PUBLISHER’S LETTER

Food for Thought

Part of the role of a magazine that aspires to be “the voice of loss prevention” is to provide thought-provoking information that may run counter to the prevailing views of our industry. There are a couple of articles in this issue that meet that criteria and will hopefully stimulate not only introspection on your part, but discussion inside your organization and among your peers.

Myth vs. Reality

The idea in the corporate world that we can continue to squeeze more and more productivity from fewer and fewer resources is the topic of Walter Palmer’s cover article, “Doing More with Less?” on page 15. Those of you who have been asked to take on more and more responsibility have likely already come to the conclusion that something must give. Palmer examined the concept empirically with several retailers and came to the conclusion that many C-suite executives may not want to hear.

Hiring Ex-offenders

In his Academic Viewpoint column on page 26, Dr. Richard Hollinger examines the implications of recent EEOC guidelines that state that “people cannot be denied employment solely on the basis of criminal histories.” This calls into question the common practice by many retailers led by their LP organizations of using criminal background checks as a major part of their pre-employment screening process. Will this fundamentally change the way retailers hire associates? Dr. Hollinger thinks it should and encourages LP professionals to lead the way.

LP Giving Back

There are several items in this issue that are worthy of your attention that are not controversial at all, but examples of one of the best parts of our industry—giving back to those in need.

The first is a memorial fund set up by the Loss Prevention Foundation for the families of loss prevention personnel harmed in the performance of their duties (see page 38). The fund was set up in the wake of the shooting death of Luis Jhon, an LP associate with Walmart. Jhon was sadly murdered by a shoplifting suspect who attempted to leave the Florida store with t-shirts worth a mere $16. Please read the article and respond as your heart moves you.

The lead item in the Industry News section on page 66 reports on a child-safety initiative conducted by Old Navy in their North American fleet of stores. The fashion retailer partnered with the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, a non-profit organization frequently supported by LP organizations, and the Canadian Centre for Child Protection for a four-day in-store event that distributed information to families for protecting children.

In the wake of the amazing destruction wrought by Hurricane Sandy, eBay and PayPal used their vast resources to provide relief to victims of the mega-storm. Paul Jones describes these efforts on page 28.

Your Input Required

Starting on page 29, Jim Lee and those of us on the magazine staff talk about our recent editorial board meeting and some of the items we discussed to move the magazine forward for our readership. As is mentioned in that interview-style article, we are fortunate to have a great board of executives who offer us their insights into what subjects we should cover and ways to better serve the industry.

However, everyone who reads this magazine is, in fact, a de facto member of the editorial board because we solicit and expect to hear your critique and suggestions for what you want from the magazine. What issues should we cover? How do you want to access the information? What can we do to help you advance your career?

Please take the time to give us your input. The tagline we print on the cover—“The Voice of Loss Prevention”—doesn’t refer to our voice, but your voice.

Jack Trlica

Editor and Publisher

LossPrevention and LP Magazine are service marks owned by the publishers and their use is restricted. All editorial content is copyrighted. No article may be reproduced by any means without expressed, written permission from the publisher. Reprints or PDF versions of articles are available by contacting the publisher. Statements of fact or opinion are the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the opinion of the publishers. Advertising in the publication does not imply endorsement by the publishers. The editor reserves the right to accept or reject any article or advertisement.

MAGAZINE

700 Matthews Mint Hill Rd, Ste C Matthews, NC 28105 704-365-5226 office, 704-365-1026 fax

EDITOR AND PUBLISHER Jack Trlica JackT@LPportal.com EXECUTIVE EDITOR James Lee, LPC JimL@LPportal.com CONTRIBUTING EDITORS Robert L. DiLonardo Walter E. Palmer, CFI, CPP, CFE Amber Virgillo

CONTRIBUTORS William A. Alford, LPC, CFE Read Hayes, Ph.D., CPP Richard C. Hollinger, Ph.D. Mike Marquis, CFI Gene Smith Shane G. Sturman, CFI, CPP Kelby Woodard David E. Zulawski, CFI, CFE

DIGITAL EDITOR John Selevitch JohnS@LPportal.com CREATIVE DIRECTOR Larry Preslar

PROOFREADER Amy Trainor

DESIGN & PRODUCTION SPARK Publications info@SPARKpublications.com 704-844-6080

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LossPrevention aka LP Magazine (USPS 000-710) is published bimonthly by Loss Prevention Magazine, Inc., 700 Matthews Mint Hill Rd, Ste C, Matthews, NC 28105. Print subscriptions are available free to qualified loss prevention and associated professionals in the U.S. and Canada at www.myLPmag.com. The publisher reserves the right to determine qualification standards. International print subscriptions are available for $99 per year payable in U.S. funds at www.LPportal.com. For questions about subscriptions, contact circulation@LPportal.com. Periodicals postage paid at Matthews, NC, and additional mailing offices.

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