Write a retail shrink report: how much stock was lost, where, split into theft, damage and waste, supplier and delivery error, and administrative error, with the evidence for each and a short action plan. Use when asked to write a shrink report, explain our stock loss, why is shrinkage up, analyse shrink by department, or prepare the loss report for the area manager. Produces a shrink summary as value and as a share of sales, a breakdown by department and cause, the top loss lines, a confidence note on each cause, and owned actions with a review date.
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SKILL.md
name: shrink-reportdescription: "Write a retail shrink report: how much stock was lost, where, split into theft, damage and waste, supplier and delivery error, and administrative error, with the evidence for each and a short action plan. Use when asked to write a shrink report, explain our stock loss, why is shrinkage up, analyse shrink by department, or prepare the loss report for the area manager. Produces a shrink summary as value and as a share of sales, a breakdown by department and cause, the top loss lines, a confidence note on each cause, and owned actions with a review date."version: 1.0.0
Shrink Report
Shrink is the gap between the stock the books say a shop has and the stock on the shelf. A useful report does not stop at the total. It says where the loss is, how sure anyone is about the cause, and what will be done by whom. This skill writes that report from count and sales data, and it is strict about not presenting a guess as a finding.
What This Skill Produces
Shrink for the period as value at cost and as a percentage of sales, against the previous period and the target
A breakdown by department and by cause category
The top loss lines by value
For each cause, the evidence and a confidence level
Three to six owned actions with dates, and the measure that will show whether they worked
Required Inputs
Ask for these if not provided:
Period covered and the stock take dates at each end
Sales for the period, by department if available
Variance data: product, department, units and value, known and unknown loss
Recorded waste, markdowns, damages and returns to supplier
Delivery discrepancies and credit claims
Incidents: thefts recorded, till shortages, voids and refunds reports
The shrink target and last period's figure
Any changes in the period: new layout, new staff, self-checkout, new supplier
Framework
Define it once. Shrink value equals book stock minus counted stock, at cost. Shrink rate equals shrink value divided by sales for the period. State whether sales are at retail and loss at cost.
Known and unknown. Recorded waste, damage and markdowns are known loss. The remainder is unknown loss and needs a cause.
Four cause categories. External theft, internal theft, supplier and delivery error, administrative and process error (pricing, scanning, unit of measure, unrecorded waste).
Evidence before attribution. Assign unknown loss to a cause only where there is evidence: incident logs, delivery checks, till exception reports, location of the loss. The rest stays "unexplained".
Concentration. A small number of lines usually carries most of the loss. Rank by value.
Actions target causes. Each action names the cause it addresses, the owner, the date and the measure.
Output Format
Shrink report: [shop], [period]
Headline: shrink [value] at cost, [rate] of sales, against [last period] and a target of [target].
Department
Sales
Shrink value
Shrink rate
Change
By cause
Cause
Value
Share
Evidence
Confidence
Known: waste and damage
High
External theft
Internal theft
Supplier and delivery
Administrative error
Unexplained
Top loss lines
Product
Department
Units
Value
Note
What changed this period: [list]
Actions
Action
Cause addressed
Owner
By
Measure
Next review: [date]
Assumptions and gaps
[How unknown loss was split, and what that split rests on]
[Data that would move loss out of "unexplained"]
Quality Checks
The basis is stated: loss at cost, sales at retail or cost
Known and unknown loss are separated
Every attributed cause cites evidence and a confidence level
An "unexplained" line exists and is not forced to zero
Actions have owners, dates and measures
Anti-Patterns
Do not attribute unexplained loss to theft by default.
Do not name or imply individual staff. Suspected internal theft goes through the organisation's investigation process.
Do not mix cost and retail values in one table.
Do not list twenty actions. Pick the few that match the largest causes.
Do not report a rate without the sales figure behind it.
Example Trigger Phrases
"Shrink went from 1.4 to 2.1 percent. Write the report for my area manager."
"Break this variance file down by department and cause."
"Which twenty lines are costing us the most?"
"How do I separate waste from theft in the loss figure?"