Loss prevention and asset protection practitioners know that their roles have shifted completely since the old days of catching shoplifters. These days, LP responsibilities can range from managing inventory to store safety and everything in between.
In his July-August 2016 feature article for LP Magazine, Johnny Custer, LPC, CFI, argues that the LP role now centers around loss prevention analytics: those reports and information generated by nearly every system in the store. Data is where we are headed, he says, and it is high time that LP and AP professionals learn how to understand and use the data at their fingertips. From the article:
“Data is the future of our industry. A single data-friendly LP professional can both identify and address leading indicators of loss for a significant grouping of stores, with no need for airfare, travel, or company car. Identification and correction of these leading indicators driven by this single analyst could rival the internal and external apprehension total for a comparably sized span of control with a full staff of loss prevention associates.”
In the article, Custer offers a helpful matrix (the P3 pyramid) that LP pros can reference when it comes time to investigate their store data for answers to shrink and profit and loss issues. The P3 pyramid’s three pillars—process, protocol, and platform—all represent equally important elements that LP teams should acknowledge and understand in order to be successful in working with data analytics. Although it won’t solve every shrink issue, Custer cautions, the P3 pyramid will guide your team in finding the leading indicators for liability and in acting proactively to protect profits.
Check out “Data Analytics Pyramid” to read the full column and learn more about the P3 pyramid. You can also visit the Table of Contents for the July-August 2016 issue or register for a free subscription to the magazine.
