Welcome to this post-pandemic summer. Hopefully, you are fully vaccinated and getting back to a semblance of normalcy. That said, let’s hope the delta variant does not overtake those still unvaccinated and cause another wave of infections that impacts our economy and our health, although August isn’t looking promising.
There is a lot of great information in this print edition for your reading enjoyment. Here is a short preview of what to look for in these pages that are now on the magazine website.
Brian Dodge and RILA
Brian Dodge assumed the role of president of the Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) January 1, 2020, after rising through the ranks of the association. His leadership was put to a test within a few short weeks when COVID hit the US, disrupting the retail industry and the overall economy. In my opinion, Brian and the RILA team responded in exceptional fashion. Jim Lee and I interviewed him for this edition. This article is a must-read for all retail professionals.
Crisis Communications
Communicating to store associates is seriously important when crisis events take place. Whether the crisis event is related to weather, civil unrest, or crime, corporate leadership must provide timely information to protect both customers and employees. Dallas-based 7-Eleven recently piloted a new emergency notification technology that alerts impacted stores. The company’s asset protection team worked cross-functionally with internal peers to develop and implement the system. Check it out here.
Diversity & Inclusion
Earlier this year, the magazine surveyed the loss prevention industry to assess the current attitudes about diversity and inclusion. Working with subject- matter experts and D&I retail professionals, we produced a detailed questionnaire that ultimately was completed by 400 professionals from store- level to corporate-level, from across the globe, and across a broad spectrum of individuals. Jacque Brittain, who led the effort, gives us a broad look at the results in the feature article. It’s an important topic for all of us to consider and take to heart.
Alt-Tech Social Networks
For a majority of us who use Facebook, Twitter, and similar social networks, it’s a way to communicate with friends and family or with business associates. However, as we’ve witnessed especially in the past several years, many of the platforms have been used to promote political, racial, criminal, and extreme points of view. As social platforms try to manage content by removing users or taking down posts, alternative networks have popped up to fill the gap. Our feature article offers an exposé that can help investigators and brand managers understand and monitor these rogue platforms.
The Hall Award Winners
Many of you voted in our new awards program called The Hall that is designed to recognize excellence in a variety of categories from Investigation of the Year to Law Enforcement Partner of the Year, from LP Leaders to Rising Stars. We also recognize lifetime achievement with the Loss Prevention Hall of Honor. Check out all the 2020 winners and the many worthy nominees here.
There are many more excellent columns and informational sections in this edition. Click here to see all the articles online and take your time to digest the many topics. As always, please let us know what you think at editor@lpportal.com.