Applicant Management System-3 WC Blog 558
Applicant Tracking System-3
Pre-employment Screening-4
Streamline Your Hiring Process With An Applicant Management System
When you are hiring a new employee do you conduct pre-employment screening? Do you have an Applicant Management System in place? What are the resources you use to know who it is you are hiring? I ask these questions because I recently attended a training session, where I work at, conducted by our Human Resources Department. The training was to instruct faculty and staff in the proper methods of conducting position searches. I have been doing hiring for a lot of years and different employers have different methods of conducting job searches. Several take-aways came out of our session. For starters, one of the things that has bothered me about my current employer is that much of our process is still paper based. During this training we were excited to learn that our college is going to transition to an Applicant Tracking System. Our Human Resources instructor was ecstatic, apparently those of us having to keep track of all of this paperwork are not the only ones frustrated with the current system. While this will be a state initiated program you can have your own job Applicant Management System without being a government agency. Loss Prevention Systems Inc. offers a system of their own that can help businesses with a more efficient process.
“What is an Applicant Management System?” you may be wondering (at least I hope you are asking the question at this point). It is a system that can keep the majority of your hiring process in an electronic format. You know all of those file folders that probably have loose papers hanging out with personal information on each of the job candidates you have considered? They are either drastically reduced in size or eliminated altogether. In each folder you may have had three or four pages of application, resume, background check release forms, and perhaps drug testing consent forms. You might have applicant questionnaires and I-9 forms filed in there too. I know that some of these papers fall out or get misplaced and who knows what kind of personal information is then floating around and potentially winding up in the wrong hands. Bill Bregar, CEO of Loss Prevention Systems Inc. (LPSI) recognized all of the problems associated with the traditional hiring process and found a way to ease that burden on retail owners who already have enough on their plates to deal with. With the system offered by Bill’s team at LPSI employers can customize applications to flag only those applicants that meet specific criteria. No more need to go through 100 applications to find the 10 candidates that truly meet the skill sets you are seeking. How about an electronic release form from candidates so you can have pre-employment screening checks conducted by LPSI? All of it done in one central electronic location. These are just a few of the many benefits an Applicant Tracking System offers.
In our training we were also taught to stick to the process for interviewing and stay away from outside sources of information about a candidate. You might find this useful in your hiring process as well. With all of the social media platforms it seems on the surface that there would be nothing wrong with looking up an applicant’s social media pages. Are they putting things out there that would raise a red flag with you and could influence your hiring decision? It was brought to our attention that if we were to look at an applicant’s social media and see that they are a single mom, pregnant, have some type medical issue or any number of other things we could be putting our employer at risk. For example if an applicant posts that they are having migraine headaches (and add a frowny face) and they are not hired and they find out we did view their post they might say they were discriminated against. It could be alleged we were concerned they would call out of work regularly so for that reason they were not hired. The message for us in the training was that additional information outside of the application and interviews should come from pre-employment screening and reference checks.
Owners and managers of retail stores are constantly pulled in many directions for their time and attention. Making the hiring process easier so that energy can be focused elsewhere is important. Hiring properly and avoiding legal issues is also important. Let LPSI get you started with a pre-employment screening process and Applicant Tracking System that will make the applicant search a breeze. You can also avoid all of those legal landmines in the process.
Need information on an Applicant Tracking System? Give us a call at 1.770.426.0547 now.
When you are hiring a new employee do you conduct pre-employment screening? Do you have an Applicant Management System in place? What are the resources you use to know who it is you are hiring? I ask these questions because I recently attended a training session, where I work at, conducted by our Human Resources Department. The training was to instruct faculty and staff in the proper methods of conducting position searches. I have been doing hiring for a lot of years and different employers have different methods of conducting job searches. Several take-aways came out of our session. For starters, one of the things that has bothered me about my current employer is that much of our process is still paper based. During this training we were excited to learn that our college is going to transition to an Applicant Tracking System. Our Human Resources instructor was ecstatic, apparently those of us having to keep track of all of this paperwork are not the only ones frustrated with the current system. While this will be a state initiated program you can have your own job Applicant Management System without being a government agency. Loss Prevention Systems Inc. offers a system of their own that can help businesses with a more efficient process.
“What is an Applicant Management System?” you may be wondering (at least I hope you are asking the question at this point). It is a system that can keep the majority of your hiring process in an electronic format. You know all of those file folders that probably have loose papers hanging out with personal information on each of the job candidates you have considered? They are either drastically reduced in size or eliminated altogether. In each folder you may have had three or four pages of application, resume, background check release forms, and perhaps drug testing consent forms. You might have applicant questionnaires and I-9 forms filed in there too. I know that some of these papers fall out or get misplaced and who knows what kind of personal information is then floating around and potentially winding up in the wrong hands. Bill Bregar, CEO of Loss Prevention Systems Inc. (LPSI) recognized all of the problems associated with the traditional hiring process and found a way to ease that burden on retail owners who already have enough on their plates to deal with. With the system offered by Bill’s team at LPSI employers can customize applications to flag only those applicants that meet specific criteria. No more need to go through 100 applications to find the 10 candidates that truly meet the skill sets you are seeking. How about an electronic release form from candidates so you can have pre-employment screening checks conducted by LPSI? All of it done in one central electronic location. These are just a few of the many benefits an Applicant Tracking System offers.
In our training we were also taught to stick to the process for interviewing and stay away from outside sources of information about a candidate. You might find this useful in your hiring process as well. With all of the social media platforms it seems on the surface that there would be nothing wrong with looking up an applicant’s social media pages. Are they putting things out there that would raise a red flag with you and could influence your hiring decision? It was brought to our attention that if we were to look at an applicant’s social media and see that they are a single mom, pregnant, have some type medical issue or any number of other things we could be putting our employer at risk. For example if an applicant posts that they are having migraine headaches (and add a frowny face) and they are not hired and they find out we did view their post they might say they were discriminated against. It could be alleged we were concerned they would call out of work regularly so for that reason they were not hired. The message for us in the training was that additional information outside of the application and interviews should come from pre-employment screening and reference checks.
Owners and managers of retail stores are constantly pulled in many directions for their time and attention. Making the hiring process easier so that energy can be focused elsewhere is important. Hiring properly and avoiding legal issues is also important. Let LPSI get you started with a pre-employment screening process and Applicant Tracking System that will make the applicant search a breeze. You can also avoid all of those legal landmines in the process.
Need information on an Applicant Tracking System? Give us a call at 1.770.426.0547 now.
Employee Theft -3 wc blog 574
Training To Reduce Employee Theft-3
Want To Run A Profitable Store? Get Training To Reduce Employee Theft
When I started out as a Loss Prevention Manager I knew about employee theft from my work as a Loss Prevention Associate for another retailer. I had experience assisting in a couple of dishonest employee investigations so I knew it could be a problem. What I didn’t realize was how big a problem it could be and why training to reduce employee theft was so important for me. I mean let’s be real, I had 4 ½ years of Loss Prevention experience under my belt what was there to learn? As it turned out I went off for four weeks of training at another store in order to learn about all of the aspects of the company’s Loss Prevention program. From hiring and managing a team to learning their procedures for shoplifter apprehensions to how to initiate and investigate employees I found out there was more than I imagined.
Many readers are store owners and managers and may be thinking that this is an article for Loss Prevention Managers not for them. WAIT! Don’t stop reading! This is an article for you because you are most likely the owner of a small to medium size business and will not have a Loss Prevention department. You need to know that if you have people working for you then at some point you will have an issue with employee’s stealing from you. You have to be able to recognize theft when it transpires and know what steps to take to deal with it. Unfortunately without someone to help you learn how to identify it you could experience grievous losses before you can stop it in time. Loss Prevention Systems Inc. offers training to reduce employee theft so that you won’t be caught off guard. Through live seminars and online training sessions store managers and owners can get the information they need to take keep dishonest workers from taking advantage of them.
Providing you with some of the lessons I learned as a new Loss Prevention Manager will hopefully be helpful to you as a manager of a retail business.
• The value of employee orientations in deterring employee theft. I had never thought about it prior to my job and, to be honest, it took some time for me to see the value in it. What I learned was, by including Loss Prevention in employee orientations, expectations were clearly defined. New workers knew what was expected of them and consequences if they were caught. It was during this time we also made sure new hires understood what would be considered theft and fraud. From stealing cash and merchandise to fraudulent refunds and even time card theft, all were considered employee theft and would not be tolerated.
• Conducting Background Checks. While I did not conduct them, our company did. I learned, by working with the Human Resources department manager, how many people will get caught lying about criminal pasts. Background checks uncovered their dishonestly and prevented these people from getting hired and potentially stealing from the store.
• Prior to my training, I did not understand the importance of putting controls in place. Requiring employee bag checks at the end of a shift and receipt checks of purchases was an important tool in stopping theft.
• Not allowing employees to wear coats at a register and not permitting food or drinks while working wasn’t intended to be a punishment. Coats gave a place to hide cash or merchandise at a point of sale. Food and drinks, aside from being a distraction, were easy to steal at the register and a receipt could just be retained from an earlier purchase.
These were just a few of the lessons I learned, and I came to the job with a Loss Prevention background.
Dishonest employees can be creative in the methods they use to steal. Training to reduce employee theft is necessary if a store owner is going to be able to identify and stop theft activity. Let Loss Prevention Systems Inc. be your resource for training to ensure you keep your store operating profitably.
Employee theft is important and we can help you with it. Call 1.770.426.0547 and let’s talk.
When I started out as a Loss Prevention Manager I knew about employee theft from my work as a Loss Prevention Associate for another retailer. I had experience assisting in a couple of dishonest employee investigations so I knew it could be a problem. What I didn’t realize was how big a problem it could be and why training to reduce employee theft was so important for me. I mean let’s be real, I had 4 ½ years of Loss Prevention experience under my belt what was there to learn? As it turned out I went off for four weeks of training at another store in order to learn about all of the aspects of the company’s Loss Prevention program. From hiring and managing a team to learning their procedures for shoplifter apprehensions to how to initiate and investigate employees I found out there was more than I imagined.
Many readers are store owners and managers and may be thinking that this is an article for Loss Prevention Managers not for them. WAIT! Don’t stop reading! This is an article for you because you are most likely the owner of a small to medium size business and will not have a Loss Prevention department. You need to know that if you have people working for you then at some point you will have an issue with employee’s stealing from you. You have to be able to recognize theft when it transpires and know what steps to take to deal with it. Unfortunately without someone to help you learn how to identify it you could experience grievous losses before you can stop it in time. Loss Prevention Systems Inc. offers training to reduce employee theft so that you won’t be caught off guard. Through live seminars and online training sessions store managers and owners can get the information they need to take keep dishonest workers from taking advantage of them.
Providing you with some of the lessons I learned as a new Loss Prevention Manager will hopefully be helpful to you as a manager of a retail business.
• The value of employee orientations in deterring employee theft. I had never thought about it prior to my job and, to be honest, it took some time for me to see the value in it. What I learned was, by including Loss Prevention in employee orientations, expectations were clearly defined. New workers knew what was expected of them and consequences if they were caught. It was during this time we also made sure new hires understood what would be considered theft and fraud. From stealing cash and merchandise to fraudulent refunds and even time card theft, all were considered employee theft and would not be tolerated.
• Conducting Background Checks. While I did not conduct them, our company did. I learned, by working with the Human Resources department manager, how many people will get caught lying about criminal pasts. Background checks uncovered their dishonestly and prevented these people from getting hired and potentially stealing from the store.
• Prior to my training, I did not understand the importance of putting controls in place. Requiring employee bag checks at the end of a shift and receipt checks of purchases was an important tool in stopping theft.
• Not allowing employees to wear coats at a register and not permitting food or drinks while working wasn’t intended to be a punishment. Coats gave a place to hide cash or merchandise at a point of sale. Food and drinks, aside from being a distraction, were easy to steal at the register and a receipt could just be retained from an earlier purchase.
These were just a few of the lessons I learned, and I came to the job with a Loss Prevention background.
Dishonest employees can be creative in the methods they use to steal. Training to reduce employee theft is necessary if a store owner is going to be able to identify and stop theft activity. Let Loss Prevention Systems Inc. be your resource for training to ensure you keep your store operating profitably.
Employee theft is important and we can help you with it. Call 1.770.426.0547 and let’s talk.
Return Fraud is a common problem for retailers and often it is difficult to distinguish a fraudulent return from a legitimate return. Finding methods to reduce the risk of a fraudulent return can be even trickier. Those who commit return fraud often use the same reasons for a refund that honest shoppers use for their refunds and exchanges. Here is a list of the most common reasons for merchandise returns from https://chargebacks911.com/knowledge-base/9-reasons-why-consumers-return-products/ chargebacks911.com:
- The customer bought the wrong item
- The product is no longer needed
- The product did not match its description
- The customer wasn’t familiar with the product
- A gift purchase was incorrect
- The customer didn’t want the item
- The product was damaged upon arrival
- The merchant shipped the wrong item
- ***The customer engages in wardrobing
Reasons 1 through 8 are understandable, I have had to return items for some of these reasons and working in retail I have assisted customers by ordering something for them through our warehouse. I have had customers who received the wrong item even when I correctly input the information in the computer, it happens from time to time. I found it interesting that the number 9 reason on their list was wardrobing. This is one of the most difficult forms of fraud to combat because reasons 1 through 8 are frequently used to get away with reason 9. I will go into more detail on it in a moment but I want to assure you that wardrobing CAN be prevented by using Shark Tags.
This would be a good time for me to clarify what wardrobing is for readers who are not familiar with the term even if they are familiar with the practice. Have you ever had a customer bring in an article of clothing for a return a day or two after they purchased it? They probably had the receipt, the manufacturer labels were intact and hanging from the garment and they may tell you one of the excuses I listed above. You may have been suspicious of the return because the clothing smelled like it had perfume or other odors on it such as food. There may even be a little stain somewhere and the customer stated that it was there already and they must have missed it when they bought the item. Everything is in line with your store policies so you give the refund to keep the customer happy. You may have to damage the product out of stock and try to get some vendor credit back but you still lose money. What you didn’t know was that the customer had worn the item to a party the night before and taped the tags inside a sleeve or down the neck so others wouldn’t see them. You didn’t know the customer had no intention of keeping the items they just wanted to appear to have a new outfit. You are the victim of wardrobing. Shark Tags prevent this activity because they are attached to clothing in a highly visible place and have to be removed by the customer when the customer gets the item home and decides to keep it. Stores using the Shark Tag make policies that clearly let consumers know that no refunds are given for merchandise which has had a Tag removed. Because they are red the tags are going to stand out like a sore thumb if someone were to attempt to wear a garment with the tag attached. If a shopper needs to make a return for reasons 1 through 8 and the tag is intact you can be certain you are not the victim of this type of return fraud.
Every retailer wants to provide a good customer service experience and sometimes that means the return policy has to be a bit on the lenient side. Allowances must be made for purchasing errors, poor gift choices or products not meeting buyer expectations. On the other hand that does not mean that store owners need to go so far in their leniency that they are being taken advantage of and becoming victims of return fraud. Retail anti-theft devices can help prevent fraudulent returns due to theft and Shark Tags can prevent fraud due to customers taking advantage of refund policies. Help keep your shoppers happy by keeping prices lower when you don’t have to be concerned marking up products to offset costs due to fraud. Use Shark Tags and stop the bad guys from eating up your profits.
For more information about wardrobing, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547
