How Retail Powered My Success
Retail jobs can be the worst, but it's all about perspective.
by Tim Moore 4x Entrepreneur and Partner
Between working holidays and bad management to angry customers, out of stock items and let's not forget extreme couponers; retail work can be miserable. Now that I have escaped retail life and can reflect back - it may have been one of the most important employment experiences of my life, right next to sales training.
At 19, I began working in retail pharmacy as a pharmacy tech (you know the people that enter your prescriptions and ring you up). We did a lot of the grunt work in the pharmacy, enter prescriptions, work with insurances, inventory, count pills (my hand counting skills were awesome- especially by 5's). I worked in retail pharmacy for about 6 years before deciding pharmacy was not for me and aside from the specialized knowledge I gained...I had a few huge takeaways that impacted my career. Here are a few:
- Metrics are Key:
- It seemed crazy at the time, but we had metrics in the form of KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) for everything. You name it, it was tracked - and I'm not talking about just inventory; key strokes, call hold times, short code utilization, estimated wait times; it was all measured and we were held accountable for them. It was my first experience with the "If it can't be measured, it can't be managed" mindset in application. Huge then, huge now and applicable to almost any industry.
- It seemed crazy at the time, but we had metrics in the form of KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) for everything. You name it, it was tracked - and I'm not talking about just inventory; key strokes, call hold times, short code utilization, estimated wait times; it was all measured and we were held accountable for them. It was my first experience with the "If it can't be measured, it can't be managed" mindset in application. Huge then, huge now and applicable to almost any industry.
- Workflow:
- Like most organizations we went through an initial training. I was exposed to some great language in these trainings but one still resonates "Who am I, What am I". Easy mantra to remember. You walk into a super busy and hectic situation - shock and panic is not option; who are you and what is your role? You task is to get to your position and fulfill those responsibilities. By having assigned roles, responsibilities, expectations and metrics (to manage of course!); you enable operational excellence. When teams get overwhelmed, there is typically a breakdown in workflow or training. Training staff to have a "Who am I, What am I" mindset allows them to fall back on training when times get difficult. Staff should know primary and secondary priorities for their position (this will prevent redundancy with the team) even down to tertiary. With regards to workflow and role specific training, this will ensure that you can recover from crisis mode in a timely manner.
- Like most organizations we went through an initial training. I was exposed to some great language in these trainings but one still resonates "Who am I, What am I". Easy mantra to remember. You walk into a super busy and hectic situation - shock and panic is not option; who are you and what is your role? You task is to get to your position and fulfill those responsibilities. By having assigned roles, responsibilities, expectations and metrics (to manage of course!); you enable operational excellence. When teams get overwhelmed, there is typically a breakdown in workflow or training. Training staff to have a "Who am I, What am I" mindset allows them to fall back on training when times get difficult. Staff should know primary and secondary priorities for their position (this will prevent redundancy with the team) even down to tertiary. With regards to workflow and role specific training, this will ensure that you can recover from crisis mode in a timely manner.
- Customer Service Matters and Language is Important
- No secrets here. Exceptional customer service is the rule, not the exception. It's mandatory in today's competitive market. It is seen in how the phones are answered (rising inflection in your voice) to the scripts you use (always seeking approval) to the language you use when speaking to customers (always positive and certain). With the right language you can remedy most experiences and even craft them. A great tool for communication at any organization.
Obviously some great takeaways from a retail job. Regardless of what industry you're currently in you can apply some (if not all) of these practices. More importantly, think back to your previous job experiences and apply the bright spots to your current situation. You'll find that you already hold the solutions to some of your current challenges.
Tim Moore is a 4x startup founder, partner and sales & marketing consultant. He writes about startups, sales and marketing. Follow him on twitter here