What Are Retail Operations.docx

What Are Retail Operations? A large number of coordinated activities are required in order for a retailer to stay in business. Retail operations are the processes that keep a retailer's ecosystem running smoothly. They include things such as inventory management, supply chain functions, merchandisin...

What Are Retail Operations? A large number of coordinated activities are required in order for a retailer to stay in business. Retail operations are the processes that keep a retailer's ecosystem running smoothly. They include things such as inventory management, supply chain functions, merchandising, pricing, marketing, human resources functions, loss prevention, evaluating financial data, workplace safety and security, information technology and systems and others. Depending on the size and structure of the retailer, some operations functions and processes are conducted at a physical store and others at a central site or alternate location. Each retail operations action is important because the combined efforts contribute to the overall customer experience, influencing the level of customer satisfaction. This section provides an overview of 5 significant retail operations categories: team, inventory, marketing, technology & tools and financials. The individual components will differ for each retailer, since each business has a unique strategy and implementation approach. These categories are relevant for all retailers, whether or not they have physical store locations. As always, the customer is the primary focus. Team: Team members are often the face of the retailer to the customer Retailer: A person or business that sells products and/or services to customers. Inventory: Most retailers sell products, which collectively are called inventory. An accurate inventory count is necessary. Total inventory: a complete listing of all of the merchandise that a retailer owns. On-hand or available inventory refers to the number of units within the total inventory that are available to sell at a particular moment in time. On-hand inventory is the number of units of a specific item that are available to sell. Retailer's goal: Get the right products in the right place at the right time, in the right quantity and at the right price. Barcode: A machine-readable series of parallel lines that create a unique item identifier. RFID (Radio-frequency identification) tags: Tags containing electronically stored information that identify objects; a retailer's system can use RFID to recognize either individual items or pallets with many products. PLU (Price Look-Up): A system of numbers that uniquely identifies bulk produce items or other items on which it may be difficult to apply a barcode. Inventory replenishment: The process of automatic or manual ordering to meet product demands. When inventory is ordered to replace products that have sold. Receiving: The process of matching the invoiced quantity to the actual products delivered. Stockroom: The behind-the-scenes area in a store where inventory is kept that does not fit on the sales floor or is awaiting a specific release date to be sold. Safety stock: Extra inventory kept on hand in case customers buy more than the estimated amount before the next shipment arrives. Stocking: The process of placing inventory on sales floor shelves, racks or other displays to be sold. Out-of-stock: If inventory has been sold and there is none in the stockroom to fill the shelf. The situation that occurs when customers have purchased more of a product than the company estimated and an item is sold out. Excess inventory: The situation that occurs when Customers did not buy as much of a product as estimated, so there is too much of that product in stock. If a stockroom area is overflowing with inventory that will not fit on the sales floor, the product may be referred to as Inventory shrinkage or shrink: When there are fewer items in stock than in the total inventory record indicates there are. This typically results from expired products, damage, theft or paperwork errors. Inventory tracking systems: Retailer systems that specify the amount of inventory in a store or distribution center, identify how much inventory was sold, track the price that each item was sold for, pass information to ordering systems, record product price reductions, and more. Point-of-Sale (POS) System: The system used when a customer purchases an item, typically at a checkout lane. If the information is not accurate in the inventory system, incoming orders will not reflect actual product needs, which in turn can lead to the store having too much or too little of a particular product. Supply and Demand How do retailers know how much product to order in the first place? They actually take an educated guess on how much inventory to order (supply) based on how much they think customers will buy (demand). A retailer's ideal goal is to have supply equal demand. The Store Inventory Life Cycle The Store Inventory Life Cycle for an item begins at the time the inventory arrives and ends when the item leaves the store with a customer. 1. Inventory arrives at the store based on expected demand. 2. Products are received into the system and, if necessary, merchandise is tagged and/or priced. 3. Inventory is moved to the sales floor and placed in a specific location or placed in the stockroom to be used for replenishment-replacing items that have been sold-at a later time. 4. Customers shop inventory. Their shopping experience may include receiving personalized customer service, trying things on in a fitting room, seeing a product demonstration by a retail associate, comparing items, and other ways customers evaluate items before purchasing them. 5. Inventory is purchased and leaves the store. Store Employees' Roles in Inventory Management Roles are related to ordering, receiving, pricing, stocking and maintaining the stock room. Shelf life: products' expiration dates. When a product has a limited shelf life, or time before it expires, always place the items that will expire first in the front so that they will be purchased by customers. Products for Customers Careful scanning of items at the POS register is essential. If a customer buys 4 bottles of barbecue sauce that are all the same brand and price, but are different flavors, it might be tempting to scan one and ring up a quantity of 4. After all, they are all the same price so there is no financial impact to either the company or the customer if you do this. For example, suppose a customer is buying 2 bottles of honey BBQ sauce, 1 bottle of sweet-andspicy BBQ sauce, and 1 bottle of brown sugar BBQ sauce, all the same brand and price. If you simply scan the first bottle-say it's honey BBQ sauce, and ring up 4 of those, the system now thinks that 4 bottles of honey BBQ sauce were sold. So then it begins to base stockroom pulls and reorders on that data when in fact, there were really only 2 bottles of honey-flavored sauce sold, along with 1 bottle of sweet and spicy BBQ sauce and 1 bottle of brown sugar BBQ sauce sold. EXERCISE 19 Inventory Scenarios - What's the Impact? Read the following scenarios and describe the potential impact of each to the on-hand counts in the retailer's inventory tracking system. l. A retailer receives 100 Black & Decker 2-Slice Toasters, places 50 of them in the stockroom, sells 42 of them, and has 7 of them returned (1 is now unsalable). How many toasters are currently available to sell? 2. Kyle accidentally drops a case of 12 candles in glass holders and hears them shatter. He throws the whole case in the dumpster. 3. Anya finds 6 containers of expired yogurt in the sales floor dairy cooler, she removes them and records them as shrink. 4. Elle is processing an exchange and notices that the two items, although completely different pairs of jeans, have the same retail price. She tells the customer, "You can just take this one; you said you were in a hurry." ------------------------ --- 5. Kevin is checking out a customer and notices 16 cans of dog food. All are the same brand and style, but they are different flavors. The customer says, "These are all the same price." He begins to scan each item individually. 6. Jazmin is restocking the sales floor toy action figure section and sees two empty spaces where there is no product when she is finished. She doesn't think it looks very nice, so she moves some of the other figures into the empty spaces, even though the product does not match the shelf label. Marketing is the action of promoting and selling products and services. Key marketing activities include: advertisting, publicity, market research, promotions, visual merchandising Visual merchandising: The practice of arranging and presenting products in a visually appealing manner to attract customers, generate interest, and increase sales. Planogram: A visual representation or map used by retailers to organize and arrange merchandise on shelves and displays in a way that maximizes space and enhances product visibility. Top of Form EXERCISE 20 Visual Merchandising Visual merchandising is a great way for a retailer to tell its product story to customers. Take a look at the following images and answer the questions that follow. The Home Depot Kitchen Display 1. How does this display attempt to draw a customer's attention? 2. If the customer's initial need was to paint her kitchen cabinets, what are some examples of products and/or services that could be cross-sold to complete the updated kitchen? Shoe Display 1. What do you like about the visual merchandising in this display? 2. What message does the current display send to customers? Financial reports: Documents that summarize the financial performance of a retail business, including sales, expenses, and profits, used for analysis and decision-making. EXERCISE 21 What's It Like? Use the chart below to write a few questions you have about working in the following retail environments. Retail Environment My Questions Retail store (non-grocery) Supermarket/Grocery store Fast food restaurant Distribution center ©2019 NRF FOUNDATION. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. RETAIL OPERATIONS Retail Stores There are thousands of retailers and retail stores in the United States including individual people, single-unit operators, giant multinational organizations and everything in-between. The goal for retailers is to maximize sales and profits. This section focuses on retail stores and positions in store environments since these tend to be the locations of many people's the first retail jobs. Sample Retail Physical Store Organization Chart Primary operational teams in a store are as follows: Sales: These teams are responsible for selling and visual merchandising in one or multiple categories. There may be few or many different sales departments, depending on the retailer's merchandise assortment. Employees and teams in these areas often have specific sales goals to achieve. There may be a specific ecommerce sales team to satisfy online orders, or the ecommerce work may be handled within each department. Customer Services: Teams are responsible for serving customers who wish to check out, return items, handle sales reconciliation and bookkeeping functions, and may facilitate other customer in-store experiences. This function may be combined with sales in businesses that do not require separate teams. If there is a Customer Services team, it's important to remember that providing customer service is still the responsibility of all associates. Operations: These teams often work "behind-the-scenes" in roles supporting inventory management functions, merchandising, logistics and/or maintenance. Individuals in some of these roles may have productivity targets to achieve. Human Resources: This position or team supports the people needs of the store, such as hiring, training implementation and benefits administration. In smaller locations, supervisors or others outside the store may handle these needs. Loss Prevention: This team is dedicated to safety, security and minimizing profit loss according to the retailer's asset protection programs and policies. Associates on this team receive specific training for their jobs. Store Retail Jobs Here's a look at three typical retail job descriptions and the standard expectations for employees in those roles-cashier, stocker, and specialty sales associate: beauty. Cashier Cashiering is a popular retail position, with over 3.5 million Americans working as cashiers. As a cashier, you provide quality customer service by greeting and appropriately engaging in conversation with customers, accurately scanning merchandise, processing transaction payments, making change when necessary during cash sales, answering customer questions, informing the customer about loyalty programs and promotions, resolving pricing issues, stocking and straightening merchandise by the register area, cleaning the register area and properly maintaining any forms or records. Required Skills Demonstrate professional conduct at all times. Maintain a company-approved appearance. Exhibit a consistently friendly and positive attitude. Find it easy to talk to people. Pay attention to detail when ringing up items and processing payments. Use organization skills when placing items in bags so that merchandise is not damaged. Work safely. Possess solid math skills. Patiently address customer concerns. Work quickly and efficiently. Demonstrate honesty and integrity. Working Conditions Stand for long periods of time. Will need to lift a specified number of pounds on your own (the weight varies by retailer). Cashiers may experience a fast-paced or slower-paced environment, depending on the type of retail location. Will need to meet productivity goals for processing transactions (goals vary by retailer). Age and educational requirements for cashiers also vary by retailer. Stocker Stocking is an important activity in retail stores; it contributes to the customer's overall experience in many ways. Responsibilities As a stocker, you help to create a great store shopping environment for customers by using technology to determine items to pull from the stockroom, loading cartons and items onto carts, replenishing products on the sales floor, "facing" and straightening products, maintaining accuracy in product shelf placement, tracking out-of-stock products, building displays and maintaining a clean work area. Products with a pre-determined shelf life, due to expiration, must be rotated and/or pulled from the shelf as they are stocked. Required Skills Demonstrate professional conduct at all times. Maintain a company-approved appearance. Have the ability to easily shift priorities from completing tasks to assisting customers on the sales floor. Demonstrate organization skills and attention to detail. Work quickly and accurately. Work safely. Demonstrate honesty and integrity. Working Conditions Stocking merchandise is detail-oriented, fast-paced work. You may be expected to achieve productivity goals. You will need to lift a specified number of pounds on your own (the weight varies by retailer). You'll need to stand and/or walk for long periods of time. You'll need to work late night or overnight shifts. The role may require the use of tools and equipment, including technology tools, box cutters, ladders, electric pallet jacks, baler, etc. Stockers often have empty cardboard cartons left after products have been placed on shelves. This cardboard is often baled and sent to be recycled. Specialty Sales Associate: Beauty There are more sales associates than any other retail position. This section describes the responsibilities for all sales associates and also provides a look at specialty sales requirements for beauty, one of many specialty sales areas. All sales associates provide quality customer service and experiences by greeting and making connections with customers, building and maintaining clientele relationships, assessing customer wants and needs, sharing product knowledge, asking and answering questions, offering options and comprehensive solutions, overcoming customer objections, presenting loyalty programs and other promotions, explaining the return policy and completing sales transactions. A specialty sales associate in beauty and cosmetics has a passion for skin care, makeup application, fragrance and other beauty products and tools. This person must be comfortable working in close proximity to others, often touching their skin. Required Skills Maintain professional appearance and conduct at all times. Be friendly and courteous to customers and coworkers. Start conversations and interact with all customers. Use active listening to assess customer needs and wants. Learn about beauty and cosmetic products and services and continue to gain knowledge as offerings change. Understand beauty trends and the impact of beauty social media influencers. Sell products and services; retailers often have specific approaches for specialty sales associates to follow. Know how to cross-sell and upsell. Provide skin care and beauty consultations, makeovers and makeup touch ups. Solve customer problems and answer questions. Explain retailer purchase options: website, apps, catalog, shop online - pick-up in store, shop online-home delivery, call-in orders, etc. Encourage customers to use loyalty programs. Demonstrate time management, organization skills and attention to detail. Demonstrate honesty and integrity. Working Conditions It will be required for you to achieve sales goals. You'll need to maintain and use clientele information to generate sales. You'll stand and/or walk for long periods of time. You must keep work areas clean and sanitary. You'll work with money and make change. You will need to maintain beauty product inventory and supplies. You must comply with retailer product sample distribution policies. Some retailers offer initial training programs to develop skills as a specialty sales associate in beauty and cosmetics, while others require previous experience. From a Job to a Career in a Retail Store There are many ways to grow your career beginning with an entry-level job in the retail industry. The following story describes one person's path; there are a variety of opportunities for those with a background in retail. The Path to Your Passion Anita wanted to work in a large department store environment, and was thrilled to get her first job in an entry-level sales position in a juniors' clothing department. She enjoyed meeting new people, asking questions to understand their needs, coordinating outfits and helping them find the perfect items. After just over a year in this role, she realized that she was good at selling and wanted a new challenge where she would be eligible to earn a commission on her sales. Anita was interested in the beauty and cosmetics department because she loves makeup application and skin care. She decided to do some research about moving to that department. During the following months, she researched the necessary qualifications, discussed her interest with her supervisor and began to focus on beauty industry trends and follow beauty influencers on social media. She explored the qualifications for a beauty and cosmetics sales role and determined that she had all of the key skills and experiences: High school graduate. At least one year of successful sales associate experience. Enjoys building relationships with people. Strong communication skills. Basic math skills. A desire to continuously learn product knowledge. Is reliable and dependable. Support from her current supervisor to move to another position within the store. Anita got the job and moved to her new role as a specialty sales associate in beauty and cosmetics. While she likes the product samples she receives free of charge, more importantly she found her passion-helping others find the products and the looks that make them feel beautiful. She always exceeds her sales goals and has built a large clientele over the past two years. She considers herself not only a successful sales associate, but also an artist. Next, she's working toward a lead sales role where she will coach and develop new associates... and inspire them with her passion! Supermarkets/Grocery Stores People need to eat! The U.S. has a large number of supermarkets and grocery stores, and the number of other retail stores selling grocery items has increased significantly in recent years. Retailers add food to their product assortments because it drives more customer traffic. Ideally, customers will buy other items they want in addition to the food that they need. This section focuses on the structure of a store with a supermarket format, and zeroes in on the food departments. Supermarket/Grocery Operational Overview The supermarket structure has many of the same operational areas as other retail stores: Customer Services, Operations, Human Resources and Loss Prevention. There is often, but not always, a pharmacy within a grocery store. The store's merchandise is generally divided into two overarching categories, which are listed below (though they may have different names at different retailers): Non-perishable or center store: Think of all of the items on the center aisles in a grocery store including items like bread, jelly, frozen pizza, pet food and paper towels. These are considered "non-perishable" or "center store" items. General merchandise such as hair color, greeting cards and cooking utensils also in falls under the "non-perishable" category. Even though the shelf life of items varies, the center store items-even frozen items-are a part of the non-perishable group. Generally, the majority of all items in a grocery store are in non-perishable categories. Employees in these areas work with the many products in the dry grocery, frozen food and general merchandise categories. They are usually responsible for customer service and visual merchandising but may also perform stocking, product rotation and other duties. Perishable or Fresh: Now imagine the perimeter, or outer wall, of a grocery store. Envision the colorful produce and floral departments as you walk into the store, followed by the bakery, deli, dairy, meat and seafood counters and cases. Employees in these departments assemble, cook, or otherwise prepare products. The assortment of items that are produced in the store versus those that are received "case-ready," or able to be placed on the shelf immediately, determines the types of positions available within the "perishable" department. For example, if bakery items are "thaw and sell," there is no need to have a baker since products are not made from scratch. Associates in perishable departments work hands-on with food, so they need to be especially aware of food safety procedures, sanitation procedures and equipment safety. Across the departments, they may provide customer service; merchandise the department; evaluate product freshness; generate scale labels; slice deli meats and cheeses; cull unsalable merchandise; cut, grind, and saw meat; package and wrap products; prepare.ready-to-eat foods; crisp vegetables; create floral arrangements and much more. Supermarket/Grocery Store Jobs Snapshot Here's a look at two grocery store job descriptions and general expectations for employees in those roles. We'll look at the roles of Produce Associate and Apprentice Meat Cutter. Produce Associate There are often hundreds of items in the produce department with a variety of requirements for receiving, storage, display, and maintenance to keep them fresh for customers. Produce items are literally dying from the moment they are harvested and have a relatively short shelf life for peak freshness. Product knowledge is a key to success in the produce department. Responsibilities As a produce department associate, you have a passion for food! You'll work with whole and cut fruits, vegetables, bulk nuts, fresh herbs, refrigerated packaged salads and other products in the stockroom, cooler and on the sales floor. This may include receiving, visual merchandising, rotating product, culling (pulling unsalable product from the sales floor) and crisping (hydrating) vegetables. Product knowledge is required both to maintain product freshness and effectively assist customers. Produce department team members are often required to assist in department physical inventory counts. Required Skills Maintain professional appearance and conduct at all times. Provide quality customer service. Be friendly and courteous to customers and coworkers. Use active listening to assess customer needs and wants. Learn about products and continue to gain knowledge. Suggest products that meet customer needs. Explain food preparation processes to customers. Able to evaluate product freshness through code dates and/or product appearance. Record waste and shrink using the retailer's process. Understand and use processes that differentiate conventional and organic produce. Provide product samples, as appropriate. Work quickly and efficiently. Know how to cross-sell and upsell meal solutions. Safely cut fruits and vegetables. Complete regular cleaning to keep work areas sanitary. Maintain appropriate documentation. Demonstrate time management, organization skills and attention to detail. Demonstrate honesty and integrity. Working Conditions Stand and/or walk for long periods of time. Need to lift a specified number of pounds on your own (weight varies by retailer). Exposure to FDA-approved cleaning chemicals. Complete food safety and sanitation training. Work in a cold environment at times. May require use of tools and equipment, including technology tools, knives, box cutters, ladders, electric pallet jacks, etc. Consider food allergies since you will be in regular contact with unpackaged fruits, vegetables, herbs and nuts. Did you know there are 7 stages of banana ripeness from very green to nearly brown? Retailers generally offer bananas at multiple color stages because different people like to eat them at different color stages. Bananas are typically shipped and stored between 56°and 60° to keep them from ripening too quickly. Apprentice Meat Cutter An apprentice meat cutter is interested in learning the trade of meat cutting from those who are already skilled meat cutters. Previous education or experience cutting meat is not required-the retailer will provide training to help you succeed. Responsibilities You should be comfortable working with fresh and frozen raw beef, veal, pork, lamb, poultry, and other meats. In addition to learning how to cut meat for maximum yield and profitability, associates assist customers at the meat counter or on the sales floor by answering questions, suggesting products, weighing, wrapping and pricing purchases. It is very important to keep meat department work areas clean and sanitary at all times. Apprentice meat cutters will often clean equipment, the cutting room, service counter, coolers, freezers and other areas. Meat department team members are often required to assist in department physical inventory counts. Required Skills Maintain professional appearance and conduct at all times. Be friendly and courteous to customers and coworkers. Use active listening to assess customer needs and wants. Recommend products that meet customer needs. Know how to cross sell and up sell meal solutions. Explain food preparation processes to customers. Learn about products and continue to gain knowledge. Follow direction and practice proper technique as you build cutting and grinding skills. Monitor product quality and offer only items that meet retailer specifications. Visually merchandise products in appealing displays on the sales floor and in the service case. Prepare daily cutting lists with supervisor assistance. Record waste and shrink using the retailer's process. Work quickly and efficiently. Demonstrate time management, organization skills and attention to detail. Understand the implications of cross-contamination and prevent food-borne illness. Work safely. Basic math skills. Demonstrate honesty and integrity. Working Conditions Wear personal protective gear when cutting meat. Stand and/or walk for long periods of time. Need to lift a specified number of pounds on your own (weight varies by retailer). Complete food safety and sanitation training. Exposure to FDA-approved cleaning chemicals. Work in a very cold or cold environment at times. Employees in a meat department may use knives, slicer, grinder, meat saw, wrapper and other powered equipment and must complete required training and there may be an age requirement May need to acquire specific food handling credentials depending on state or local requirements. Supermarkets may be union or non-union environments depending on the retailer. This can determine which tasks an employee is allowed to perform. From a Job to a Career in Grocery Experience in a retail grocery store can provide an excellent launch point for you to begin a career in the broad retail food industry. The industry includes positions in stores, distribution centers, retailer headquarters, manufacturers and direct product sales, and more, including unique careers, such as food stylist or craft brewer. Below is one person's story of his career in the grocery industry. Fresh from the Farm Tod grew up on a grain and livestock farm and has always been a foodie. He started as a meat cutter in a small grocery store in his hometown, bringing experience from the farm and learning the trade from the experienced meat cutters. Both the art and science of the craft appealed to him. He learned to provide excellent customer service, create visually appealing displays, run a profitable business, and trained new associates as he became more experienced. He set his sights on learning everything he could and becoming the best at his craft. His opportunity to become a meat department assistant manager came three years later, and he moved to another state to take on the challenge. Within a year, he was promoted to the meat manager and held the role for six years. He learned to successfully lead teams to achieve and exceed sales and profit goals every year through outstanding customer service and running the business as if it were his own company. He broadened his skills to include deli responsibilities, such as catering large events, and helped out in all other areas of the store, as needed. Tod now had a new mission; he wanted to learn about more aspects of the industry to understand the business from all sides. His goal was to be a leader in the meat industry. Over the next twenty years he held positions as grocery store assistant manager, multi-store meat and seafood merchandiser, buyer, regional buyer, meat and seafood sales manager, director of perishable procurement and merchandising, senior director of meat and seafood and vice president of meat and seafood. In the latter role, he was responsible for over $2 billion in annual sales and is an expert in retail and wholesale perishable procurement, merchandising, operations and profitability. When asked his favorite role of all, he chooses his meat manager position citing the ability to be an entrepreneur and work directly with local customers to help them feed their families. Fast Food Restaurants On any given day, nearly 40% of all Americans eat fast food at some point, so it comes as no surprise that there are approximately 250,000 fast food restaurants in the U.S. Each fast food restaurant has specific needs based on the type of products offered. This is one possible team construct during a single shift. Sample Fast Food Service Organization Chart Fast Food Operational Overview Generally, fast food restaurants bring in associates for an open position and also cross-train them in other jobs so that scheduling is more flexible. This is also great for employee growth since associates become familiar with all of the restaurant operations more quickly. Operational areas may include: Front counter: Members on this team take customer orders and often enter them into a computerized system, arrange food on trays or in bags, stock "grab-and-go" products, handle customer concerns and process payments. Drive-through: Employees in this role take customer orders using technology, enter them into the order system, process payments and arrange food in bags. Kitchen: These associates quickly and accurately cook food as it is ordered, often working at a specific food preparation station during their shift. They will also clean and sanitize equipment and surfaces, as needed. Specific fast food restaurants may have different age restrictions for working in the kitchen. The shift manager will order food products and supplies. Crew trainer: This associate is experienced in the front counter, drive through and kitchen roles and is available to both train new team members and assist other crew members. Customer Services/Experiences: There is often a dedicated associate in the restaurant lobby to clean tables and floors, throw away items, ensure restroom cleanliness and provided customer assistance. The shift manager will evaluate service reports, promotional activity and other data. Maintenance/Logistics: This team performs receiving, backroom stocking, and equipment and facilities maintenance and repairs. It is generally necessary for store managers to possess a ServSafe or other food safety credential. Associates generally receive food safety and sanitation training through the business. Fast Food Restaurant Jobs Snapshot Over 3.7 million Americans work in the fast food restaurant industry as team members, shift managers, store managers, business owners or in corporate positions. In fact, nearly 500,000 of them are fast food cooks! Front Counter and Drive-through Team Members Hungry customers want to receive the food they order, they want it to be temperature-appropriate, and they want it served quickly. Front counter and drive-through associates enjoy meeting customer expectations for all three. Responsibilities As a front counter or drive-through crew member, you'll work in a fast-paced, productivity-driven environment delivering quality customer service, using technology tools regularly, processing sales and making change, placing ordered items on trays or in bags, stocking ready-to-eat items and/or performing cleaning duties. Often, employees work as a team to meet hourly and daily sales goals. Required Skills Maintain company-approved appearance and professional conduct at all times. Be friendly and courteous to customers and coworkers. Start conversations and interact with all customers. Use active listening to assess customer needs and wants. Know how to cross sell and up sell. Solve customer problems and answer questions. Take accurate orders. Know about products and services and continue to gain knowledge as offerings change. Work quickly and efficiently. Demonstrate organization skills and attention to detail. Demonstrate honesty and integrity. Working Conditions Stand and/or walk for long periods of time. Need to lift a specified number of pounds on your own (weight varies by restaurant). Exposure to FDA-approved cleaning chemicals. Complete food safety and sanitation training. Work late night or overnight shifts. Pay attention to your food allergies; you may be in close proximity to a variety of foods. Promotion opportunities abound in fast food for people who want to continue to learn more and take on additional responsibilities. From a Job to a Career in a Fast Food Restaurant Fast food restaurants often have a very clear path to promotion that an employee can move through quickly if they are motivated to become a team and/or business leader. Here's one person's story: Fast Food Fast Track Suki started a part-time job at a fast food restaurant as a summer job right out of high school. She was starting college in the fall, and wanted to earn some extra money beforehand. On her first day, she worked at the front counter, drive through and in the kitchen. She continued to work in all three areas gaining operational and product knowledge. She was surprised after only six weeks when she was asked to become a crew trainer since she enjoyed the hands-on training. Even as a teenager, she knew that she enjoyed helping others succeed. When September arrived, instead of quitting the job as she had envisioned, Suki began six months of training toward becoming a shift leader. The company allowed her to have flexible hours so she was able to work and complete the training while attending college. This is one of the main reasons that she stayed after the first summer. As her college years were ending, Suki was asked to move to the next level of leadership which required more training and would set her on a course to become th_e_general manager of a store. After only six years on the job, Suki began leading a store and the 62 employees who worked there. After several years and more targeted leadership and operational training, she was given the responsibility for a second store in addition to the first. Twelve years later, Suki is a district supervisor overseeing 4 stores. One of her responsibilities is ensuring the training curriculum is appropriately used with all associates. She is committed to encouraging and helping others grow with the company and achieve their goals. Distribution Centers These facilities are generally high productivity environments where the number of pallets, cases and units processed is an important measure of efficiency. Modern distribution centers are highly automated and run technology-based operations, but other warehouses may have limited technology. Distribution Center Operational Overview Distribution centers often have some of the same operational areas as retail stores, such as Human Resources and Loss Prevention. In large distribution centers, there are often many team members since the buildings usually operate 24 hours a day, seven days per week. Shifts may also be longer than 8 hours in this environment. For example, an employee may work four 10-hour days or three 12-hour days. Individuals are often cross-trained so they are able to work in multiple areas and usually have specific productivity goals for each task performed. Operational functions include: Carton Handling: Associates performing this function may work in the Inbound dock area unloading and labeling cartons and pallets received from manufacturers or other suppliers. They may also work in the Outbound dock area loading cartons and pallets onto trailers that are sent to stores or other locations. They may also move freight to other places within the building. Picking: Team members process store and customer orders by selecting, or picking, the merchandise from throughout the warehouse using a list, technology application, forklift and/or other machinery and tools. Cartons are labeled so that the conveyor system can direct them to the correct Outbound dock or Packing area in an automated environment. Packi·ng: Items that are not sent in total case quantities are repacked in other cartons and/or single/small orders sent to customers are handled in a special area equipped with packing materials. This work requires great attention to detail. Logistics: All deliveries and outbound trailer traffic are planned in a distribution center environment. This requires a team dedicated to coordinating and monitoring freight activity and regularly adjusting for changing schedules. Facilities & Maintenance: Distribution centers tend to be large buildings with a variety of complex systems and equipment. When systems are down or not working properly, the entire operation, and all work, can stop. Distribution centers may be union or non-union environments depending on the retailer. This can determine which tasks an employee is allowed to perform. Distribution Center Jobs Snapshot About 1.1 million Americans work in distribution center or warehouse environments. Most positions tend to be full-time with somewhat higher average starting pay than retail sales or cashier positions. Carton Handler Productivity is important for carton handlers since the rest of the distribution center depends on the flow of cartons to do other work. But working safely is also a high priority to avoid repetitive motion injuries. Responsibilities As a distribution center carton or freight handler, you'll work safely, quickly and accurately as you load outgoing and unload incoming trucks, move cartons and pallets using material handling equipment (such as hand trucks or dollies, pallet jacks or forklifts), place cartons on a conveyor system, and/or count cartons to maintain inventory accuracy. You will generally use a technology application to process incoming orders and close outgoing trailers. Required Skills Maintain professional conduct at all times. Demonstrate organization skills and attention to detail. Work quickly and accurately. Work safely. Operate equipment and technology tools. Build stable pallets. Demonstrate honesty and integrity. Working Conditions Stand and/or walk for 8-12-hour shifts. Need to lift a specified number of pounds on your own (weight varies by distribution center). Work late night or overnight shifts. Work in a very hot or cold environment. Wear personal protective equipment, as required. Complete safety and equipment training. There may be an age requirement to work with powered equipment. It is common to cross-train for multiple positions within a distribution center. However, depending on the retailer, the distribution center may be a union or non-union environment, which can determine the tasks an employee is allowed to perform. Picker Pickers are responsible for the order accuracy of merchandise that's shipped to stores or directly to customers. In either situation, they have an important role in retail customer satisfaction. Responsibilities Distribution center pickers must work safely, quickly and accurately to select merchandise from throughout the warehouse verifying item number, quantity and in some instances, quality requirements (such as perishable food items). You will move pallets of merchandise from one location in the center to another within the warehouse, from unloading docks or to loading areas. Required Skills Maintain professional conduct at all times. Demonstrate organization skills and attention to detail. Work quickly and accurately. Work safely. Operate equipment and technology tools. Build stable pallets. Demonstrate honesty and integrity. Working Conditions Stand and/or walk for 8-12-hour shifts. Need to lift a specified number of pounds on your own (weight varies by distribution center). Work late night or overnight shifts. Work in a very hot or cold environment. Wear personal protective equipment, as required. Complete safety and equipment training. There may be an age requirement to work with powered equipment. It is common to cross-train for multiple positions within a distribution center. However, depending on the retailer, the distribution center may be a union or non-union environment, which can determine the tasks an employee is allowed to perform. From a Job to a Career in a Distribution Center There are over 500 million square feet of distribution center (DC) space throughout the U.S. This is good news for job seekers since a distribution center is a great place to grow your personal and team leadership skills and build an exciting career. Here's one person's DC career story: Move Across to Move Ahead Joel started working as a carton handler right out of high school. He wasn't sure what he wanted to do but knew he needed to work. It was hard work and long hours, but he got along well with his teammates and enjoyed the satisfaction of achieving his productivity goals. During his first year on the job, his supervisor noticed his strong work ethic and attention to detail and asked if Joel would consider moving to the packing team at his annual performance review. He explained that this could be a good move and allow Joel to interact with other members of the team, use different technology and practice new skills. Joel had helped out in the packing area before and didn't like working with the repack and small items as much, but trusted that the supervisor was giving him an opportunity to grow. And grow he did. Within ten months, Joel was a packing team leader managing the other associates during his shift. He coached individuals achieve their productivity goals, helped resolve issues on the team and met with the packing manager to understand workflow challenges and upcoming changes. After he had been in this role for nearly three years, he moved to the outbound team as a team leader, further broadening his knowledge of the center's operations. When the opportunity to work on a long-term project with the headquarters team became available, he jumped at the chance even though it was a lateral move rather than a promotion. Over the next six years, he participated in a task force with the central distribution center team to develop and implement new packing and warehouse management processes and training. At the same time, he took online college courses and received his four-year degree. He had set his sights on distribution center leadership. At the end of this assignment, Joel was ready for a new challenge and was promoted to lead inbound operations at one of the retailer's different distribution center locations as the Inbound Freight Manager. This is a big job with many new responsibilities, but Joel is ready to work hard to achieve his dream - being a distribution center General Manager someday