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I spoke with six high-ranking LP professionals last week, and all six conversations followed a common theme...

A major part of a publisher's job involves talking with subscribers — I spend at least a third of my workweek doing just that. Talking with our readers keeps me informed on how they're using the magazine and website, what projects they're currently working on, what they like about us, and what changes they'd like to see in our coverage. These discussions give me a pretty unique perspective on trends in the industry.

Among my reader calls last week were six with high-ranking LP professionals from major national brands. Four of these companies were multibillion-dollar retailers; two were retailers in the range of $250 million to $500 million in revenue. All six conversations followed a common theme: loss prevention professionals have increasing levels of responsibility for the integration of LP technology with other operations-and IT-based initiatives. Retail tech and operations investments, particularly those that involve LP, are requiring the collaboration of a multidisciplinary team from the outset — from the evaluation to the implementation phases.

Allow me to share some of the intelligence I gleaned from last week's conversations:

• The VP of LP for a billion-dollar-plus multimedia retailer reflected on integration and praised our editorial coverage for focusing on it. "LP, operations, and IT are all heavily integrated here," he said. "We've struggled with this, but retail technology has become so network- and IP-driven that we see the advantages of and the opportunities for more integration."
• An LP executive from a major national office supplies retailer is currently working on an IP-based POS/security integration pilot. He told me that he reads our magazine to stay current on trends and get ideas, and then relies on retailsolutionsonline.com to help him source specific vendors.
• The LP director for a $250 million sporting goods store said he's looking for best practices around using POS data for LP purposes. "All of our LP and technology investment decisions are made by an interdisciplinary team of execs from LP, IT, and operations," he said. "This ensures that we're maximizing our investments across departments."
• The director of security for a billion-dollar chain of jewelry stores told me that he and his VP of LP were on the evaluation team for a smart card/time and attendance project, and that the final decision would be made by the company's senior VP of IT. "At a minimum, LP and IT share responsibility for all LP solutions we implement to ensure compatibility and ease integration," he told me.
• LP execs from a billion-dollar c-store chain and a $500 million pharmacy chain told me that the IT and operations teams were each required to approve any technology-based LP decisions. The c-store exec also said that increasingly, the IT department is funding the company's tech-based LP initiatives.

The commonality in these conversations speaks to the mission of our editorial content — we seek to keep you informed on the value of integrated retail solutions. As you can see by these examples, that integration begins long before you begin building interfaces or deploying middleware — it starts in boardrooms and at conference tables with the collaboration of minds, disciplines, and departments.

We're always interested in your opinions and feedback. Reach me directly at melissa.morris@jamesonpublishing.com.

Melissa Morris
Publisher
Integrated Solutions For Retailers/Retail Solutions Online