Stop Shoplifting – 5 WC Blog 795
Manager Training to Stop Shoplifting – 3
Not All Training To Stop Shoplifting Is Equal
Is your training for your managers on how to stop shoplifting adequate? How can you even know if it is working as you intended it to work? The thought came to me after an incident took place today at the library where I work. Our department goes through fire training at least once every two years with our campus Assistant Fire Marshall. We learn about the different types of fires we could encounter and when and how to use fire extinguishers on them. We learn how to look for the appropriate markings on the label of the fire extinguisher so we know if it can be used for a specific type of fire. But short of having an actual fire do you really know if you are prepared for it? There’s nothing like a real-life incident to give you an idea if your training was adequate. The same can be said for training to stop theft. No, I am not advocating that you send your managers out looking for a shoplifter to detain to see if they have absorbed whatever training they have been provided.
If the manager training to stop shoplifting is done well your management team will recall the information when they need to use it. Preferably, it will come as second nature and become an automatic reflex. Take for instance a scenario in which one of your managers sees someone filling a backpack with merchandise. What is the reaction going to be? Do they know how to approach the person filling the bag and what should and should not be said? Are your managers going to make an accusation that can get the store in trouble? Will your managers try to act like a Security Officer and follow the suspect though the store until they get to an exit door and then jump in front and try to detain them? All sorts of bad images come to my mind as I picture people with inadequate training trying to stop shoplifting and not having the skills they need.
You may laugh at the scenarios but I have seen managers attempt to play Loss Prevention and it was not pretty. They have almost gotten themselves hurt and in a couple of situations nearly contributed to me being injured. In these cases the managers had good intentions but instead of listening to my direction as Loss Prevention Manager they reacted out of emotion. One of the first things we teach new Loss Prevention Associates is NOT to take things personally and that if a situation gets out of hand to disengage. Do YOU teach this in your manager training to Stop Shoplifting?
People are going to react to high-intensity situations differently but one thing that has got to become second nature is not allowing emotion to dictate how a situation is handled. Panic, fear, anxiety, even excitement are all emotions that are experienced when we observe someone we believe is in the act of stealing. Proper training will teach managers how to control those emotions, approach the individual and address the situation without getting into an argument or making accusations. The feelings will still be there but they will be kept under control.
So what does all of this have to do with my fire training in a library? The other day a student employee reported to me that two patrons had reported that smoke was coming from a power outlet in a study room. A co-worker and I went to the room to investigate and there was smoke as was reported. I directed my co-worker to call our campus emergency number and I had the students leave the room. I located a fire extinguisher outside the room and checked to be sure it could be used on an electrical fire (as our training had taught us). I pulled the pin on the extinguisher and waited by the outlet since there was no fire and my co-worker waited for fire officials to arrive. There was no immediate threat of flames so I made the decision not to pull a fire alarm. The fire Marshall and an assistant arrived, took over and said we had done everything properly. No, I am not a fire official but I had good training and was able to put it to use.
Training from someone with experience in a particular field who knows how to address situations is always going to be rewarded with better results than training from a book or someone who has not worked in a job or task. Manager training to stop shoplifting is important and can keep your staff safe and greatly limit the potential of making bad stops or making false accusations. Do your managers a favor and get them the right training from the right people.
For more information about manager training to stop shoplifting contact us or call 1.770.426.0547
Is your training for your managers on how to stop shoplifting adequate? How can you even know if it is working as you intended it to work? The thought came to me after an incident took place today at the library where I work. Our department goes through fire training at least once every two years with our campus Assistant Fire Marshall. We learn about the different types of fires we could encounter and when and how to use fire extinguishers on them. We learn how to look for the appropriate markings on the label of the fire extinguisher so we know if it can be used for a specific type of fire. But short of having an actual fire do you really know if you are prepared for it? There’s nothing like a real-life incident to give you an idea if your training was adequate. The same can be said for training to stop theft. No, I am not advocating that you send your managers out looking for a shoplifter to detain to see if they have absorbed whatever training they have been provided.
If the manager training to stop shoplifting is done well your management team will recall the information when they need to use it. Preferably, it will come as second nature and become an automatic reflex. Take for instance a scenario in which one of your managers sees someone filling a backpack with merchandise. What is the reaction going to be? Do they know how to approach the person filling the bag and what should and should not be said? Are your managers going to make an accusation that can get the store in trouble? Will your managers try to act like a Security Officer and follow the suspect though the store until they get to an exit door and then jump in front and try to detain them? All sorts of bad images come to my mind as I picture people with inadequate training trying to stop shoplifting and not having the skills they need.
You may laugh at the scenarios but I have seen managers attempt to play Loss Prevention and it was not pretty. They have almost gotten themselves hurt and in a couple of situations nearly contributed to me being injured. In these cases the managers had good intentions but instead of listening to my direction as Loss Prevention Manager they reacted out of emotion. One of the first things we teach new Loss Prevention Associates is NOT to take things personally and that if a situation gets out of hand to disengage. Do YOU teach this in your manager training to Stop Shoplifting?
People are going to react to high-intensity situations differently but one thing that has got to become second nature is not allowing emotion to dictate how a situation is handled. Panic, fear, anxiety, even excitement are all emotions that are experienced when we observe someone we believe is in the act of stealing. Proper training will teach managers how to control those emotions, approach the individual and address the situation without getting into an argument or making accusations. The feelings will still be there but they will be kept under control.
So what does all of this have to do with my fire training in a library? The other day a student employee reported to me that two patrons had reported that smoke was coming from a power outlet in a study room. A co-worker and I went to the room to investigate and there was smoke as was reported. I directed my co-worker to call our campus emergency number and I had the students leave the room. I located a fire extinguisher outside the room and checked to be sure it could be used on an electrical fire (as our training had taught us). I pulled the pin on the extinguisher and waited by the outlet since there was no fire and my co-worker waited for fire officials to arrive. There was no immediate threat of flames so I made the decision not to pull a fire alarm. The fire Marshall and an assistant arrived, took over and said we had done everything properly. No, I am not a fire official but I had good training and was able to put it to use.
Training from someone with experience in a particular field who knows how to address situations is always going to be rewarded with better results than training from a book or someone who has not worked in a job or task. Manager training to stop shoplifting is important and can keep your staff safe and greatly limit the potential of making bad stops or making false accusations. Do your managers a favor and get them the right training from the right people.
For more information about manager training to stop shoplifting contact us or call 1.770.426.0547
Sensormatic Safers – 4 WC Blog 819
Retail Anti-Theft Devices – 3
Security And Storage Space Solutions With Sensormatic Safers
Sometimes I wonder why big retail stores make some of the merchandise protection decisions they do when they could use a Sensormatic Safer and just be done with the waffling. A perfect example of this is observed in a national retail chain with which I am very familiar. This company sells jump drives (thumb drives for some of you) and they used to protect all of them with electronic article surveillance retail anti-theft devices. Not long ago, they started changing up their strategy and had some of the lower price point jump drives displayed on peghooks with no protection. To a certain extent I understand the move. Is it worthwhile to protect everything? Are payroll dollars being wasted tagging/protecting merchandise that is not being stolen? It seems that it must be worthwhile in hindsight because now all jump drives are protected again regardless of the price point. Maybe I am a bit critical but there are a couple of points that jump out at me with the current strategy.
First, the company could have gone with the Sensormatic Safers for all of the merchandise in this category and it would have avoided the confusion of whether to protect or not. The current retail anti-theft devices in use are bulky and greatly reduce the amount of merchandise that can be displayed on a peghook. That means store personnel have to replenish this merchandise from stockrooms much more frequently than if more was on the floor in the first place (maybe I should tell Sensormatic that could be the logo for their Safers, “More on the Floor”, but I digress). The problem that goes hand in hand with a limited amount of stock and the need for more frequent replenishment is that someone has to stay on top of empty peghooks and shelf spaces. Failing to have a manager monitor this means you are relying on store personnel to take the initiative to check to see if there is more in stock. If there is more in stock then the merchandise has to be pulled from the stockroom and filled and that means more reliance on employee initiative. That is not always the best method of filling a floor.
Second, unlike some retail anti-theft devices, Flexible Safers are not unwieldy to use. I have employed many different styles of electronic article surveillance protection tags and labels. Some can be a bit difficult to apply to merchandise. Some have latches that can occasionally get stuck and are then terribly stiff to open. Trying to fight with them to put merchandise inside or worse open them at the register to get the merchandise out for a customer to buy is annoying. Sensormatic Safers are easy to use and still provide the electronic article surveillance protection that other protective containers offer.
An advantage of using Safers over the bulkier security devices is that that they require less room to store. I know how much space can be taken up when an adequate supply of security boxes is on hand. Now if you own a building with an immense stockroom with space to spare then this is not a concern for you. If on the other hand you are like many small and even medium size retail store owners space is a premium. You might even share an employee breakroom with part of your stockroom. Owning a small store means it is more important to fit as much merchandise as possible on the salesfloor. Use the wrong security devices and you could be forcing merchandise to the backroom than is necessary. Stockroom space filled with protection boxes and merchandise that would not otherwise have to be in the back is a waste of space and productivity.
You can decide if you need to protect all of the products your store carries. It may or may not be necessary. What is important is that you use Sensormatic Safers and tags for the best electronic article surveillance protection available. From detection range to space management the value of Sensormatic systems has a positive impact on nearly every aspect of your store operation.
Sensormatic Safers are important and we can help you with them. Call 1.770.426.0547and let’s talk.
Sometimes I wonder why big retail stores make some of the merchandise protection decisions they do when they could use a Sensormatic Safer and just be done with the waffling. A perfect example of this is observed in a national retail chain with which I am very familiar. This company sells jump drives (thumb drives for some of you) and they used to protect all of them with electronic article surveillance retail anti-theft devices. Not long ago, they started changing up their strategy and had some of the lower price point jump drives displayed on peghooks with no protection. To a certain extent I understand the move. Is it worthwhile to protect everything? Are payroll dollars being wasted tagging/protecting merchandise that is not being stolen? It seems that it must be worthwhile in hindsight because now all jump drives are protected again regardless of the price point. Maybe I am a bit critical but there are a couple of points that jump out at me with the current strategy.
First, the company could have gone with the Sensormatic Safers for all of the merchandise in this category and it would have avoided the confusion of whether to protect or not. The current retail anti-theft devices in use are bulky and greatly reduce the amount of merchandise that can be displayed on a peghook. That means store personnel have to replenish this merchandise from stockrooms much more frequently than if more was on the floor in the first place (maybe I should tell Sensormatic that could be the logo for their Safers, “More on the Floor”, but I digress). The problem that goes hand in hand with a limited amount of stock and the need for more frequent replenishment is that someone has to stay on top of empty peghooks and shelf spaces. Failing to have a manager monitor this means you are relying on store personnel to take the initiative to check to see if there is more in stock. If there is more in stock then the merchandise has to be pulled from the stockroom and filled and that means more reliance on employee initiative. That is not always the best method of filling a floor.
Second, unlike some retail anti-theft devices, Flexible Safers are not unwieldy to use. I have employed many different styles of electronic article surveillance protection tags and labels. Some can be a bit difficult to apply to merchandise. Some have latches that can occasionally get stuck and are then terribly stiff to open. Trying to fight with them to put merchandise inside or worse open them at the register to get the merchandise out for a customer to buy is annoying. Sensormatic Safers are easy to use and still provide the electronic article surveillance protection that other protective containers offer.
An advantage of using Safers over the bulkier security devices is that that they require less room to store. I know how much space can be taken up when an adequate supply of security boxes is on hand. Now if you own a building with an immense stockroom with space to spare then this is not a concern for you. If on the other hand you are like many small and even medium size retail store owners space is a premium. You might even share an employee breakroom with part of your stockroom. Owning a small store means it is more important to fit as much merchandise as possible on the salesfloor. Use the wrong security devices and you could be forcing merchandise to the backroom than is necessary. Stockroom space filled with protection boxes and merchandise that would not otherwise have to be in the back is a waste of space and productivity.
You can decide if you need to protect all of the products your store carries. It may or may not be necessary. What is important is that you use Sensormatic Safers and tags for the best electronic article surveillance protection available. From detection range to space management the value of Sensormatic systems has a positive impact on nearly every aspect of your store operation.
Sensormatic Safers are important and we can help you with them. Call 1.770.426.0547and let’s talk.
Clothing Security –3 WC Blog 806
Sensormatic Tags-3
Clothing Security And Late Night Clothing Tasks
It can be difficult to make clothing security a priority or stop any shoplifting when it is late at night and you are ready to close the store. The other night our store was in the process of getting ready to close and I noticed a car pull into the parking lot. It was about five minutes until time to lock the doors and the customer entered and proceeded to a specific department. He wanted something that he indicated would only take a few minutes. A few minutes turned into fifty minutes until the store manager finally had enough and “helped” hurry the process along. Fortunately, this was a situation where the customer was by himself and needed a specific service. I have seen similar situations as a Loss Prevention Manager where two people would enter close to closing time and split up in a store. If a store is operating without a Sensormatic system and not using Sensormatic tags it can be a prime opportunity for crooks to get away with gobs of goods. How could this be? Because the truth is, once a store gets close to closing time employees focus on tasks not people.
You know what I am talking about. You might be trying to save payroll so the quicker you can close the store and get workers out the more money you save. You may be trying to get the store straightened up and a customer late in the evening is just in the way. Rather than a seeing them as a potential sale (or theft) they are a hindrance. We have all been in that situation and it happens. Holidays are even worse when we want to close up and get home to our families or to a party somewhere. Patrons take a backseat to the necessity of cleaning up and getting out in a timely manner. As a Loss Prevention Manager Associate and then a Manager I began to take note of these late night criminals. These folks can be slick and they know the places to hit and the times to hit. They don’t care for trying to steal from stores that use Sensormatic tags and they don’t like to frequent stores that focus on customers up to the time doors are locked.
Managing the store closing process and keeping an eye out for late night or last minute customers can be difficult. The use of clothing security devices and electronic article surveillance tags can play an important part in helping managers get tasks done. With merchandise protected against theft a team can spend a little less energy on giving “extra” customer service to the last minute patron. Note that I did not say ignore the customer but if the shopper is not giving obvious indications they are intending to steal your team can periodically check on the person. Sensormatic tags alleviate some of that extra unnecessary focus that allows your team to focus on closing tasks.
Let me add one last thought on the late night customer. Be cautious of anyone coming in last minute. Where did they park their car? Is it by the curb outside the doors? Is the vehicle running? Is the customer in line but allowing other customers to go ahead of them? These could be indicators of a much more serious crime that is about to happen than shoplifting and that is a robbery. Preparing for and responding to a robbery is another issue to address in another article. The main thing is to know that the night time is the right time…for crime (to paraphrase one of my all-time favorite rock groups, Credence Clearwater Revival). Always have employee and customer safety in mind especially at the end of the day.
Clothing security and merchandise protection in general is an important part of keeping a store profitable. Without it goods are stolen, shelves are empty and sales lag or die off as customers stop coming to a store. Safety also becomes an issue as criminals recognize the vulnerabilities of a store and more of them frequent that location. Install a Sensormatic system and get more tasks done at the end of the evening while still protecting merchandise. You can still greet customers but there will be fewer thieves to focus on in the end.
For more information about Sensormatic tags contact us or call 1.770.426.0547.
It can be difficult to make clothing security a priority or stop any shoplifting when it is late at night and you are ready to close the store. The other night our store was in the process of getting ready to close and I noticed a car pull into the parking lot. It was about five minutes until time to lock the doors and the customer entered and proceeded to a specific department. He wanted something that he indicated would only take a few minutes. A few minutes turned into fifty minutes until the store manager finally had enough and “helped” hurry the process along. Fortunately, this was a situation where the customer was by himself and needed a specific service. I have seen similar situations as a Loss Prevention Manager where two people would enter close to closing time and split up in a store. If a store is operating without a Sensormatic system and not using Sensormatic tags it can be a prime opportunity for crooks to get away with gobs of goods. How could this be? Because the truth is, once a store gets close to closing time employees’ focus on tasks not people.
You know what I am talking about. You might be trying to save payroll so the quicker you can close the store and get workers out the more money you save. You may be trying to get the store straightened up and a customer late in the evening is just in the way. Rather than a seeing them as a potential sale (or theft) they are a hindrance. We have all been in that situation and it happens. Holidays are even worse when we want to close up and get home to our families or to a party somewhere. Patrons take a backseat to the necessity of cleaning up and getting out in a timely manner. As a Loss Prevention Manager Associate and then a Manager I began to take note of these late night criminals. These folks can be slick and they know the places to hit and the times to hit. They don’t care for trying to steal from stores that use Sensormatic tags and they don’t like to frequent stores that focus on customers up to the time doors are locked.
Managing the store closing process and keeping an eye out for late night or last minute customers can be difficult. The use of clothing security devices and electronic article surveillance tags can play an important part in helping managers get tasks done. With merchandise protected against theft a team can spend a little less energy on giving “extra” customer service to the last minute patron. Note that I did not say ignore the customer but if the shopper is not giving obvious indications they are intending to steal your team can periodically check on the person. Sensormatic tags alleviate some of that extra unnecessary focus that allows your team to focus on closing tasks.
Let me add one last thought on the late night customer. Be cautious of anyone coming in last minute. Where did they park their car? Is it by the curb outside the doors? Is the vehicle running? Is the customer in line but allowing other customers to go ahead of them? These could be indicators of a much more serious crime that is about to happen than shoplifting and that is a robbery. Preparing for and responding to a robbery is another issue to address in another article. The main thing is to know that the night time is the right time…for crime (to paraphrase one of my all-time favorite rock groups, Credence Clearwater Revival). Always have employee and customer safety in mind especially at the end of the day.
Clothing security and merchandise protection in general is an important part of keeping a store profitable. Without it goods are stolen, shelves are empty and sales lag or die off as customers stop coming to a store. Safety also becomes an issue as criminals recognize the vulnerabilities of a store and more of them frequent that location. Install a Sensormatic system and get more tasks done at the end of the evening while still protecting merchandise. You can still greet customers but there will be fewer thieves to focus on in the end.
For more information about Sensormatic tags contact us or call 1.770.426.0547.
Blog 13b WAB
Pre-employment Screening, Interview Questions & Employment Drug Screening Part 2 of 4
As part of our pre-employment screening we will conduct a face to face interview. The questions in this blog, part 2 of 4, discuss the position the candidate is looking for and what scheduling are they looking for or open to. It would be a shame to spend a tremendous effort and hire the candidate just to find out that this was not the position they were “really looking for” but just something to get them by until the real deal came along. Or, they thought their schedule would be one thing but is completely different. Remember, you invest a tremendous amount of time in not just the process of hiring but into training someone. That is money off your bottom line. Get it right the first time and be further ahead.
You should also consider employment drug screening as a standard part of your employment package. Once you have made your decision to offer a position then the candidate should be sent in for drug testing. Employment drug screening has come a long ways over the years. Cost is significantly better, there is very quick turnaround and scheduling is automated and on-line. If you are not requiring drug testing, the question is why not? Drugs including marijuana are still prevalent in our society. Illegal and legal drugs have a significant impact on an employee’s ability to perform their tasks properly and safely. Even a Cashier that is high could injure another employee or a customer. You would be liable for those injuries. This could have been prevented with simple drug testing.
If you want more information about Loss Prevention Systems employment drug screening and our nationwide automated drug testing program, reach out to us at 1-770-426-0547 x103.
Now back to the next set of pre-employment screening questions. Again, this list is not exhaustive. You will want to look at how you interview and the way you ask questions. Change these to fit your needs but keep the intent of the question correct. Remember that there are questions you cannot ask an applicant. For example, questions related to race, religion, age, and so on are illegal to ask. You also cannot ask a candidate if they own a car to get to work. That has been deemed to be discriminatory. However, you can ask them if they have a reliable way to get to and from work.
POSITION
• What type of position are you interested in? Why?
• What area of our company would you like to work in? Why?
• What other types of positions are you considering?
• Do you prefer to work under supervision or on your own?
• What kind of boss do you prefer?
• Would you be successful working with a team?
• Do you prefer large or small organizations? Why?
• How do you feel about working in a structured environment?
• Are you able to work on several assignments at once?
• Why should we hire you rather than another candidate?
• What do you know about our organization (products or services)?
SCHEDULE
• Are you looking for Full Time, Day Part Time or Part Time?
• What hours would you like to work?
• Do you prefer a set schedule or one that rotates?
• What other full time or part time commitments would you have while employed with us? For example, school, other job
• Are you available to work on weekends and holidays?
• How would you feel if you were asked to stay later than your scheduled departure time?
• How do you feel about travel?
• How do you feel about the possibility of relocating?
• Are you willing to work flextime?
For all interviews you should document your questions and the candidate’s responses. Those documents should be attached and filed with their other documents. I have had situations where candidates have come back and accused the interviewer of some form of discrimination because they asked some question. Having your interview notes goes a long way to thwarting that kind of attack.
If you have any questions about or would like more information about pre-employment screening, drug testing or employment drug screening, please contact us or call toll free 1-770-915-0547.
As part of our pre-employment screening we will conduct a face to face interview. The questions in this blog, part 2 of 4, discuss the position the candidate is looking for and what scheduling are they looking for or open to. It would be a shame to spend a tremendous effort and hire the candidate just to find out that this was not the position they were “really looking for” but just something to get them by until the real deal came along. Or, they thought their schedule would be one thing but is completely different. Remember, you invest a tremendous amount of time in not just the process of hiring but into training someone. That is money off your bottom line. Get it right the first time and be further ahead.
You should also consider employment drug screening as a standard part of your employment package. Once you have made your decision to offer a position then the candidate should be sent in for drug testing. Employment drug screening has come a long ways over the years. Cost is significantly better, there is very quick turnaround and scheduling is automated and on-line. If you are not requiring drug testing, the question is why not? Drugs including marijuana are still prevalent in our society. Illegal and legal drugs have a significant impact on an employee’s ability to perform their tasks properly and safely. Even a Cashier that is high could injure another employee or a customer. You would be liable for those injuries. This could have been prevented with simple drug testing.
If you want more information about Loss Prevention Systems employment drug screening and our nationwide automated drug testing program, reach out to us at 1-770-426-0547 x103.
Now back to the next set of pre-employment screening questions. Again, this list is not exhaustive. You will want to look at how you interview and the way you ask questions. Change these to fit your needs but keep the intent of the question correct. Remember that there are questions you cannot ask an applicant. For example, questions related to race, religion, age, and so on are illegal to ask. You also cannot ask a candidate if they own a car to get to work. That has been deemed to be discriminatory. However, you can ask them if they have a reliable way to get to and from work.
POSITION
• What type of position are you interested in? Why?
• What area of our company would you like to work in? Why?
• What other types of positions are you considering?
• Do you prefer to work under supervision or on your own?
• What kind of boss do you prefer?
• Would you be successful working with a team?
• Do you prefer large or small organizations? Why?
• How do you feel about working in a structured environment?
• Are you able to work on several assignments at once?
• Why should we hire you rather than another candidate?
• What do you know about our organization (products or services)?
SCHEDULE
• Are you looking for Full Time, Day Part Time or Part Time?
• What hours would you like to work?
• Do you prefer a set schedule or one that rotates?
• What other full time or part time commitments would you have while employed with us? For example, school, other job
• Are you available to work on weekends and holidays?
• How would you feel if you were asked to stay later than your scheduled departure time?
• How do you feel about travel?
• How do you feel about the possibility of relocating?
• Are you willing to work flextime?
For all interviews you should document your questions and the candidate’s responses. Those documents should be attached and filed with their other documents. I have had situations where candidates have come back and accused the interviewer of some form of discrimination because they asked some question. Having your interview notes goes a long way to thwarting that kind of attack.
If you have any questions about or would like more information about pre-employment screening, drug testing or employment drug screening, please contact us or call toll free 1-770-915-0547.
Free Loss Prevention Calculator – 3 WC Blog 802
Loss Prevention ROI Calculator – 3
The Free Loss Prevention Calculator And The Hidden ROI OF A Sensormatic System
When writing about the Free Loss Prevention Calculator I am usually focused on the return on investment (ROI) a retail owner gets from purchasing a Sensormatic system. As I was preparing to write this article and thinking about ROI I also thought about other areas where we see a return on investment. Then I thought about it more and realized our investments don’t necessarily reap a ROI only for us, it can also impact others. The downside is we often don’t see those returns although when we are fortunate when we do get to glimpse them. For example, as a Loss Prevention Manager I made a few early hiring flubs but as I worked those out and improved on what I was looking for in an Associate I also started listening to them more. I had one candidate who wanted to go into Law Enforcement and saw the job as a stepping stone. I saw him as someone who I could train and would be a hard worker. The ROI was for me a very effective Loss Prevention Associate who was effective at stopping theft and dependable. I trained him, invested time in coaching him on report writing, interviewing and investigating. The ROI for HIM was he went on to join the county police department and was top graduate of his State Law Enforcement Academy class. I acknowledge the fact his own hard work earned him his results but I did help prepare him. There is no Loss Prevention ROI calculator that could have assisted me in seeing the potential benefits I would derive from adding this employee to my team or how it would help him.
I am happy to say not knowing potential ROI does not have to be a secret if a retail owner is trying to find a way to reduce theft and shortage. The fact is a Sensormatic system is the answer to your shortage situation. With a wide selection of pedestals for every store style and protective tags and labels for every kind of product Sensormatic is the top of the line in the retail anti-theft industry. I know because I have personally used Sensormatic products. Over 80% of the world’s top 200 hundred retailers agree with me and that should convince you! If you are like me you want more information before making an investment. You want to know what the ROI for you will be. That is where the Free Loss Prevention Calculator comes in. It is a tool that shows you how much you can conservatively reduce your stock shortage by if you invest in a Sensormatic system. Not only that but the Loss Prevention ROI Calculator also shows you how much your system would cost on a monthly basis and the best part, how long it takes before the savings from an anti-theft investment pay for the system. Basically, a Sensormatic system pays for itself and that is a BIG ROI.
I get it, I mentioned earlier how ROI impacts others and we don’t always see it. What is the return on investment for others if you decide to put in an anti-theft system? Remember, you won’t see this on the Free Loss Prevention Calculator but I can tell you that your customers get a return on your investment. When the criminal activity in your store slows down the merchandise that is no longer stolen is available to your clients. Shoppers don’t like to see empty shelves, especially emptiness where their favorite products are supposed to be. The other beneficiaries are your employees. Let’s be honest when shortage takes place and it becomes so pervasive that it is impacting profits a store manager must make hard decisions. Often that can result in payroll cuts and employees start losing hours. Not only is it creating a hardship on the employees but also on families they are supporting.
There is no Loss Prevention ROI Calculator that is going to show you the pain caused when theft is taking place. It will show you how much you can save in theft prevention and while you may not see the secondary results they will be there as an ROI for others. Install a Sensormatic system and you, your customers and your employees all benefit from the savings. Better yet, you might even decide to grow your business and that is always a good thing!
The Free Loss Prevention Calculator is important and we can help you with it. Call 1.770.426.0547 and let’s talk.
When writing about the Free Loss Prevention Calculator I am usually focused on the return on investment (ROI) a retail owner gets from purchasing a Sensormatic system. As I was preparing to write this article and thinking about ROI I also thought about other areas where we see a return on investment. Then I thought about it more and realized our investments don’t necessarily reap a ROI only for us, it can also impact others. The downside is we often don’t see those returns although when we are fortunate when we do get to glimpse them. For example, as a Loss Prevention Manager I made a few early hiring flubs but as I worked those out and improved on what I was looking for in an Associate I also started listening to them more. I had one candidate who wanted to go into Law Enforcement and saw the job as a stepping stone. I saw him as someone who I could train and would be a hard worker. The ROI was for me a very effective Loss Prevention Associate who was effective at stopping theft and dependable. I trained him, invested time in coaching him on report writing, interviewing and investigating. The ROI for HIM was he went on to join the county police department and was top graduate of his State Law Enforcement Academy class. I acknowledge the fact his own hard work earned him his results but I did help prepare him. There is no Loss Prevention ROI calculator that could have assisted me in seeing the potential benefits I would derive from adding this employee to my team or how it would help him.
I am happy to say not knowing potential ROI does not have to be a secret if a retail owner is trying to find a way to reduce theft and shortage. The fact is a Sensormatic system is the answer to your shortage situation. With a wide selection of pedestals for every store style and protective tags and labels for every kind of product Sensormatic is the top of the line in the retail anti-theft industry. I know because I have personally used Sensormatic products. Over 80% of the world’s top 200 hundred retailers agree with me and that should convince you! If you are like me you want more information before making an investment. You want to know what the ROI for you will be. That is where the Free Loss Prevention Calculator comes in. It is a tool that shows you how much you can conservatively reduce your stock shortage by if you invest in a Sensormatic system. Not only that but the Loss Prevention ROI Calculator also shows you how much your system would cost on a monthly basis and the best part, how long it takes before the savings from an anti-theft investment pay for the system. Basically, a Sensormatic system pays for itself and that is a BIG ROI.
I get it, I mentioned earlier how ROI impacts others and we don’t always see it. What is the return on investment for others if you decide to put in an anti-theft system? Remember, you won’t see this on the Free Loss Prevention Calculator but I can tell you that your customers get a return on your investment. When the criminal activity in your store slows down the merchandise that is no longer stolen is available to your clients. Shoppers don’t like to see empty shelves, especially emptiness where their favorite products are supposed to be. The other beneficiaries are your employees. Let’s be honest when shortage takes place and it becomes so pervasive that it is impacting profits a store manager must make hard decisions. Often that can result in payroll cuts and employees start losing hours. Not only is it creating a hardship on the employees but also on families they are supporting.
There is no Loss Prevention ROI Calculator that is going to show you the pain caused when theft is taking place. It will show you how much you can save in theft prevention and while you may not see the secondary results they will be there as an ROI for others. Install a Sensormatic system and you, your customers and your employees all benefit from the savings. Better yet, you might even decide to grow your business and that is always a good thing!
The Free Loss Prevention Calculator is important and we can help you with it. Call 1.770.426.0547 and let’s talk.
I remember my time as a Loss Prevention Manager when I had to go through log sheets to decipher electronic article surveillance alarm events. What a headache that could be. Employees were supposed to write down dates, times and what set off the alarm towers. For example, if a security label had not been properly deactivated and the alarm sounded the responding employee was supposed to write that information down for Loss Prevention. My job was to see if there was a training problem, an equipment failure a label issue or perhaps even a recovery from a shoplifter. We all know that despite our best efforts rarely does anything happen exactly the way we want it to happen. In this case alarm testing wasn’t always recorded, alarm activity was not always noted or alarms were not notated properly. It was difficult to get actionable data from the information collected when it was inconsistent. When I would make a fuss about it to the front end manager he/she would address the situation. The employees would get back on the program briefly and the logs would be useful again for a period of time. It was an important part of my job to know when Sensormatic labels were setting off the alarm towers and when. When done correctly I could review corresponding video to see who caused the alarm and if the responder thoroughly tried to resolve the problem. This was useful for training and efforts to stop shoplifting.
A lot has improved in Retail Loss Prevention since my days as a Loss Prevention Manager. Electronic article surveillance towers have become more advanced, Sensormatic labels have gotten much smaller and hard tags and wraps are continually evolving. In fact the use of Sesnormatic systems has expanded far beyond the reduction of theft they now are used to drive sales. Adding a customer counting device to a pedestal can enable a retail owner to understand shopper traffic patterns. That knowledge can be used to adjust work schedules to better serve clients. It can also help determine if a new product or display is having an impact on sales. Some pedestals have the ability to have signage added to them. Advertising as we all know can directly drive customer shopping habits and it is free marketing space. With all of these advances the necessity of paper record keeping has also become obsolete. Logs can still be used but they don’t have to be, electronic article surveillance has come that far in recent years.
Now retail owners have the ability to use Sensormatic’s Shrink Management as a Service cloud based electronic article surveillance management system. This system enables retail managers to see reporting that includes retail traffic, electronic article surveillance alarm activity by date, and the alarm rate. Other information that can aid in controlling shortage is metal foil detection, jammer detections and potential dollar losses due to theft. By reviewing this data you can see the potential theft activity that is taking place and take steps to prevent it. Think about it if alarms are trending to be more frequent on a given day of the week according to reporting managers can position a “greeter” at the front doors. This person can be right at the doors ready to respond to pedestal alarms. The presence of this employee will also be a deterrent to someone who enters with the intention of trying to shoplift and changes their mind when they see a greeter. Couple the reports with a Sensormatic Synergy camera and owners/managers can capture pictures and video of alarm events and the suspects causing those alarms. And one other thing to keep in mind about your greeter they may be a deterrent to theft but the right person can also be an ambassador for your store. They can provide directions, store information and greet customers which gives a personal touch shoppers desire.
Sensormatic labels and systems have made incredible progress over the years. The effectiveness in deterring and preventing crime has improved as the equipment has evolved. The multi-functionality of these systems has made them even more attractive to shop owners. Managing the systems through cloud based services makes sure reporting is accurate and easy to access. When you think about it there is nothing to lose by investing in a Sensormatic system so my question to you is, why aren’t you picking up your phone to get your own system now?
Get more information on electronic article surveillance, contact us or call 1.770.426.0547 today.
