Spotting Problems Early

Retail shrinkage is real -- the national average hovers around 1.5% of sales, and most of it comes from inside the building. TORO's High Risk reports exist so that the vast majority of honest activity stays clearly documented, and the small percentage that is not does not go unnoticed for months. These reports do not accuse anyone. They flag patterns. What you do with the information is a management decision, not a system decision.

What High Risk Reports Actually Are

Every day, TORO records thousands of data points -- transactions, voids, discounts, drawer opens, price changes, clock edits, inventory adjustments. The High Risk reports scan all of that activity and surface anything that falls outside normal patterns.

The Reports and What They Catch

High Risk Voids

Transactions voided after completion. Voids happen -- a customer changes their mind, the wrong item gets scanned, someone forgets a discount and starts over. That is all normal. What is not normal is a pattern: the same employee voiding transactions every shift, voids happening right before or after closing, or voided amounts that seem disproportionately high.

High Risk Discounts

Unusually large or frequent discounts. Every employee has a discount limit based on their access level, but even within those limits, patterns emerge. Is one person discounting three times as often as everyone else? Are the discount reasons vague or repetitive? Are discounts happening on items that do not typically get discounted?

High Risk Refunds Without Receipt

Refunds processed without the original transaction receipt. Occasional no-receipt refunds are part of doing business. But processing fake returns for cash is one of the oldest retail scams there is. A pattern of no-receipt refunds by one person is worth looking into.

High Risk No-Sale Opens

The drawer opened without a transaction attached. There are legitimate reasons: making change for a parking meter, breaking a large bill for someone who is not buying anything. But the drawer should not be opening ten times a shift with no sales to show for it. This report shows you frequency by employee, by time of day, by register.

High Risk Price Overrides

Items sold below their listed retail price outside of a standard discount. Was there a damaged product, a price-match situation, or a negotiated deal? Or was it something less explainable? This report shows every override with the original price, the override price, and who did it.

High Risk Comps

Employee comps approaching or exceeding their daily allowance, or comp patterns that seem unusual. This report makes sure the comp policy is being followed and that comp reasons are being documented.

High Risk QOH Adjustments

Manual changes to quantity-on-hand outside of normal receiving or sales. Inventory adjustments are routine -- you do a count, the number does not match, you adjust it. But frequent adjustments to the same items, or adjustments that always go in one direction (down), can indicate product walking out the back door.

High Risk Time Clock Edits

Manager overrides on employee clock-in or clock-out times. Occasionally, someone forgets to clock in or the system glitches and a manual fix is needed. A pattern of added hours, especially if it is always the same manager editing the same employee's time, deserves a closer look.

High Risk Drawer Closing

Cash differences at drawer closing -- how much was expected versus how much was actually counted. Small variances happen daily and mean nothing on their own. Consistent shortages, especially by the same person at the same register, mean something. This report tracks the pattern over time.

High Risk Employee Purchases

Employees buying at their own register. This is not inherently suspicious, but it is worth monitoring for unusually high employee discounts, unusual purchase patterns, or a volume of transactions that does not line up with normal employee buying.

How to Use These Reports Well

• Review weekly or every two weeks. You do not need to check these daily. The value is in the pattern, not the individual data point. Set aside 10-15 minutes once a week to scan through them.
• Look for patterns, not incidents. One void on a Tuesday afternoon is nothing. Twelve voids across three Tuesdays by the same person during the same shift is something. The reports are designed to surface exactly this kind of pattern.
• Compare employees to each other. If four employees average 2 voids per week and one averages 12, that is an outlier. It might have a perfectly good explanation, but it is worth understanding.
• Document before you have conversations. If you see something concerning, print the report and note the dates and details before talking to anyone. Having specific data points makes the conversation productive instead of confrontational.
• Remember: these are management tools, not accusation tools. Most of the time, a "high risk" flag has a perfectly reasonable explanation. The point is that you looked, you asked, and you know. The alternative -- not looking at all -- is how small problems become big ones.