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 By
Rich Mellor
Vice President, Loss Prevention
National Retail Federation
If there’s an area within retail that clearly illustrates
the three pillars of NRF’s new “This is Retail” campaign,
it’s loss prevention.
LP offers retail careers that range from mall security
officers to senior executive opportunities at the corporate
level, and LP professionals play a major role in preserving
the safety of our nation’s communities much the same as
sworn police officers.
The field often involves the latest in technological
innovation, ranging from the newest digital surveillance
cameras to the never-ending battle to keep cyber criminals
from hacking into retail databases.
Over the past decade, there has been a recognizable trend in
what is expected of LP professionals who seek to rise to
leadership positions. It is no longer enough to understand
just loss prevention as such. The new era of LP requires
knowledge and understanding of information technology, human
resources, store design and financial reporting, to name
just a few areas. And loss prevention itself has expanded to
include emergency response, safety, business continuity and
cyber security, with responsibility for protection of
company assets, employees and customers alike.
So it should come as no surprise that helping LP
professionals who want to advance in their careers will be
one of the themes of the NRF Loss Prevention Conference &
EXPO, June 12-14 in San Diego. The LP Conference is where
the best and brightest in retail loss prevention gather with
key partners in law enforcement to network, engage in
educational offerings and meet the challenges facing our
industry. In addition to the usual panels and speeches on
hands-on issues like organized retail crime or new
techniques for conducting investigations, this year’s
conference will feature sessions on how higher education can
help LP professionals advance their careers and how to
identify and cultivate the future retail LP leaders within
your organization.
The conference also includes speakers who will focus on
leadership — that elusive quality that transforms an LP
professional into an LP executive. One example of great
leadership is Navy Lt. Commander Rorke T. Denver. If you
don’t recognize the name you might recognize the face — he
was one of the real-life Navy SEALS starring in last year’s
Golden Globe-nominated movie “Act of Valor” and has led
special forces missions in the Middle East, Africa, Latin
America and a host of other international hot spots. His
keynote on “elite leadership” will draw on those experiences
to explain the value of training, preparation, teamwork and
motivation to sparking and sustaining high levels of
performance.
Also on the agenda is FBI Academy instructor Larry Barton,
one of the world’s leading experts on threat assessment, who
has managed nearly 3,000 cases and written four books on the
subject. He’s also a face you’ve seen as a commentator for
CNN and the BBC during the Sandy Hook school shootings. He
will address how retailers can process and manage threats in
stores, distribution centers and those shared and spread via
social media, along with how domestic disputes can create
havoc in stores.
With speakers like those and more than two dozen in-depth
sessions on specific issues, the conference has much to
offer LP staff and executives at all levels of the
profession. Whether you’re looking to become a senior
executive or just move up through the ranks, the message is
clear — LP is not just a job, it’s a career.
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