 Security/Loss Prevention
William
Ritter's career has been devoted exclusively to retail
loss prevention and specific loss investigations for the convenience
store industry. He attended the University of Toledo majoring
in Criminal Justice. In 1974, Bill attended Gormac Polygraph
School in Pasadena, Calif., and after graduation began Ritter & Associates. During Bill's 27-year career he has conducted
in excess of 8,000 investigations and interviewed over 40,000
employees for various convenience store companies. These investigations
and interviews have led to successful prosecutions and well
over $4,000,000 in restitution. Bill is a nationally recognized
speaker and workshop leader, specializing in the area of convenience
store loss prevention. Today, Bill regularly consults with
companies, both large and small, regarding all areas of loss
prevention.
Web: www.b2bSolutionsLLC.com
CLICK HERE TO ASK YOUR QUESTION
Recent Questions:
1)
I know that some of my employees are stealing from me. What
proof do I need to press charges?
To successfully
prosecute an employee you must have evidence consisting
of any one or combination of the following:
* Documentation of the specific loss, i.e., shift report/audit
report etc.
* Journal tapes/electronic journal
* Video tapes
* Signed admission in employee's handwriting
* Witnesses
Further,
never sign a warrant. Signing a complaint is fine, but never
sign a warrant because of legal complications. If you sign
a warrant and the person is found not guilty, there is a
possibility of a lawsuit for false arrest against the individual
and/or company that signed the warrant. Most states have
the Grand Jury form of judicial process available and I
strongly suggest using it wherever possible.
2)
We want to add a video system to our 17 stores. What do
I need to know before purchasing a new system?
This
will be, in part, determined by the amount of money you
have in your budget to spend. Most companies today are moving
away from analog VCR's and into digital video systems. Several
of the newer digital systems have the ability to be remotely
viewed for playback purposes and others have the ability
to create CDs on demand so that you can provide the police
a copy of the event that they can play in most computers.
Many companies elect to have an interactive program that
is monitored by a third party and serves as a great deterrent.
Interactive gives the 3rd party the ability to interact
directly with the store.
Many companies believe, although I do not, more is better
when it comes to the number of cameras for the facility.
You have to remember the primary reason for cameras is the
safety and security of your employees and the second is
for the protection of assets. Since 80% percent of our losses
occur in the register area it is important to have this
area covered as well as cameras on all entrances and exits.
Most convenience stores can suffice with 6-8 cameras.
3)
How can I train my employees so they don't steal from me?
The best way to train your employees not to steal from you is to employ and enforce Risk Factors. A Risk Factor is defined as instilling in someone a consequence for his or her actions. Examples of these would be cash over/short log, vendor/visitor, shift analysis, coaching/counseling forms etc.
4)
What is the number one-way employee steal?
Contrary
to popular belief, it is not by using the void or no sale
key; it is by converting merchandise to cash. This is accomplished
by working from an open cash drawer. The number one item
stolen is cigarettes.
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