Geissler's Supermarket

The Retail Challenge

After starting my journey in the public service sector 30 years ago, I believed that success in business was purely the result of hard work and operational excellence. It became apparent that my associates were key to that success. It is a cliché, but the saying “you are only as good as your people” became truly evident as I began ascending the managerial ranks.

Although each day presents something new, several areas remain constant. These include employee relations, the ability to communicate effectively and the desire to separate yourself from the competition. Leading by example is fundamental to establishing a culture of success in the workplace and it is a principle I have embraced throughout my career. Can you achieve operational excellence and be a people-centered manager? I would argue yes. As I will briefly outline below, I have been fortunate enough to experience a variety of workplace environments that have shaped much of my decision-making today.

What Is the Priority?

As retail leaders, our objective is to achieve results. Every company entrusts us with the responsibility of being profitable and we deliver this through efficiency, consistency, accountability and effective communication. These characteristics are common among those of us who manage people successfully. Should we focus on the results or the people who deliver them? The answer is both. Our associates must believe in what we are trying to achieve, trust us as leaders and follow our lead. Each day, we play the roles of general, coach, mentor and peer as we communicate the goals of the day, recognize success, coach underperformance, develop ambition and support the group as a team. I learned this early in my career as a management trainee.

I knew the responsibility was great, but I imagined I could tell tenured associates what to do and what I wanted and it would be done. I fell hard and it was only after a lecture from my store manager at the time that I realized being willing to learn, offering to help and listening brought me credibility. People started to believe in what I was selling and I started to believe in them. Can we have both? Yes.

Leading by example is fundamental to establishing a culture of success in the workplace.

Tension?

Focusing on one area exclusively can have detrimental consequences for the success of your operation as a whole. Long-term performance can be undermined when leaders fail to prioritize adequate training, prevent associates from making decisions and learning from their mistakes, communicate poorly, show favoritism or act inconsistently. High turnover is often a result of focusing on the operation rather than the team, which can lead to a downward spiral toward failure. Loose standards, unclear goals, arbitrary discipline and little feedback can also indicate that your focus is out of balance and can negatively affect the operation.

How Do Leaders Balance Both?

How do leaders balance both to create a successful workplace? An essential part of every store I have started in has been to clearly communicate my expectations and goals for the business. The team needs to know what is expected of them, what our collective goal is and the path to achieving it. What are our shortcomings and how can I best support the team? When I was assigned more than 20 stores as a district merchandise manager, my immediate thought was, “How do I develop credibility with a group of managers who don’t know who I am?”

I started a weekly merchandise note that prioritized the week’s work and, more importantly, directly communicated my goals. I held a weekly 30-minute call with the group to brainstorm ideas, started remote training sessions to help with the technical aspects of the job and gave each store three to four hours of my time when visiting. In turn, I knew my team would follow me in achieving operational excellence. They knew the goals and had the ability to help us reach them. We are people leaders. Your standards are the store’s standards and your associates exemplify them. More than 30 years have brought me highs, including service awards, community service awards and public recognition, as well as lows when long hours and many days were the norm. Success is not easy, but it is achieved through your people.