Integrity. It's a word loss prevention consultants and managers use a lot
when talking about their work. The Oxford English Dictionary defines integrity
as "moral uprightness; honesty." Loss prevention specialists define it every
day on the job.
It's an essential personal quality to build the credibility needed in this
field, loss prevention specialists say. Perhaps this shouldn't be surprising,
considering many consultants are former police officers.
Tim Lynn is one example. He was a police officer for 27 years. Now he owns
a loss prevention service. For the past few years, his son, Paul, has worked
alongside him.
"You have to have high integrity to do this job," Paul says. "You have
to have strong character -- a strong idea of what's right and wrong. Unfortunately,
in today's society, that's far and few between."
For some retail outlets, employee theft is as serious a problem as customer
theft. Convincing managers of this isn't always easy. They assume employees
have integrity, even when they don't.
"Management, because they work so closely with employees, usually have
a hard time believing it. They close their eyes to it," says Tim. "The loss
to employee theft is greater than it is, usually, to external theft. Usually,
when you catch them, you find they've been stealing for quite a while."
As loss prevention consultants, the Lynns advise retail stores how to reduce
losses from theft and fraud. They also investigate particular employees, if
a company has reason to suspect them of dishonesty.
This can lead to ethical issues, such as when a company has an agenda.
They might want to fire an employee, so they hire you to find sufficient evidence
of dishonesty. If there's insufficient evidence, the employer could be penalized
financially by a labor board. Also, an innocent person could be without a
job.
"They'll want you to tell them, 'Well, you can just fire this person,'"
Paul says. "In that case, I'll have to say, 'You can't deal with it that way.'
And they'll still go ahead and do it. Now, does that give me anything? No.
I don't make the money, I don't make the sale. However, I walk away [thinking],
'I did the right thing.'"
Read Hayes is a loss prevention consultant in Florida. He works with major
companies such as Universal Studios Florida. He also has a background in law
enforcement and stresses the importance of integrity.
"Credibility and integrity are critical," Hayes says. "We're there to establish
and maintain the ethics of the company, whether we work for them or not. So
if we don't have the same integrity or ethics, we've got a problem."
Loss prevention managers for a particular company also value integrity.
Heather Veitch is an assistant manager for loss prevention. She says integrity
is vitally important in her field.
She started out as a floorwalker in a grocery store, watching out for theft
by customers and employees. Now, she manages a staff of floorwalkers, also
called loss prevention officers. Veitch is also responsible for alarm systems,
cameras, employee card access and internal investigations of employees suspected
of fraud or theft.
"If you don't have the personal integrity, then you're not going to gain
the respect within the industry or within the company that you work for,"
Veitch says.
"A lot of times, what we say goes as far as whether an employee is going
to keep their job, whether it's a theft-related incident or not. Therefore,
if you haven't gained that respect within your company, you're not going to
get the backing that you need when it comes time for it."
Despite the pressures, loss prevention managers and consultants say they
like their jobs. Personal integrity leads to personal satisfaction. Also,
they know they're providing an important service.
"It's a rewarding career field," says Hayes. "It's very interesting --
crime and loss -- but you don't have the shift work you'd normally have with
a law enforcement position."