Home Depot increases sales visibility for decreased shrink

Home improvement titan seeks to identify fraud in real time.

The Home Depot is deploying the Zebra Technologies Savanna prescriptive analytics platform and Profitect sales and exception-based reporting (EBR) module to help lift sales and prevent fraud by reviewing its omnichannel sales data.

Prescriptive analytics applies artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning to analyze data in near-real-time to uncover ongoing issues and recommend remedial actions. The retailer selected the Zebra/Profitect solution based on its ability to provide smart tasks, workflow for accountability, and insights into its data.

The Home Depot is rolling out the technology across its more than 1,900 stores in the US. Initially, the retailer will distribute prescriptive analytics insights within the asset protection department, but plans to share them across other departments in the future as well.

“Our top deliverables in asset protection are to drive value for our customers and shareholders by reducing shrink and mitigating total retail loss,” said Scott Glenn, VP of asset protection, The Home Depot. “We recognized the need for an enterprise system that would drive these results. Zebra is providing us with unmatched functionality for our business needs.”

Regional grocery chain Brookshire Brothers also leverages the Profitect sales and EBR module to reduce fraud and improve compliance. The company’s asset protection department is working with the operations and finance departments to leverage Profitect’s prescriptive analytics technology to detect markdown abuse, post voids, and other criminal activity by associates and external subjects, including organized retail crime rings.