Ok, first: Not the Taylor Swift “wood” – let’s be clear. Trees – we’re talking about trees.
I’ve talked before about how I feel more and more connected to nature as I age. And I’ve often thought about the amazing characteristics of trees (stay with me). I recently saw a video talking about how trees communicate through an underground network of fungi within their roots (mycorrhizal networks). Scientists discovered that when a tree is attacked by insects, it sends chemical warning signals through this “wood wide web” to neighboring trees, which then start producing defensive enzymes before they’re even touched. One teaspoon of forest soil contains several miles of these fungal filaments connecting trees together. I mean, whatttt?
What gets even wilder…… these networks can span hundreds of trees! The biggest, oldest trees, called “mother trees,” have the most connections and send nutrients to struggling seedlings through the network. When a tree is injured, it sends electrical signals similar to human pain responses. Trees recognize their kin through the network and send them more carbon. They cooperate, warn each other about threats, and keep each other alive.
If you’re not in awe of nature at this point, you’re out of it. Let’s bring this concept to our world for a second. What can we learn from these trees? Are we interconnected with each other or do we isolate alone in our own little plots, disconnected from the network that could help us survive and thrive?
Are You a Mother Tree?
Some real examples: When organized retail crime hits your stores, are you connected to other LP professionals who can tell you they’re seeing the same pattern three states over? When a new fraud scheme emerges, do you hear about it through your network before it costs your organization money, or are you learning about it the hard way?
Are you operating like a mother tree? As we’ve learned, LP mother trees have deep roots in the industry, massive networks of connections, and they actively share intelligence with others. They’re on the phone with peers, active in regional ORC associations, showing up at conferences not just to learn but to warn others about what’s coming. They understand that a threat to one retailer is often a threat to all of us.
But I also know plenty of LP pros (and vendors) who are isolated. They’re so focused on their own stores, their own metrics, their own silos that they’ve cut themselves off from the very network that could help them see threats before they arrive. No industry connections, no peer relationships, no early warning system. Just them and their own trees, waiting to get hit.
The Nutrients Within
Here’s where it gets more interesting. What about the mycorrhizal network within your own organization? Are you connected to operations, HR, finance, IT, legal? Or are you isolated in your LP department, cut off from the nutrients and information flowing through the rest of the company?
The research shows that trees send resources to where they’re needed most through the network. Are you positioned to receive support from other departments when you need it? More importantly, are you sending them the intelligence and insights they need? Do they even know you exist as more than the people who write them up for policy violations?
Some of the most successful LP leaders I know have built internal networks that would make a mother tree jealous. They’ve got relationships across every function. When they need something, they know exactly who to call. When other departments have problems that touch on safety or security or risk, they think of LP first. That’s not luck. That’s intentional network building.
A Few More Questions
So here’s the uncomfortable question. If your organization got attacked tomorrow, would you know about it through your network before it became a crisis? If a new scheme started targeting your industry, would you hear the warning signals from your peers?
Or are you disconnected, waiting to feel the pain firsthand?
The trees figured this out millions of years ago. They survive because they’re connected. They thrive because they share information. They protect each other because the network only works when everyone contributes to it.
We have the technology to build these networks. We have conferences, associations, LinkedIn, secure intelligence sharing platforms. We have the ability to connect across departments within our own companies. The infrastructure exists.
The question is whether you’re plugged into it or standing alone in your own plot of soil, wondering why everything feels so hard.
One teaspoon of forest soil contains miles of fungal connections. How many connections do you have? And are you contributing to the network, or just hoping to benefit from it when you need it?
The forest can’t survive on isolated trees. Neither can we.
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