Retail Security and Loss Prevention Solutions : Problems and Solutions

Employee theft amounts to roughly $36.6 billion retail dollars lost annually, according to a 2008 National Retail Security Survey, and accounts for approximately 42.7 % of all retail losses. Each year organizations spend millions of dollars on theft detection/prevention devices yet still incur losses at the hands of their own employees; begging the question not of how theft occurs, but why. Discussing the concept of the Theft Triangle (opportunity, motivation, and insufficient deterrents), Retail Security and Loss Prevention Solutions investigates motivational factors that contribute to loss and describes philosophies that can change the entire spectrum of employee dishonesty. It cites the revolutionary approach adopted by the New York Subway System, demonstrating that by changing the overall presentation of the business and contending with the factors preceding the crime, the crime itself can be avoided. As the title "Loss Prevention Professional" implies, the intention is to stop the damage before it occurs. To this end, chapters discuss behaviors that precede a loss event, theoretical perspectives and research on employee deviance and motivation, and methods to control employee dishonesty through deterrents as well as ethical infrastructures. Detailing the intricacies of the Loss Prevention Profession and the myriad skills involved such as accounting, forensics, fraud detection, human behavior analysis, and interview/interrogation skills, the authors give advice on how to select the right individuals for the job and how to build a Loss Prevention department. They employ real life case studies and interviews and discuss the problems and solutions for the future of loss prevention as a whole.