. Among the most insidious schemes are those that use children as decoys or unknowing partners.

Most times, the kids in cases like these are too young to understand, let alone participate in, the crime. They are infants or toddlers under whose clothing or strollers the stolen items are stashed.

But there also is a smaller subset: adults who use older kids as outright accomplices in shoplifting. This latter problem became an issue here locally this week when Ocala police accused a woman and her boyfriend of inducing the woman’s 12-year-old daughter to help them steal clothing from the Wal-Mart on Southwest 19th Avenue Road.

The girl had the unusual distinction of being both a suspect and a victim in one single criminal experience: Police arrested the girl and charged her with theft, and then charged her mother with both theft and contributing to the delinquency of a minor.

 

Filed Under: Shoplifting Prevention Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Preventing Shoplifting This Holiday Season

October 27, 2016 by Leave a Comment
shoppers

The holiday season is approaching . Along with the jolly spirit, festivities, and holiday shopping come new security issues.  Hiring extra personnel for the stores this time of year is only one of the many extra security issues retail shop owners and managers have to deal with this holiday season. Now, shoplifting flash mobs are making an appearance in retail stores across the country, making the damage so much more than the lone shoplifter.  Can the extra security personnel help?  Follow the links below for more information about this and other stories.

Flash mobs the latest threat this holiday season

The holiday season rings in more than just higher sales for retailers. There’s also more shoplifting and lower profit margins than the rest of the year, according to a report released today. Plus, this year, there’s an extra surprise — flash mobs

The holiday season rings in more than just higher sales for retailers. There’s also more shoplifting and lower profit margins than the rest of the year, according to a report released today. Plus, this year, there’s an extra surprise — flash mobs

The holiday season rings in more than just higher sales for retailers. There’s also more shoplifting and lower profit margins than the rest of the year, according to a report released today. Plus, this year, there’s an extra surprise — flash mobs.

Not the dancing, music-playing, watching-a-couple-get-engaged kind of flash mobs. But the kind of flash mobs where a bunch of people all show up at a store at once, pull hats low over their heads, grab everything in sight, and split.

Just last week, there was a flash mob at an Apple store in Natick, Mass., that took off with more than $13,000 worth of iPhones in less than a minute.

Another flash mob last month near Boston netted more than $14,000.

Extra holiday patrols to keep EMC shoppers safe

The Safe Shopper Program, an initiative to reduce crime in East Montgomery County during the holiday months, will run this year from Oct. 15 to Jan. 31, 2017.

With the holiday season approaching, people in East Montgomery County may begin noticing extra patrols from the Montgomery County Precinct 4 Constable’s Office in EMC shopping centers.

The East Montgomery County Improvement District launched the Safe Shopper Program with MCCO Precinct 4 in 2012 as a way to diminish crime related to holiday shopping.

“It’s been a hugely successful program,” Kelley Mattlage, EMCID director of communications, said. “It’s basically a shoplifting safety program. EMCID pays the Constable’s Office overtime for extra patrols around the holidays. They go out to shopping centers and perform building checks, patrol parking lots and make sure no one is shoplifting or burglarizing vehicles.”

This year’s Safe Shopper Program begins Oct. 15 and will continue through Jan. 31, 2017; approximately two weeks longer than the program ran last year.

Recent thefts raise eyebrows at Abilene hardware store

ABILENE, Texas – Recent thefts at an Abilene hardware store are raising a few eyebrows.

A woman, with a baby carrier, is caught on surveillance video entering the store with a man and two children.

What happened next is surprising.

“Here they come, a man and his wife, her carrying the baby and they have their two little kids with them,” said Jennie Bright, general manager of Bible Hardware, while reviewing security footage.

“They kind of look around and come straight back down the aisle. There’s no employee right there and so she points to it, pulls the blanket back, puts it in there, covers that baby back up and walks out the door. The two kids are following and watching what the parents are doing.”

Bible Hardware in Abilene knows the cost of shoplifting is more than just the price of the item taken.

Bright said the store tried to keep the prices down to help customers out, but some people are helping themselves to what the store has.

 

Filed Under: Shoplifting Prevention Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Shoplifting And The Police Force

October 18, 2016 by Leave a Comment

law-3

According to many researchers, gun violence and deaths by  firearms have decreased over the last twenty years.  And even though mass shootings at schools, bars, and places of work have plunged the country, and communities into grief, the truth is gun violence has been declining nationwide . One of the reasons that they attribute the decline of gun violence to, is the ability of the police force to direct their workforce in the right direction.  Using computers and online mediums to share information, they can direct their forces to the neighborhoods where a crime is more likely to occur.  Shoplifting for the police, is not on the same level as other violent crimes, and with the resources they have, they Do need to prioritize.

Read more about this topic by following the links.

Shoplifting deemed to be a lower police priority

“All crime is not equal and does not cause the same harm. I think what the public would like us to do, and that’s my experience, they want us to be focused on the harmful crimes.’

SHOPLIFTING has been deemed a lower priority by Leicestershire Police.

The move has caused outrage among business leaders in Loughborough following concerns that over the last few months 62 crimes were reported in the town centre, mainly shoplifting.

Leicestershire Police have adopted the Cambridge Crime Index, which weighs crime in order of harm to the public. Shoplifting has scored low compared to crimes such as domestic violence and child abuse.

Loughborough Police wants to launch FaceWatch, an online shoplifting system which would save police time attending incidents and encourages businesses to fill out a crime report and CCTV over the internet.

The Echo obtained an exclusive interview with assistant chief constable of Leicestershire Police, Phil Kay, who said: “Policing has got less resources – 400 fewer officers than previously.

The Moral, Societal, and Legal Obligation for Theft Prevention

Retailers should be able to demonstrate preventive controls against theft in the workplace.

As a loss prevention professional, it is likely that you have responsibility for detecting, investigating, and resolving internal-theft cases. Doing so may support your organization’s zero-tolerance policy towardinternal theft. Many top retailers rely on their loss prevention departments to give them a competitive advantage by controlling their operational costs through reducing shrinkage and/or accident claims. Some of these retailers have made loss prevention executives officers of the company.

While most retailers have proactive loss prevention programs, a few view theft as a “cost of business.” These retailers may or may not have resources dedicated to detecting and referringdishonest employees to prosecution. However, it is the absence of a proactive loss prevention program that is the most concerning.

Auburn’s RFID lab holds open house

While many prepared for Saturday’s kickoff of the Auburn vs. LSU football game, others explored a more scientific side of the university at Auburn University’s radio frequency identification laboratory Friday afternoon.

The RFID lab, which relocated to Auburn in 2014 from the University of Arkansas, hosted an open house Friday afternoon, showcasing the work and research done at the lab to members of the community.

Tucked away in the university’s administrative building on Glenn Avenue, the 13,000-square-foot lab houses a mockup apparel retail store, simulated warehouse and distribution center areas and more research space. The lab specializes in the implementation of RFID technology in retailers and suppliers.

Manager Justin Patton led the tour, explaining how RFID technology uses electromagnetic fields to help track tags which can be applied to almost anything. The lab works in partnership with Auburn’s colleges of business, engineering and human sciences, giving students hands-on experience.

 

Filed Under: Shoplifting Prevention Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

What’s Craving Got to Do with Shoplifting?

October 14, 2016 by Leave a Comment

shoppingA good loss prevention plan starts with focusing on the basics.  One of the basics is to monitor high risk merchandise.  For a variety of reasons some items are stolen more often than others.  It makes sense that they should be given extra attention and protection.

But, simple as the idea sounds, the problem is in details.  Retailers can have difficulty identifying high risk goods and the reasons why they’re being stolen.  Ronald Clarke – a criminologist with Rutgers University – developed the acronym CRAVED to help them identify what kinds of goods are vulnerable to theft and why.

Concealable.  Items that are easily hidden (pockets, bags, purses, coats) are susceptible to theft, especially if they’re difficult to identify after concealment.  Once it’s in a purse, you’d better be very sure you can prove the customer didn’t come in with that lip gloss.  This is why cigarettes and baby formula are sold as they are now.  They used to be out in the open, easy to remove and conceal.

Removable.  For most shoplifters the item must be easy to remove and portable.  There’s a reason laptops are stolen more often than PCs.  It’s easier to take a T-shirt from the front of the store, rather than the back where the sales people always stand and talk.

Available.  These are goods that are easy to find and commonly available.  Christmas ornaments are stolen during the holidays more than any other time, including in stores that carry them year round.

Valuable.  The value of the product can be monetary or status driven.  Real diamond bracelets are kept in locked display cases, while the glass ones are on top.  That is until they are trendy, become a target for theft, and have to be moved behind the counter until the trend stops.

Enjoyable.  Many of the standard, frequently stolen products (i.e. tobacco, liquor, electronics, jewelry, make-up) are linked to personal satisfaction.  They’re usually the ones which are enjoyable to own or consume.  Or used for something that’s considered enjoyable to consume, such as ingredients used to manufacture methamphetamine. 

Disposable.  Getting rid of merchandise, without being caught, used to be a big problem for thieves.  Now with the ease of selling via the Internet professional shoplifters are targeting products which weren’t easy to get rid of in the past – no more selling out of a car trunk.   

Easily disposable isn’t just important for expensive items, disposable razors and batteries are some of the most frequently stolen products.  They can be quickly and easily sold or bartered to neighbors, friends and family.

Some goods will always be a target for theft, while others are just a passing consumer fancy.  Either way it makes employees’ and managers’ jobs easier if they know what to look for and why it’s happening.  People are more willing to commit to and follow loss prevention policies if they understand why they’re needed and what they hope to accomplish.

Nicole Abbott is a professional writer who’s had over 200 articles published.  She’s a business consultant and former psycho-therapist with over 20 years of experience in mental health, business and addiction.  She’s a coach, lecturer, trainer and facilitator.  She has conducted over 200 workshops, trainings, presentations, seminars and college classes. 

Filed Under: Shoplifting Prevention Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Preventing Shoplifting During The Holiday Season

October 13, 2016 by Leave a Comment

mens

October is almost half gone and before you know it the holidays will be fast approaching.  The beginning of the holiday season for many people starts around thanksgiving, but for the retail industry and the small shop owner the season has already started. Security during this time of year is a challenge for the retail industry to say the least.  Preventing shoplifting requires them to be aware of the new trends in technology and decide what will work for them.  Will they need to hire more loss prevention personnel? Are the new cameras working as expected?  Are the new hires trained and ready for the challenge of stopping a shoplifter?  The challenges facing the retail industry are many, and during this time of year, shoplifting and employee theft are very serious concerns for them.

Video Surveillance Tools: Seeing the Big Picture

Before deciding on a digital video security system, learn how the technologies work.

Video surveillance systems have become a mainstay for many loss prevention programs. As the technology evolves and business needs grow more complex, loss prevention leaders are looking for solutions that are both affordable and capable of meeting the escalating demands of the business.

LP Magazine sat down with Mike Dunn, vice president of business development for BSI, to garner his expertise and insights on building effective video surveillance systems and how to get the most out of existing systems to help maximize retailers’ options and investment.

What are the primary considerations when choosing between an analog versus an Internet protocol (IP) camera system?

Before deciding on a video option, it is advisable to first understand how the technologies work, as the differences in both camera technologies and method of video transmission are critical to developing a well-planned video solution.

Shrinkage causes $123b loss to global retailers

Shrinkage is defined as losses from shoplifting, employee or supplier fraud and administrative errors.

The retail sector in the Middle East should adopt effective strategies and solutions to curtail ‘shrinkage’ to improve profitability as it caused up to $123.39 billion in loss to global retailers in 2014-15, experts say.

Referring to the latest Global Retail Theft Barometer Study conducted by Checkpoint Systems, the industry experts claimed that shrinkage, defined as losses from shoplifting, employee or supplier fraud and administrative errors, accounted for 1.23 per cent of total retail sales in 2014-15 compared to 0.94 per cent in the previous year.

Jayant Ghosh, business development manager, Checkpoint Middle East and Africa; and Ben Chua, Checkpoint product director for Asia Pacific, said shrinkage increased globally as retailers spent less on prevention and there was in increase in the type of products being targeted.

“In the US, we saw that apparel stores suffered the highest rates of shrink [2.28 per cent] followed by pharmacies/drugstores [2.25 per cent] and non-grocery retailers [1.9 per cent],” Chua recently told Khaleej Times on the sidelines of an event in Dubai.

Column: Everett boutique owner shocked by rampant shoplifting

By Kylie Sabra

Guest columnist

I have never shoplifted in my life — not even as a child.

It simply never occurred to me to take something that was not mine.

I am new to retail and I absolutely love my new life. Running ReFresh Boutique allows me to engage my artsy tendencies as well as my planning and logistical skills. I’ve lived a protected life I suppose. My professional career was in corporate marketing and communications where I dealt with a microcosm of humanity. I now find myself exposed to a far wider range of personalities, and most of them I enjoy immensely.

Then, there are the issues.

I remember how heartsick I felt the first time someone stole from me. It was an all-to-common occurrence.

I’ve been able to reduce much of the theft problem by adjusting security cameras and rearranging the store to remove blind spots and closely observing people with large bags, coats, purses and the like.

 

Filed Under: Shoplifting Prevention Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Is Your Checkpoint System Ready for the Holidays?

October 11, 2016 by Leave a Comment

EASWe are getting ready for an increase in customer traffic. Is your Checkpoint System ready? Are you having false or phantom alarms? Is the system working properly? Have you had your system tuned or a Preventative Maintenance (PM) conducted in the last year or even 5 years?

Here are some things to check:

  • Checkpoint Systems do not generally like to be decorated. Anything with metal, foil, lights, electricity…. WILL cause trouble. Don’t decorate them.
  • Are the shopping carts, hand baskets pushed too close? Make sure they are at least 3 feet away.
  • Have you re-merchandised? Is tagged or labeled product too close?
  • Have you re-fixture in the area near the Checkpoint antennas? If so this could cause trouble. Again, you want to keep metal fixtures at least 3 feet away.
  • Have you added any other equipment in the vicinity of the system? CCTV, coolers, ice machines, vending machines, etc., all can make a huge difference in your system’s performance.
  • DO NOT put the Christmas tree next to the system. The lights and ornaments will cause problems.
  • Are you powering the Checkpoint system using an extension cord? Your Checkpoint Power Supply must be plugged directly into an outlet.

Check for these and other potential issues by simply standing back and looking your system over. Checkpoint Systems are commercial grade and made to last in a retail environment. But like any other systems and hardware, you have in your store, they need some TLC from time to time. Your car’s oil needs to be changed. Would you ignore that? Our systems need PM every once in a while.

If your system has not had a PM or service in some time or possibly never, then it is time. Besides checking the system over thoroughly, we will update the systems firm wear and tune it. You may see a substantial increase in performance.

Get a PM or service call scheduled now, before your attention is taken up with the selling season.

Filed Under: Featured Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

It’s Getting Darker Earlier, What LP Things Should I Be Doing?

October 11, 2016 by Leave a Comment

outsidemall As a Loss Prevention Manager I always had three things I felt were my top priorities.  The safety of our store employees, the safety of our customers and the protection of store property.  Property in my mind always included the building (interior and exterior), equipment and merchandise. Planning and follow-up are the keys to keeping a store safe and secure.  I would mention that while I broke down my focus to three top priorities, my action plans always intersected. In other words, a plan for protecting a building from vandalism with adequate, working perimeter lights also made it safer for customers who walked to a housing area behind our store. With this in mind, it is important to create action plans that are relevant, sometimes adjusting for seasons such as holidays or being prepared for weather events such as hurricanes.  One change that is easily overlooked is the shortened daylight hours in the fall and winter.  With darkness descending upon us earlier there are steps Loss Prevention can take to keep stores safe.

Safety precautions to take as days get shorter:

  • Inspect parking lot lights.  If lights are burned out place a work order to have them repaired/replaced.  Dark parking lots make customers uncomfortable and they may choose not to shop in your store.
  • Inspect building exterior lighting.  These are the lights that are on the walls of the building and at the corners.  Criminals tend to prey on victims in areas with poor or no lighting.
  • Inspect the back of the store and loading dock areas.  Often this is the place where cardboard bales are kept, empty pallets are stacked and some stores maintain dumpsters.  If storage has to be kept here keep the area as neat and clean as possible.  Unkempt areas are attractive to drug and other illicit activities.
  • If your store has a storage trailer(s) located at the rear of the building, establish a time when employees are not allowed to leave the building to pull merchandise or store merchandise in the trailer.  This should be no later than dusk and that may be a flexible time as the days get shorter. 
  • Encourage employees who are leaving in the dusk to dark hours to leave with a partner.  It may be that they ask for a Loss Prevention partner to escort them to their vehicle if no one else is leaving at that time.  Always remember that a buddy system is the best method to prevent robberies of employees.
  •   Increase parking lot foot patrols.  Being visible makes customers feel safer and acts as a deterrent to those who may lurk in the parking lot waiting for an opportunity to grab a purse or commit a robbery.
  • Consider hiring a uniformed security officer or an employee to be present at the front door.  They can respond to EAS alarms and conduct receipt checks, but they can also offer escorts to customers leaving the building. They may also step outside the doors to do a visual inspection of the parking lot.  One store I worked at had a person who was hired to do just this and they were called a “Guest Ambassador”.  This person should not be used as a back-up cashier because the tendency is to keep them on a register and they lose their effectiveness at the front doors.
  • Employees will go on breaks and some are smokers.  If you are going to have a designated smoking area, be sure it is well lit and it should not be in a secluded area for the safety of those who may go out after dark.
  • Inspect any exterior closed circuit television cameras you may have on the building.  Make sure they are functioning, have clear pictures, and are retaining video for at least two weeks (preferably 30 days). 
  • Find ways to build a relationship with the police department responsible for the area where your store is located.  Contact a Crime Prevention Officer and offer to assist with Santa Helper events, children’s car seat safety events, or other activities that the department is helping for community outreach.  As you build a relationship, you may find more officers using your parking lot to stop and write reports or conducting ride by patrols.  The more police presence, the less likely crime will occur in or around your store.  This is always a bonus at night.

The tips are not exhaustive, there are other ideas you may think of as you create a plan specific to your store and location.  By being proactive and establishing a plan that will keep your store safe as the nights get longer, you will protect your business and your reputation and as a result drive up sales.

Filed Under: Featured Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

LP tips for hiring seasonal help

October 11, 2016 by Leave a Comment

shopping2Hiring seasonal help for the holidays is much different from when a company hires to fill a position or two during the “regular” times of the year.  During what I have traditionally called the 4th quarter, seasonal help is being brought on board for the express purpose of having enough staff to meet increased customer traffic.  These employees are hired with the knowledge they will probably lose their jobs at a specific time.  During the rest of the year, an employee is hired with the expectation the position is a permanent job, in the sense it is long-term not necessarily part-time vs. full-time.  This means there are certain considerations that an employer must think about as they hire seasonal employees:

  • Do I have time to complete a background check or drug tests as I do with regular employees?
  • What date am I going to release my employees from service?
  • Do I tell the employee in advance what the termination date will be?

I am going to provide some guidance from a Loss Prevention perspective and hopefully make your decision making a little easier.

     As a Loss Prevention Manager I participated in the seasonal hiring process, both interviewing candidates for the store and conducting mass orientation for new hires. One of the issues I saw was that when hiring started early enough, background checks could be conducted.  This required the Human Resource Manager to begin the seasonal hiring ramp up in August, to prepare for a start date in mid-September to early October.  When the process was started too late, people were sporadically interviewed and hired in twos and threes.  I do not believe there was proper pre-employment screening done at those times.  This meant we brought in people who we really did not know. Yes, a criminal can slip through the cracks during regular hiring, however I saw many more thieves hired during the last quarter of the year.  I believe this was due, in part, to a less thorough screening process because the store needed “people”.   Drug tests were always conducted and we did not hire anyone who failed.  Do not compromise on this, even during the 4th quarter. 

     Should you set a release date for seasonal help in advance and should you tell your seasonal help what the exact dates of employment will be or should you leave it ambiguous?  There are two schools of thought on this.  One argument is that in fairness to the employee they should be told the starting and ending dates.  It allows them time to prepare to look for work as they near the end of the seasonal appointment.  The other argument and the one I prefer is to leave it a little vague, using an end date like “mid-January”.  This serves two purposes.  If you set a specific date of release, you are more or less obligated to end the employment then.  The issue is that if you lose too many employees before the end of the 4th quarter and you need time to recover the store and prepare for the coming year, will you have enough staff to do so?  Second, if your employee is a thief, and they know the exact end date they may use this as the day they are going to do the most damage and then be gone.  When there is not a clear cut deadline, you can release them in that date range and avoid the chance the employee will make that final “hit”.  I am not dogmatic on either philosophy, there are reasonable perspectives on both I just prefer to improve the odds for the employer.

     One other thing I used to see during the hiring of seasonal help was the use of the quasi-promise, “If you do a good job, we may keep you on at the end of the season.”  I saw many people hang onto this statement and become very discouraged when they were released.  You may very well make offers of continued employment to workers after the holidays and that is fine.  I believe in rewarding hard work.  You may even make it clear to a group of new hires that you tend to keep some people after the 4th quarter is over, but don’t offer it as a dangling carrot. 

     In closing, prepare early for the holidays.  Give yourself time to conduct pre-employment screenings, hire the right people and get them trained in time for your peak season.  They will better serve your customers and you will have more time to determine who the cream of the crop is that you would like to keep on your team.  You will also reduce the chance of hiring someone who will steal from your business.

     

     

Filed Under: Featured Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
« Previous Page
Next Page »