Mike Osorio

Secrets of a French Checkout Operative

March 16, 2009

FROM RETAILWIRE:
There are some people that many of us take for granted and never even notice. Amongst these, frequently, are checkout staff. Anna Sam, who worked in a French supermarket for almost a decade, has written a book about her experiences with customers and employers alike. How would you rate working conditions for retail cashiers and sales associates?      [more...]

The key reason for apathetic front-line workers and the resultant poor service is the poor level of leadership skills in front-line managers--usually due to poor leadership skills of the senior management. Please read the full article in the Times to understand the experience the author writes about. This passage is a great example: At a retail trade conference in Luxembourg, Sam suggested to executives that they should greet checkout staff every day. "It was as though they had never thought of it. Oh yes, that's a good idea, they said. They all made a note--'say hello in the morning'--to remind themselves." Pathetic, but unfortunately common.

The message: Retailers must invest in understanding and hiring for the talent that make effective front line workers and leaders: empathy, customer focus, high energy, etc. Provide significant training on people management: personality types, conflict management, etc. Then, ensure that senior management consistently models people-centric behaviors: saying hello to front-line staff, asking their opinions of product, procedures, store design, customer service initiatives, etc. Treat front-line staff as professionals engaged in an important craft and see how quickly they begin to behave as such.