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Most retail companies don’t seem to require or even encourage corporate employees to spend time inside their stores. Yet, the experience could potentially create a stronger connection with customers and co-workers. Ideally, corporate staff could better understand how decisions positively or negatively affect the day-to-day activities of workers at the store level.
Yet, there is a flip side to the argument. Office employees jumping in to help out at the retail level could disrupt the flow of the retail team or even make costly mistakes. Corporate staff with specialized skills or knowledge may make better use of the company’s time staying in the office.
The Case for Corporate Employees Working Retail Shifts
With the aim of supporting retail staff, Home Depot has implemented a policy requiring corporate employees to spend one day per quarter working at one of its stores. Even senior management and remote workers must meet the obligation.
“We need to stay connected to the core of our business, so we can truly understand the challenges and opportunities our store associates face every day,” said Home Depot’s CEO Ted Decker, per Bloomberg.
The outlet also noted that this is just Home Depot’s latest initiative in its “longstanding practice to ask staff to spend time in stores,” according to a company spokesperson.
While corporate employees get firsthand knowledge of the issues of retail workers, they also gain real-world insight into customer interactions. Office staff get a deeper understanding of customer pain points, needs, and behaviors.
With this in mind, decisions at the corporate level can address on-the-ground realities instead of relying on impersonal data on paper. Marketing, product designs, and operational changes will have more practical implications beneficial to both customers and retail workers.
The Case Against Requiring Retail Shifts for Corporate Employees
Mandatory retail shifts may not always be the most efficient use of corporate employees’ time. Office staff often have highly specific skill sets, such as strategic planning, data analysis, finance, or project management. Meanwhile, retail personnel are focused on face-to-face customer service, sales, and operational efficiency in a quickly moving environment.
Taking a corporate staffer and placing them in the retail store, even for a short time, disrupts the normal flow of their work, pulling them away from tasks more suited to their expertise. This misalignment could lead to resentment, frustration, or lack of motivation, particularly if it interrupts an office employee’s long-term objectives.
Spending the time to learn how to perform retail job duties may not translate into any meaningful, lasting benefit for the company, especially when the new skills aren’t aligned with the primary responsibilities of the employee. Exposure to front-line challenges may provide some value, but mandatory retail shifts may undermine more significant contributions made in their normal, day-to-day roles.
Retail giant Macy’s made it voluntary for corporate employees to work in its retail stores during the 2021 holiday season. While the move was promoted as a way to build camaraderie with co-workers, Macy’s may have just been using the policy to address a labor shortage and not for any altruistic motivations.
Most likely, corporate staff getting down and dirty in their company’s retail stores will have a positive impact. The experience can break down the barriers surrounding the corporate kingdom, thereby promoting collaboration at all levels and potentially encouraging an overall boost in morale.