Progressive Grocer - March 2010 - (Page 46)

Harold Lloyd on … “Making a Difference” Helpful advice from an industry specialist The Employee’s First 30 Days: It’s Now or Never Grocers can boost their profitability by successfully nurturing new recruits during this crucial time period. By Harold Lloyd T he economic recession has had one silver lining: we can certainly find good employees to hire. Unfortunately, with business the way it is, we don’t need them. In our business, we’ll always have some turnover — maybe a bit less now with this economy — but they still leave for a multitude of reasons, and with every departure, the bottom line takes a hit. Depending on which source you read, the hit is estimated at somewhere between $2,500 and $5,000 per terminated employee, more for full-timers and managers, less for part-timers and temporaries. In any case, the economic impact of turnover on our profitability is significant — not to mention the customer relations hit we take when a trained staff member is replaced by a “rookie.” When the economy makes a complete recovery, we will again be aggressively competing for “bodies,” and the turnover cost of those precious employees will, once again, approach a ridiculous figure. This column shows how you can improve your profitability by nurturing new recruits during their first 30 days. Why the first 30 days? Because that’s when the new relationship More ONLINE is at its most vulnerable, and because over 30 percent of all terminations happen during that time period. Here’s an array of 24 best practices to bolster your employee orientation process. There are eight best practices for the employee’s first day, eight within the first week and eight to be done sometime before the end of the first month. How well your company/store executes your orientation now should dictate the number of ideas you adopt. The Newbie’s First Day To find out more about Harold Lloyd’s services, visit www.hlloydpresents.com. Set your phone or watch alarm five minutes before the new recruit’s (Newbie) scheduled arrival. Give a warm, enthusiastic greeting A H E A D O F W H AT ’ S N E X T to dispel any first-day awkwardness. (No. 1). Never have a Newbie start on the store manager’s day off (No. 2). Theoretically, the store manager is the one who knows the store, its people and procedures best. Also, try not to start a Newbie after Wednesday. The added pressure of the weekend business might send a good Newbie over the edge. Next, the store manager should conduct a 30-minute store tour after showing the Newbie how to “clock in,” beginning in the parking lot and lasting for 30 minutes (No. 3). After seeing the store and introducing the Newbie, take him/her into the office for a 30-minute talk about Top 10 Expectations and Top 10 Promises (No. 4). Introduce the Newbie to the business terms (No. 5) used each day. After introducing the Newbie to his/her department manager, have the Newbie’s “Buddy” (an employee assigned to shadow the Newbie for the first 30 days) make the appropriate introductions (No. 6). Give the Newbie a temporary name tag that, in addition to featuring the Newbie’s name, explains in bold letters: “I’m New and I’m Trying My Best. Thanks” (No. 7). www.progressivegrocer.com • Progressive Grocer • March 2010 http://www.hlloydpresents.com http://www.progressivegrocer.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Progressive Grocer - March 2010

Progressive Grocer - March 2010
Table of Contents
Nielsen’s Shelf Stoppers/ Spotlight: Dairy/Yogurt
Green Grocer Awards 2010: Seeing Green
Multicultural Marketing: Use Your Common Census
Harold Lloyd on … “Making a Difference”: The Employee’s First 30 Days: It’s Now or Never
The Lempert Report: Enter the ‘Koodies’
Independent Retailing: Keep Cash Flowing With Trade Terms
Progressive Grocer’s 2010 Meat Operations Review: Value on a Platter
Progressive Grocer’s 2010 Seafood Operations Review: Seafood Hits its Stride
Executive Insight Series: Lasting Impressions: Forward Thinking
Produce: Tracking the Transition to Traceability
Meat: Heinen’s Freshens up Service Benchmarks
Natural/Organic: Nature’s Best on Ice: Natural and Organic Frozen Foods
Frozen/Dairy: Cold and Colder: Trends in Frozen and Dairy
Baby Food: Green to Grow On
Green Promotions: Along for the Ride
Foodservice: Loaded for Bar
Case Study: Clean Carts
What’s Next: Editors’ Picks for Innovative Products

Progressive Grocer - March 2010