People are your most powerful asset

A financial services sector wrestling with toxic assets, a housing market in steep decline, unemployment rising inexorably… the harbingers of gloom have much to gorge upon. 

And surely only a fool (or a genius perhaps) would predict any early or certain route out of this recession.

Yet, even in these sombre recessionary times, life goes on. People set up home, children go to school and shopping continues to feature as an essential replenishment and leisure experience.

Clearly, we retailers must provide products that not only are fit for purpose, but that embody quality and value. We also must recognise our corporate responsibility towards the environmental agenda by avoiding excessive packaging and by recycling whenever we can. Moreover, evidence shows that environmental commitment can add value to the bottom line.

Let’s strive, too, to create informative and pleasurable shopping experiences for our customers. The 21st century customer deserves well lit, attractively merchandised showrooms, with products displayed in understandable and accessible formats. 

Point-of-sale ticketing, customer service and customer information should be clear and unambiguous. An evolving in-store environment should surprise and delight customers, and encourage them to browse and buy.

We must inspire our staff to assume personal responsibility for excellence in customer services

Even more important than all of these factors is how our customers are treated. We must inspire our staff to assume personal responsibility for consistent excellence in customer service.

It’s a challenging remit, particularly for multiple-location retailers. Top retail management must devote time and effort to shaping processes to optimise the capability and performance of the human resources we deploy.

Much of customer-focused retailing is about attitude. Here, investment in criteria-based selection processes, including psychometric testing, can reap dividends. Similarly, tangible benefits can be delivered through systematic people development programmes. The very existence of such programmes and the visible commitment of top management to them can be a potent force in developing and sustaining high employee morale and capability.

Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton once said: “My job is to turn ordinary people… into heroes.” Walton may have been referring to the array of systematic processes for which Wal-Mart is justly famed. It seems more likely that he was conscious of the high energy displayed by himself and by his senior colleagues in getting around stores two, three or four days a week. 

By actively listening to customers and to colleagues such visits supported them in living their values. The visits stimulated the organisation’s awareness of the needs and aspirations of customers and prospective customers.

In my experience, store-based colleagues welcome opportunities to exchange views with their top executives. Such exchanges often make our people smile. Many of today’s most successful retail leaders regularly “walk the talk” in this way. And it’s enjoyable too.