Retail in america is a competitive space. With the customers increasingly gravitating towards discount stores and e-commerce websites, and the ever-increasing choices in front of the consumers has turned the retail industry into a warfront. Among everyone else, HR executives have the responsibility to support their organization here. They have the onus on them to build an engaging workplace that attracts young talent and help design beautiful experiences for the business's customers. We carefully mixed a set of data that points to the gravity of the situation, the water-cooler conversations that represent the problem and the solutions to 6 major problems that HR Executives are facing in the retail industry.

1. Solving Top 6 Business Problems
of HR in the Retail Industry
Spotting HR problems at the water-cooler

2. can help you solve issues related to
Leadership Development
Goal alignment
Employee perception
Promotions & Policies
Internship programs
Overstaffing
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6
9
12
15
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3. LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT
70% of employees who lack confidence in the abilities of senior leadership
aren’t fully engaged
Source: Dale Carnegie Training

4. Water-Cooler Conversations
“Upper management don’t have a clue about what is really
going on in the stores”
“Our management is not fair with the employees”
“There is a lot of nepotism”
“Management doesn’t have a clue of what’s really going
on in stores”

5. 360 Feedback
• Employees, managers and HR manager
can select reviewers for a person
• Everyone submits online feedback from
their computers
• Reviews can be kept anonymous
• HR manager/coach can analyze reports of
individual reviewers as well as compare
reports from multiple reviewers
• HR Manager/coach can use these insights
to help the manager improve
Performance Management

6. GOAL ALIGNMENT
When goal alignment is not a primary focus, about two-thirds of a company’s time
and resources are wasted
Source: Inc Magazine

7. Water-Cooler Conversations
“Everyone here cares about their bonus, and just want to
make it harder for others to do their jobs”
“Our management needs to monitor and watch the store
managers”.
“I keep on doing the busy work, none of which has nothing
to do with my job”
“The corporate team makes work harder on the employees”

8. Goal Management
• Employees and managers can set
SMART goals for themselves
• People can view goals of the
business and their division, when
they set their own goals
• For interns and new employees,
managers can import goals from
job descriptions
• People can prioritize their goals by
assigning them different
weightages
Performance Management

9. EMPLOYEE PERCEPTION
92% business executives have seen favoritism affect employee promotions
Source: Georgetown University

10. Water-Cooler Conversations
“The Company is unprofessional and lacks structure”
“Our management is not fair to the employees”
“There is a lot of nepotism”
“Senior management doesn’t have a clue about what’s
really going on at the store-level”

11. Employee Communication
• Employees can submit anonymous
feedback through notes and online
HR help desk
• You can conduct employee surveys
before changing policies
• You can communicate one to one
with the employee, or include their
manager in the conversation
• The feedback can be made a part
of the performance appraisal
Talent Management

12. PROMOTIONS & POLICIES
Management Transparency is the top factor when determining employee
happiness
Source: TINYpulse

13. Water-Cooler Conversations
“The management constantly revokes employee discounts, and
does not give a reason”
“The store policies change by the minute”
“Our favorite store manager was transferred”
“Management takes away more from good employees and give it to the
employees that they like”

14. Employee Database
• Store previous appraisals online
and use these as basis for
promotions
• Understand relationships between
people before initiating transfers
and promotions
• Communicate company policies
through a self-service system for
the employees which they can
access on their mobiles / laptops
Talent Management

15. INTERNSHIP AND TRAINING PROGRAMS
New hires who undergo a structured on-boarding program are 54% more
productive at work
Source: Wynhurst Group

16. Water-Cooler Conversations
“The internship program is in infancy. There isn’t much to do”
“The Firm needs to teach and prepare employees for management roles”
“The company needs a solid internship program”

17. Employee Onboarding & Training Management
• HR manager can establish and change the
process to onboard new employees
• Employees can learn about their team members
and managers from a single screen
• Employees can easily access documents like
company policies as well as training curriculum
• Employees can submit feedback on training
electronically
• Manager can assign training goals and evaluate
ROI of training
Talent Management

18. STAFFING OPTIMIZATION
For retailers with many stores (>100), and few employees per store (<20);
standardization, visibility and control yield results in line with expectations

19. Water-Cooler Conversations
“Management hires people who misrepresent the product and share
nothing with our target customers”
“Managers hire pushovers, instead of qualified candidates and
people who will fit the culture”
“I am just at this temporary job until I find something better”
“My hours are scarce. The company appears to be overstaffed”

20. Time and Attendance Management
Workforce Management
• Track and report time-off
requests
• Reduce unplanned absence by
recording and monitoring all
leave records
• Ensure a consistent leave policy
and automate process across
organizations
• Managers can track time spent
on every different kind of activity
on a daily basis

21. You’re looking for the right technology to run
HR in your business
can help with that
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