Getting a buy-in from the C-Suite...

We are pleased again to have a guest article written by Dean Correia.  Dean is the owner of Correia Security Resources based in Canada.

Getting buy-in from the C-Suite...


 As security professionals, this is often one of our biggest challenges. Rightly or wrongly, we are often perceived as a cost centre, not a profit center. I have had success getting a seat at the table over my retail loss prevention career by making it a priority to build relationships and having my teams and I have a very hands-on approach to the business.  Be seen as a business enabler. 


Show you stakeholders how your function can make their programs even more impactfull by better protecting people and assets in order to optimize profit and brand impact. Be part of their strategic plans. Tour your stores with stakeholders, morning, noon, and night. Work a store shift during the Holiday season. Go to another function’s huddle and talk about security. Engage with your stakeholders outside of crisis.


 Develop metrics for your function. How much restitution did you bring back to the bottom line? How much labour were you able to save with technology? Through your audit program, how did you return people back to work more quickly or reduce customer accidents versus last year? Due to your efforts, you were able to reduce robberies and burglaries, making the workplace safer and saving considerable expense. A safe work environment is profitable one, a destination for talented employees and loyal customers. It will also be a differentiator between you and your competition

Enjoy the week,


Steve


LPDT, LLC offers the only E-Learning training for Retail Loss Prevention at www.LossPreventionAcademy.com. In addition,we offer a FREE job and resume posting board for Loss Prevention at www.LPjobsFREE.com. Check out our awareness posters for shortage and safety at www.LPPosters.com. You can follow us on Twitter under LPACADEMYcom and Facebook under Loss Prevention Academy.

Safety for Retail is now Live!!!

We are pleased to offer now a comprehensive e-learning course of Safety for Retail.  This 8 hour course is aimed at the Loss Prevention Professional who "owns" safety and the Safety Professional.

We have always felt that Safety within Retail is often ignored or many professionals do not understand the comprehensive road map on how to develop a program.  As one of the top 5 controllable expenses for a retailer, this area should be a focus by everyone in top management.  Often, the ownership of safety falls under the Loss Prevention dept. however, there has been a lack of training on how to achieve the results needed.

Safety starts with building a culture.  A culture that promotes safety and it becomes part of the buildings "DNA".  It can not be a focus after there is an accident.  It needs to be part of the distribution or selling process and be in front of the employees on a daily basis.

Spend to achieve results.  We have always been a firm believer in strong incentive programs to increase attention to the safety culture..  Promoting safety with awareness campaigns, daily bingo, car give-a-ways are excellent ways to keep the attention of the employees.  Investing in these prizes can quickly pay for themselves in accident frequency reduction.

Audit your way to excellence.  Every Store and DC should have a detailed operational audit program to set the standards and insure they are committed to in the building.

If you want to learn more, check out our training program on our Academy at www.LossPreventionAcademy.com.

Enjoy the week,

Steve


LPDT, LLC offers the only E-Learning training for Retail Loss Prevention at www.LossPreventionAcademy.com. In addition,we offer a FREE job and resume posting board for Loss Prevention at www.LPjobsFREE.com. Check out our awareness posters for shortage and safety at www.LPPosters.com. You can follow us on Twitter under LPACADEMYcom and Facebook under Loss Prevention Academy.

People-Your strongest or weakest link?

We are pleased to have a guest blog article written by Dean Correia, Owner of Correia Security Resources.  Dean is based in Canada and has many years experience in retail loss prevention.  Thank you for sharing this article.


People – your most important asset. If your employees, or their loved ones, don’t feel that the workplace or school is safe, what are the results? Lack of productivity? Absenteeism? Abandonment? A safe and secure environment increases engagement. High engagement directly impacts profit, retention, and makes your business or school a desired destination for talented employees, students, and customers. Highly engaged employees become your competitive advantage. A recent study revealed that at work, 60% of employees are not engaged, 15% are actively
disengaged, and only 25% are actively engaged. What does this mean to Canadian businesses? Statistics show that unhappy workers cost the North American business economy well over $350 billion annually in lost productivity. Today’s businesses and schools face unprecedented threats to people, property, and information. Canadian retailers lose approximately $9 million dollars or 1.2% of their net sales to internal/external losses and paperwork errors - every day. How many sales transactions were not properly recorded by your employees at your cash registers today? How confident are you that your business correctly received all of the merchandise and supplies that you paid for this week? How much time theft is occurring at your business? Companies must hire talented people and retain them. Turnover has many soft and hard costs. 


Employee engagement is the level of commitment an employee has towards the organization. The primary behaviours of engaged employees are: speaking positively about the organization to coworkers, potential employees and customers, having a strong desire to be a member of the organization, and exerting extra effort to contribute to the organization’s success. Disengaged employees aren’t born that way. They’re created by ineffective, badly trained managers and lack of strong human resource management. As leaders, we need to proactively improve engagement as part of our strategic plan. How? Train and develop. Involve your team.

Give your team the tools they need to do their jobs. Reward and recognize. Ask for feedback on you. Communicate. Be consistent. In the security profession, we understand the correlation between loss of assets and high employee engagement. Engaged employees are more likely to not steal, or turn a blind eye when a co-worker steals. They go the extra mile to help that customer, becoming raving fans of the business, and develop in to walking billboards that drive your profit. What policies, procedures, and systems do you have in place to protect your people, assets, and proprietary information? How much safer, how much more profitable, would your business be if your employees were more engaged? Our operational risk assessment will make your business environment safer and increase your profits. Guaranteed! Contact us today for details.


Dean Correia is the owner of Correia Security Resources, a Canadian company that specializes in customized security training workshops and services for businesses and schools. Dean has had a career in operations and loss prevention in Canada spanning more than 20 years, holding senior leadership roles with global brands GAP, Starbucks Coffee, and Walmart. Dean is skilled at influencing stakeholders to embed an enduring legacy through process improvements and the creation of sustainable programs that contribute profit and add value through the protection of people and securing of assets. Visit his website at www.correiasecurity.ca or send him an email at
dean@correiasecurity.ca 

LPDT, LLC offers the only E-Learning training for Retail Loss Prevention at www.LossPreventionAcademy.com. In addition,we offer a FREE job and resume posting board for Loss Prevention at www.LPjobsFREE.com. Check out our awareness posters for shortage and safety at www.LPPosters.com. You can follow us on Twitter under LPACADEMYcom and Facebook under Loss Prevention Academy.