There is a scene in Freeman Hall’s memoir Retail Hell that does at least sound like Retail Purgatory.  He is being trained, together with a group of other newbies, to use the cash registers at the store he calls “The Big Fancy” (a thinly disguised Nordstrom).  Here is Brandi, the store’s operations manager, providing the new hires with register training after starting their day off with a round of clapping and cheering:

“Like a chipmunk on speed, Brandi chattered uncontrollably about handling money, fraud, credit, pricing, ticketing, and new accounts. “Did everyone get that okay” she asked to vacant stares.  “Do you understand? Great. Perfect. Super-fantastic. Moving on. Onward and upward, class!”  And just like that, we were at the registers.”

While I can’t really recommend Hall’s book, which is laced with profanity and includes self-indulgent, sophomoric caricatures, he does capture some elements of being in retail perfectly — the problem customers, the long hours and erratic schedule, and the sometimes ridiculous store management.

And his book did make me think about how we can best train new hires to so that they will feel confident and successful in their roles as sales associates.  Clearly the training at The Big Fancy, which included the store manager leading cheerleader-style chants, left a lot to be desired — including the length of the “employee handbook,” which was a 4” X6” card that stated “Welcome! Congratulations on joining our team! Our number-one goal is to give excellent customer service above and beyond the norm. Remember, you are the center of the sun.  Store rules: Use your best judgment with everything.  There are no more rules. Have fun!”

It turns out, according to Hall, that there are of course a lot more rules and expectations.  My feeling is that it is very helpful to new hires to know what these expectations are early in the training process, and to give them a written document — a real employee handbook — that allows them to refer back to the details at their leisure.

And when it comes to register training, slow and steady wins the race. Try to set up your new hire training so that there is a day of forms and introductions, with a store tour and a few simple procedures, followed by short sessions on the register over several days. Save the less common situations for when the employee has mastered the basics, and keep in mind that review and practice are essential.

Once an employee is trained we like to have them shadow an experienced staff member in order to learn the type of customer service that we pride ourselves on offering. This way they can also see how returns, shipping and other processes are handled without being on their own.  We keep a n operations manual near each register to help anyone who forgets a policy or procedure.

We all want our employees to succeed, and for new hires to stay a long time and be valued members of our sales staff.  Setting the right tone during the first days of training are essential to that process.  It’s not enough to tell employees “You are the center of the sun. How bright you shine affects everything.” You need to give them tools and skills to make them confident and competent staff members.

Happy Retailing,

Carol “Orange” Schroeder