This document discusses strategies for optimizing staffing and productivity at retail stores to balance profitability and customer experience. It recommends: 1) Establishing consistent staffing models and productivity measures for all areas to meet customer demand and brand standards. 2) Classifying labor costs as either "fixed" (constant expenses) or "variable" (changing based on sales volume) to accurately schedule the right number of employees. 3) Creating employee guidelines that identify fixed and variable labor needs by position to plan staffing levels for different periods.

2. STANDARDS
 Sets appropriate productivity standards – consistent w/Brand Attributes
 Enhances employee productivity
 Maximizes use of resources
 Maximizes Brand recognition
 Balances quality & quantity
 Enhances customer satisfaction
 Increase Brand Loyalty – Repeat Business

3. HOW TO STAFF A STORE?
Determine a consistent staffing model
for the The Retail Company Brand that establishes
Ideal productivity measures
for all functional areas
to optimize the balance between desired profitability and delivering the
brand service promise!

4. STRATEGIC PLAN
Brand Equity
Increase the value of our brands and generate profits by means of loyalty
and customer transformation that assures premium prices for our
products.

5. COMPETITION
Competition among brands will be based more and more on the experience
you create, and the depth of the experience will depend on how well you
develop the intangibles.

6. CUSTOMER PERCEPTION
Customers may not always remember specifics on the products or services
we offered…..
They will always remember - how we made them feel!

7. WHAT ARE ASSOCIATES?
In the service Industry
labor is both a key to
driving revenue growth
and
One of the largest cost items in the operating budget.

8. MEASURING PRODUCTIVITY
Productivity is usually defined as the volume of work units produced by a
worker within a given period of time.
Ex: one sales associate per X customers in an 8 hour shift, etc.

9. PAYROLL COSTS
 If you break down your payroll into “fixed” and “variable” cost labor,
you may find that the largest portion of your payroll is fixed, i.e., a
constant expense of the business that does not change based on sales,
number of employees or other variables.
The fixed cost portion of payroll is not just management salaries that
must be paid regardless of sales volume.

10. VARIABLE COST
The employees who are added to the fixed schedule as business increases
are your “variable cost employees”.
It is having too many or too few variable staff that either can negatively
impact profits or the customer’s experience and ultimately the Brand’s
image!

11. PLANNING SERVICE
 Discuss and agree on the consistent brand service standards, and
determine what needs to be done to meet the expected customer
demand for planning periods.
 Identify the productivity & performance standards for each area.
 Determine if position is fixed or variable.
 Create employee-staffing guidelines that identify “fixed (non-volume
related) and “variable” (volume related) labor requirements by job.

12. Living the Brand
Passive
Understand
Believe
Deliver
“I
understand
the brand”
“I believe in
trying to
deliver the
brand”
“I know what
it takes to
deliver the
brand”
Informed
“I
understand
how I can
contribute”
Engaged
“I
understand I
need to
contribute”
“I believe
there are
tools to help
me deliver
the brand”
“I believe I
make a
difference
when I
contribute”
“I know how
to use tools
from the
company to
deliver the
brand”
“I take
proactive
steps to
make a
difference
when I
deliver the
brand”
Active
“I understand
my role to
deliver the
brand”
“I am
accountable
for delivering
the brand”
“I deliver the
brand … and
make a
difference …
every day,
every
customer”
Advocate
“I
understand
how to
impact the
brand and
the
company”
“I am
passionate
about the
brand, and
the
company”
“I am the
Brand”