Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - 36
CONFERENCE HIGHLIGHTS
HR USHERING IN TODAY'S
NEW RETAIL ORDER
If there is a key takeaway from Retail Council of Canada's 2016
Human Resources Conference, held recently in April, it is this:
the value and role of the HR function has never been more pivotal
to business success and profitability.
BY R ANDY SCOTLAND
HUMAN Resources has undergone a huge change in
reputation and influence from an era when the function
was too often disparaged (at least in some quarters) as
the "Sales Prevention Department."
But-as conference speakers agreed-times have indeed changed and the retail world has moved on, driven
by a new breed of mobile-enabled consumers who demand products and services on their own terms and
timetables. Increasingly, HR is being called upon to
mitigate the transition to this new order.
Challenges for HR
"Typically, if you think about the store
associate of the past, these were people
who were selling merchandise, or they were
stocking shelves. But now they're brand
ambassadors. Shoppers expect that sales
associate to understand who they are, what
they've purchased both online and in-store.
They really are the face of your brand."
HR's elevated stature within the business comes with its own
set of challenges, however.
"In a service economy, the people who manage the people
have by far the toughest job," remarked veteran brand marketer
David Kincaid, Managing Partner and Founder of Level5 Strategy Group.
"North America is moving towards a service-based economy,
away from manufacturing products," he said. "The one biggest
variable that drives a service-based economy is people. And
that's not the easiest thing to manage. That's why you are therefore even more important within a branded business system-
that critical link-because this is your area of expertise."
Out of this shift is emerging a new business model for retailing in today's connected world.
"It's really transformed the role of the associate at the store,"
noted Peter Theocharis, VP at Salesforce Canada, which markets a Cloud-enabled mobile communications platform for retailers and their employees.
36 |
CANADIAN RETAILER | SUMMER 2016
- PETER THEOCHARIS, Salesforce Canada
"Typically, if you think about the store associate of the past, these were people who were selling merchandise, or they were stocking shelves.
But now they're brand ambassadors. Shoppers
expect that sales associate to understand who
they are, what they've purchased both online and
in store. They really are the face of your brand."
This is where HR comes in.
"We strongly believe that in order to have
supercharged associates you need to focus on engagement," Theocharis said. "You need to basically focus on employee communication and collaboration and certainly be proactive from that
perspective. You need to be able to empower your
employees with metrics and information that will
allow them to better serve these shoppers in this
[consumer-to-business] world."
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016
GUEST PUBLISHER’S DESK
RETAIL CURRENTS
AT ISSUE
UNDERSTANDING TODAY'S SOCIAL GROCERY SHOPPER
THE GROCERY AISLE DISRUPTED
DELIGHTING THE NEW CANADIAN PALATE
TODAY'S SUPERMARKET: MORE THAN FRESH FRUITS AND VEGGIES
THE WORLD AT OUR DOORSTEP
HR USHERING IN NEW RETAIL ORDER
ADVERTISER’S INDEX
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - cover1
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - cover2
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - 3
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - GUEST PUBLISHER’S DESK
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - 5
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - RETAIL CURRENTS
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - 7
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - AT ISSUE
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - 9
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - 10
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - 11
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - UNDERSTANDING TODAY'S SOCIAL GROCERY SHOPPER
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - 13
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - 14
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - 15
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - THE GROCERY AISLE DISRUPTED
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - 17
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - 18
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - 19
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - 20
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - 21
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - DELIGHTING THE NEW CANADIAN PALATE
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - 23
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - 24
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - 25
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - TODAY'S SUPERMARKET: MORE THAN FRESH FRUITS AND VEGGIES
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - 27
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - 28
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - 29
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - THE WORLD AT OUR DOORSTEP
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - 31
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - 32
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - 33
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - 34
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - 35
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - HR USHERING IN NEW RETAIL ORDER
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - 37
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - 38
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - 39
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - 40
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - 41
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - ADVERTISER’S INDEX
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - cover3
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - cover4
Canadian Retailer - Summer 2016 - 45
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