Help Wanted: How technology attracts and retains retail employees
The number of retail job openings is at an all-time high. Whether it’s Back-to-School shopping, Halloween or the Holiday Season, customers walking into stores are looking for a positive experience. The store experience becomes the brand for the customer and the associate team become the face of the brand. The customer coming to the store has an expectation, and it is paramount that the experience surprises and delights but is also efficient and streamlined. That is much less likely to happen if you’re unable fill open positions and if the employees you do have are stretched too thin.
What can you do to get quality applicants and boost employee retention? Technology can be the key, particularly when it comes to hiring Millennial and Gen Z employees (in their late teens to late 20s).
Using technology to get the attention of job seekers.
While you can, and perhaps should, use highly visible digital signage and one-click-to-apply technology to get eyes on your retail job opportunities and remove barriers to submitting information, another component that improves the entire employment experience.
The way you treat your employees is the way they
will treat your customers
– Richard Branson
“Retailers we work with have indicated a struggle to keep their employees enthusiastic and engaged, which, in turn, determines how your customers are engaging with your brand and your stores,” says Carole Watkins, Vice President of Client Solutions for Storeworks. “Store associates are a retailer’s greatest resource, and the most successful retailers know that if they want happy customers, they need happy employees.”
Associates, across all generations, need up-to-date technology to implement efficient workflows. They also need thorough training on the expectations of the role they are in so they can be productive while feeling prepared and empowered. Preparation, empowerment, and seamless technology helps the team create the environment your customer wants to experience. Powerful technology will ensure that work experiences are streamlined and more enjoyable, which leads to a significantly better experience for customers.
How do you know if your current in-store technology measures up to your employees’ and prospective employee’s expectations?
The first thing to do is ask.
Ask your employees what would help make their work more meaningful and fulfilling. Ask what technology they would like to work with to make their jobs more efficient and effective. And ask job seekers, too: as a shopper and as someone who may work here, what would help you choose our store as an employer?
Employee satisfaction polling, even just informally asking for opinions and guidance, can be an asset you can advertise to attract additional talent. “We REALLY listen to you and our employees can back us up on that.” Being able to tout the technology you utilize to help digitize or automate manual processes to minimize menial work is an attractive benefit.
The right tools can not only catch the interest of potential employee’s but can also make your business more successful. The big question becomes: How?
- Technology that streamlines the employee onboarding, payroll, and benefits administration processes.
Artificial intelligence (AI) tools that can flag issues with stock and help meet unexpected surges in demand. There is significant benefit in being able to check size run daily, in a few minutes, because if it’s not on the sales floor, it’s difficult to sell. - Workforce management solutions that help forecast demand and schedule smartly.
- Self-service tools employees can use to see their schedules, make changes, get any necessary approval, swap shifts with other employees and more. Imagine, no more schedule boards filled with paper printouts, no more last-minute phone calls – just an automatically updated app that can send text alerts to notify employees of changes or issues.
Using technology to make employees’ jobs more efficient
Retaining your current employees and ensuring they have high job satisfaction can go a long way in reducing your hiring needs. Believe it or not, technology can make or break an employee’s retail experience! How?
The use of mobile point of sales solutions means checkout can happen anywhere in the store. Employees are no longer confined to a small space behind a counter or register, watching lines of impatient people congregate. They can make a sale on the spot, even while performing other tasks around the store.
- Mobile fulfillment solutions mean no more time-consuming visits to check inventory and, if something is out of stock, employees can easily order it and have it shipped directly to the customer. Fewer lines and fewer out-of-stocks lead to happier customers and fewer complaints. This makes life infinitely easier and more pleasant for your employees.
- Smart back-office solutions can help you make formerly manual processes digital and even enhance payroll. Who doesn’t like to get paid accurately and on time?
- On-demand, automated store transfers can happen with the push of a button. Instead of being out of stock due to last-minute, unexpected rushes on particular items, your employees can make the sale quickly and easily.
- Customized employee mobile devices can set the gold standard for customer experiences. Employees can instantly access a customer’s loyalty program status and purchase history, find items in the store or order them to be shipped, and even follow up with customers by email or text, creating a long-term, loyal customer relationship. Mobile devices make life easier for everyone, especially employees.
“From sleek, but rugged, mobile devices with updated enterprise applications to cobots (collaborative robots) and AI, Storeworks can help you automate formerly tedious tasks and create a paperless work environment that is more productive and more attractive to your next generation of employees,” says Carole.
If you have questions about your unique retail challenges and are looking for innovative ways to keep your employees engaged, let’s talk. Storeworks has cutting-edge technology solutions that can help you meet the challenge, regardless of the size of your retail network.
Contact us today here and let’s get the conversation started. We look forward to learning more about you and working with you to engage your employees.