|
|
"Culture"
by Matt
McGarrigle
Loss Prevention Lead
Sears Ontario, Canada
Today in the world of retail we break down shrinkage
into groups (External, internal, administrative errors
and vendor theft/fraud. We as a group have always been
chasing the ultimate goal of reducing the shrinkage in
our stores while driving sales to increase profits. If I
would suggest that the root cause for each of the above
categories on the success or failure relies on the
"culture" of your organization would you agree?
Culture within the organization is the heartbeat of any
success or failure. It's the willingness of everyone
making a positive impact towards success and
unfortunately it's also the direct link to failure. If
you apply a positive culture towards shrink reduction
you address each category at the root cause. Your
associates are your number one driving force and if the
associates are engaged in that type of culture then they
will take ownership in the business. They are your
foundation for LP programs. Think of it this way, how
would your associates prevent external shrink if you
have an internal problem? They won't identify or correct
administrative errors or vendor issues because of poor
engagement.
Obtaining that positive culture takes a
total effort from everyone in the organization starting
with your leaders. Associates are not going to buy into
the "Do as I say" and "Not as I do" method. Leading by
example is the only way. I recently read discussions
about paying associates higher wages to prevent internal
theft, I disagree. It's like giving an incentive reward
asking "please don't steal from me". Paying higher wages
because their worth it absolutely. Communication will
always be an important key to educate and promote any
program you're trying to implement and a big part of
that communication is obtaining feedback from the
associates. Granted some will challenge just because of
change and others will face roadblocks. Find out who or
what is creating the roadblock and correct it. Have your
corporate policies and job descriptions in place and
stick to them. Allowing terms like up to the store
managers discretion will only change your culture in a
negative way creating poor engagement among associates
if the policies only apply sometimes. Remember corporate
not store specific policies.
Technology today allows us
in so many ways to perform our task without personal
contact and yet the most important element we ask from
our associates in retail is providing excellent personal
customer service with customers, That's what benefits
both sales and loss prevention programs is great
customer service that we can only obtain from a positive
culture.
Positive or negative culture starts with one
person, will you be the one? And which one will you be?
Just a thought |
|
|
What's Happening?
Coming in 2012:
Mobile App's
LP Show Coverage
The Top 10
|
|
