Target Assets Protection Team Leader

[mvpmets00]

I have a interview set up, can anyone elaborate more on the position, pay, etc?

I have some managerial experience but none in loss prevention but was called for a interview which surprised me, do you think I have a chance?

Thanks for the help.

[LPAjh9558]

Not really sure about the pay, but I do know that here in OKC Target AP's wear uniforms w/badges. Sure you have a chance as management experience is always great to have. Best of luck!
BTW, where were you a manager at before?

[mvpmets00]

Not really sure about the pay, but I do know that here in OKC Target AP's wear uniforms w/badges. Sure you have a chance as management experience is always great to have. Best of luck!
BTW, where were you a manager at before?

As a director of a after school program but I also have a associates degree in Criminal Justice.

This job is for Assets Protection Team Leader (manager) not AP associate.

[firearchdruid]

I use to work at target in Ohio on the flow team but I don't know anything about loss prevention. I do know that team leaders are not managers. At least they was not at the one I worked at. Team leaders here are kind of like supervisors only a little above associate.

[Curtis Baillie]

AP Team Leaders actually are Managers of LP for the store.

[Justice_Hound]

This is a long post. I took this from an article that a Target Asset Protection Specialist gone bad wrote. In this article, the former APS instructed would be thieves how to not get apprehended at Target.

Surprisingly, the description of the AP department actually sound pretty dead on.

The People

The first line of defense in any Target is its Asset Protection Department, or "AP" for short. You may have heard someone in the store calling "AP" over the radios all employees carry. This is the security department, usually called loss prevention at other stores. Every AP dept. has a few levels of employees. The bottom rung is the Target Protection Specialist, or TPS. These are the men and women in tan shirts and black pants, carrying handcuffs and radios on their belts. They patrol the stores, and by policy are supposed to spend most of their time at the front register lanes unless something else requires their attention. The main portion of their job is watching people checking out to see if any items have been left in the cart "by accident", and politely reminding them to pay for it. TPS's get quota'd on these items, so it's important they catch as many as possible. They watch the doors for suspicious looking people coming in, and assist with any emergencies, apprehensions, or anything else that may come up. But, due to their lack of rank, *TPS's cannot arrest anyone on their own*! I repeat, a TPS cannot stop you from leaving the store with stolen goods. They can scare the crap out of you, and check your receipts, and if they're feeling bold they can even request the stolen merchandise back. (That's against Target policy, though. No one is *ever* supposed to be accused of stealing. It hurts customers' feelings.)

Next up the ladder are the Asset Protection Specialists, or APS's. These are the undercovers of the store, and believe me when I say that these folks are on the ball. Anyone not dedicated to their job won't last very long in this line of work. They patrol the store in plain clothes, carrying a hidden walkie-talkie (usually in a purse for the ladies, or in a pocket or clipped to the back of the pants for guys, with the shirt covering it). They might sit in the office and watch cameras instead, but they're encouraged to stay on the floor. A good way to Spot-the-APS is to look for someone dashing around to endcaps, ducking down and then moving quickly away to act nonchalant. Or just look to see if the rectangle-shape of the radio is poking through the back of their shirt where it's hidden. (P.S. - An endcap is just the Target term for the end of an aisle. All of Target's endcaps are perforated, partly for hanging hooks, but mostly so AP can hide and look through the holes to watch you steal. It's very hard to see someone hiding behind the endcaps, so be careful and listen closely for shifting and breathing.) APS's can arrest people all on their own, with or without backup, although if they're worried you might fight they will have a TPS, another APS, or enthusiastic regular employees ready to jump on you, too. Remember, an APS doesn't have to win the fight with you. They just have to slow you down long enough for everyone else to catch up. However, if you physically resist they are legally allowed to drop you, using minimal violence of course, and cuff you.

The manager of the AP dept is called an Asset Protection Team Leader, or APTL. They usually spend more time researching employee theft than patrolling the floor, looking over cash register reports and so on. Many APTL's will not spend a lot of time in their personal store, traveling around to assist at other stores and leaving the APS's in charge. They essentially have the same powers as an APS, they're just way more experienced at it. Above them are the District and Regional APTL's, so on up the chain. These bigwigs usually never go to a store unless there's some major booster making the rounds and they're trying to set a trap for them. They're kind of like Target's personal shoplifter SWAT team, but without the guns or cool outfits.
Something to keep in mind: every other employee in the store really wants to be in AP. AP is the coolest job in the store to have, and its members are constantly getting asked by regular employees if they can apply. What this means for you is that every other employee in the store is eager to prove that they can catch thieves too, so don't relax just because they're wearing red and khaki. Regular employees will go out of their way to alert AP to your presence and follow you around.

[#1TPS]

The Assets Protection Team Leader(APTL) position is something new in AP. Basically the structure goes like this:

-Target Protection Specialist
-Assets Protection Specialist
-Assets Protection Team Leader
-Executive Team Leader of Assets Protection
-District Assets Protection Team Leader
-Group Assets Protection Team Leader
-Regional Directior of Assets Protection
-Vice President of Assets Protection

Going by the structure, the APTL is above the APS position but below the manager position. You will be supervising the TPS team and possibly the APS team as well. You will also have the authority to make stops on your own meaning you will be trained in observation and apprehensions. As for pay, I'm not too sure but it is above what an APS makes and you will be hourly, not salary.

You will be wearing red and khaki. There may be times when you may go into plain clothes and possibly a TPS uniform as well. The store I was at had an APTL and they wore a TPS uniform sometimes to help out the TPS team when we needed coverage but you will be in red and khaki for the most part.

[Justice_Hound]

The Assets Protection Team Leader(APTL) position is something new in AP. Basically the structure goes like this:

-Target Protection Specialist
-Assets Protection Specialist
-Assets Protection Team Leader
-Executive Team Leader of Assets Protection
-District Assets Protection Team Leader
-Group Assets Protection Team Leader
-Regional Directior of Assets Protection
-Vice President of Assets Protection

Going by the structure, the APTL is above the APS position but below the manager position. You will be supervising the TPS team and possibly the APS team as well. You will also have the authority to make stops on your own meaning you will be trained in observation and apprehensions. As for pay, I'm not too sure but it is above what an APS makes and you will be hourly, not salary.

You will be wearing red and khaki. There may be times when you may go into plain clothes and possibly a TPS uniform as well. The store I was at had an APTL and they wore a TPS uniform sometimes to help out the TPS team when we needed coverage but you will be in red and khaki for the most part.

Is this a store level position?

[Joe12304]

Is this a store level position?

Yes it is, just like ETL Hardlines, ETL Softlines, and ETL Logistics.

[Swifty]

These are all just re-named positions for the everyday job titles we all already know.

-Target Protection Specialist - Security Guard
-Assets Protection Specialist - Loss Prevention Officer/Shift Supervisor
-Assets Protection Team Leader - Manager
-Executive Team Leader of Assets Protection - Director of Loss Prevention
-District Assets Protection Team Leader - Internal investigations/strike team
-Group Assets Protection Team Leader - Area Manager
-Regional Directior of Assets Protection - Regional Manager
-Vice President of Assets Protection - Big kahuna of everything

The one thing negative about target that I have been hearing for some time now is that it is difficult to move up unless you get several years in position first. They seem to do the majority of their hiring from external candidates.

[Justice_Hound]

Yes it is, just like ETL Hardlines, ETL Softlines, and ETL Logistics.

Thanks. I am not used to these "Team Leaders" titles. In the retail enviroment Department Leads are entry level supervisors. Then Department Manager moving on to store manager.

I think that is pretty much an industry standard.

Justice_Hound

[JeremyA]

I've been working for Target for quite a while now, so I guess you could say I'm almost an expert on that business.

APTL's, depending on the market make about 12.50 - 14.50 dollars. Depending also on your market, is if you will be in a TPS uniform or in red and khaki. Down here in FL, the APTL's wear red and khaki. The APTL is normally a position for low theft, low risk stores. You mainly manage a TPS team, as the APTL is really a lateral position form the APS, as an APS is a team leader.

As an APTL, your main duty is to ensure that the store has a "Safe and Secure" enviroment, you will only really conduct high theft apprehensions on known boosters. You don't conduct internal apprehensions, if you find one, you hand that to the Target Investigations team.

The APTL was the manager position of old Target, they've moved to Executive Team Leaders, who are salary based.

All in all, Target is a great company to be a part of, but be prepared to learn a lot, Target has an abbreviation, directive, and rule for everything. If you have anymore questions, feel free to ask.

[rizzo0127]

There is a lot of conflicting information on this site about the positions in Target Assets Protection. The information below is taken from Assets Protection Zone.

Target Protection Specialist (TPS)
Senior TPS (can make unassisted apprehension, TPS cannot)
Assets Protection Specialist (APS-undercover)
-- There are Internal APS'; Senior APS not necessarily Internal APS
Senior APS (works more with internals)
Assets Protection Team Lead (APTL)
Executive Team Lead of Assets Protection (ETL-AP)
District Assets Protection Team Lead (DAPTL)
Group Assets Protection Team Lead (GAPTL)
-- further above are corporate positions

-Most stores have TPS that wear the uniform.
-Only high risk stores have APS'. Some are Internal APS' so they work with both internal and external cases. Some SrAPS' are Internal APS' but the positions is not necessarily internal.
- Assets Protection Team Leaders are becoming more common. Their basic role no matter what store that they are at is to hire, develop, and train the TPS teams. If the APTL is in a low risk store he/she is the Head of Security as low risk stores do not get an ETL-AP and APTL. High risk stores have to have an ETL-AP, but sometimes they also get an APTL. The role is not much different as you still hire and develop the TPS team. The difference is that you now report to the ETL-AP as opposed to the DAPTL. APTL's conduct internal investigations up to and including Internal Interviewing, assuming all training is complete. I am not sure why some APTL's wear TPS uniforms and others wear red and khaki. I am from Group 496 District 446 Store 2247. The past 3 APTL's in our district have all worn red and khaki. Technically all APTL's are supposed to be in TPS uniform tho, although I am not sure why most don't. APTL is an hourly position anywhere from $12.50-$16 an hour.
- ETL-AP is a salary position. They are the head of AP at their stores. They report to the DAPTL. In most cases ETL-AP's must have a 4 year degree, an APTL does need a degree, but ofcourse it helps.
- DAPTL supervises ETL-AP's and reports to the GAPTL. DAPTL's make sure all ETL-AP's are trained right and are performing their duties correctly in reducing shortage. This is basically the same rule for every position below you. Sometime the position below you either report to you directly or sometimes indirectly.
- GAPTL's supervise the DAPTL's and the same rule stated above applies here.

-- beyond this goes to corporate and I do not know much about those positions but for any of you in AP you can always look it up on Workbench or AP Zone, or ofcourse ask your supervisor.

[rizzo0127]

One more thing.

Assets Protection Team Leaders as well as all other Team Leaders in each department ARE managers even though they are not Executive Team Leads. I guess you can say a Team Lead is equivalent to an Assistant Manager, although a Team Lead cannot be the Leader on Duty of a store. Only Senior Team Leaders that are key carriers can open or close the store as the Leader on Duty.

[rizzo0127]

An APTL can make internal apprehension just as an ETL-AP can as long as all training is complete. Even if its not complete the APTL can do all research and surveillances leading up to the interview. Investigations doesnt always get involved in store side Internals. Our store has 10 internals this year and only one of them was at the assistance of Investigations because it was a $10,000+ merchandise case.

An APS is not a Team Lead. A TPS i used to work with got promoted to APS last summer and we all thought it was a Team Lead position but officially it is NOT a Team Lead position. An APS is always looked to for support, just like a Team Lead, but again- not a Team Lead.

[Curtis Baillie]

I think there has been enough discussion and disclosure of Target's internal operations. I've closed the thread.