Ask the right uestions
How managers can supercharge retail workforce efficiency
By Dominic and Laura Ashley-Timms
Retail environments are some of the most highly operational businesses . There ’ s an unspoken expectation of immediate results and outcomes – from ensuring that inventory is in the right place at the right time , to checking that day-to-day processes are running smoothly , delivering a positive customer experience in stores and ultimately driving sales . Particularly where margins are tight , focus on the bottom line propels the need for fast-paced decision making , which often leads to a very command-and-control workforce culture .
Managers are doing all the heavy lifting for their teams , having to give employees solutions to every question they come to them with , as managers go in believing it is their responsibility to solve those problems . Add to all this the reality that a large number managers in retail are also ‘ accidental managers ’ – employees who have been promoted into management roles because they ’ re good at the operational side of their job , but without the vital skills or time to handle the ‘ people ’ side of management – and the result is a very transactional workforce . Employees come in and do what they are told to do and leave work at the door on the way out . This cultivates a highly disengaged workforce , with retail managers struggling to get the best out of their people on a human level or able to create an efficient and enjoyable workplace environment where employees succeed and thrive .
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