Behind the Scenes of a Remarkable Store Operations Improvement Project
In a recent episode of Parker Avery Group’s “Talk Retail to Me” podcast, retail consulting professionals Tricia Gustin, Carrie Habel, and Dustin Wright shared insights from a noteworthy store operations project. They detail their innovative approach, including a capsized ‘train-the-trainer’ strategy and store collaboration, to identify inefficiencies such as laborious administrative tasks and ineffective training practices.
The project resulted in significant labor savings, improved processes, and enhanced backroom organization, illustrating the value of cross-functional collaboration and retailer engagement.
Click the play button or read the recap below, then contact us to start solving your own store operations challenges.
The Team Behind the Project
Parker Avery’s senior director of marketing, Tricia Gustin introduced Carrie Habel, also a senior director at Parker Avery with over 25 years of retail experience, and Dustin Wright, a senior manager who brought fresh perspectives from decades of experience in retail store operations. Carrie and Dustin shared their journey in this store operations project, discussing the collaboration, methodologies, and passionate team that drove success.
Understanding the Client’s Challenges
The client, a $250 million a year company with a mix of small self-checkout stores and large big-box stores, faced stagnation due to outdated processes. Their operations had not been optimized for years, leading to inefficiencies. The Parker Avery Group initiated the store operations improvement project with a comprehensive analysis of the retailer’s business, benchmarking their operations against industry best practices. This culminated in a transformative phase where Carrie and Dustin directly engaged with store teams to overhaul their store processes.
Innovative Approaches and Key Findings
One of the standout strategies was a revolutionary ‘train-the-trainer’ approach. Unlike traditional retail consulting methods, the team inverted the model, having store teams first train them on the existing store processes. This method revealed current practices, challenges, and obstacles directly from the front-line employees, which might have been missed with standard interviews or observations. Dustin shared that this approach facilitated a deep understanding of the client’s retail store operations. It uncovered significant inefficiencies, such as overly complex administrative tasks, ineffective use of systems, and redundant processes.
Capsizing a Train-the-Trainer Approach
Unlike traditional methods, the team inverted the model, having store teams first train them on the existing store processes.
Major Opportunities Identified
Key opportunities included updating standard operating procedures (SOPs) and store training materials. The Parker Avery team found that existing SOPs were underutilized, leading them to create more user-friendly documents with visual aids and more engaging formats. Another significant win was solving laborious receiving processes. The client was manually scanning all incoming items due to non-leveraged systems, causing inefficiencies. By rectifying this process, the team identified $2 million in labor savings, which were reallocated to enhance customer-facing activities. Other store improvements, such as backroom reorganization, also generated impressive labor efficiencies.
The Impact of Collaboration
The store operations improvement project’s success hinged on close collaboration with store teams. Carrie and Dustin emphasized that involving front-line employees in developing solutions to store challenges ensured the sustainability of the new processes. Their involvement from start to finish not only improved buy-in but also led to practical, well-received changes.
Overcoming Obstacles and Recognizing Success
Despite the positive outcomes, the project faced obstacles. Coordinating cross-functional partners and aligning home office operations with store needs were significant challenges. However, the team’s persistent communication and demonstrated benefits helped overcome these hurdles.
However, post-project surveys revealed exceptional satisfaction among trainees, with ratings averaging 4.6 out of 5. Innovative training methods, such as interactive games, contributed to these high ratings, showcasing the importance of engaging content in retail training success.
Despite these minor obstacles, post-project surveys revealed exceptional satisfaction among trainees.
Final Word
This store operations improvement project highlighted The Parker Avery Group’s capability to solve significant retail operations challenges through innovative methodologies and intense collaboration. As Carrie and Dustin reflect, listening to store teams and facilitating their involvement in process improvements can lead to substantial efficiency gains and foster long-term sustainability of new store processes.
For retailers facing similar challenges, the key takeaways are to engage deeply with store operations, listen to front-line teams, and consider innovative approaches to training and process improvements. And if the task seems overwhelming, remember – The Parker Avery Group is just an email away. We are ready to bring our expertise to help solve your most important store operations challenges.
You may also like
