CHELMSFORD, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 22, 2006--Today, the Workforce Institute(TM) announced the findings of a new survey conducted by Harris Interactive(R) and sponsored by Kronos(R) Incorporated (Nasdaq: KRON). The "Black Friday: Inside the Retail Employee Psyche" survey uncovered that retailers who neglect their workforce run the risk of employees leaving them high and dry this holiday season. It found that 46 percent of the more than 1,000 U.S. retail employees surveyed said they could walk off the job this holiday season. If retailers ignore this statistic, they might not finish "in the black" this year. Black Friday, or the day after Thanksgiving in the U.S., is often the busiest day of the holiday shopping season and the day most retailers become profitable for the first time in the year.
"During the holiday season, and especially on Black Friday, competition is cut-throat among retailers," said Jerry Sheldon, vice president of technology at IHL Consulting Group, a global research and advisory firm specializing in technologies for the retail and hospitality industries. "Retailers need to realize that if they neglect to accommodate the needs of their workforce, their customers will not receive the level of service they expect and will simply take their business elsewhere."
Retaining employees and driving sales through workforce management
The "Black Friday: Inside the Retail Employee Psyche" survey suggests a relationship between ineffective scheduling and employee dissatisfaction. Of the respondents that said they may walk off the job this holiday season, the top three reasons were: I am not treated with respect by my boss; I am too busy at work because there are not enough employees; and my time-off requests are ignored. In addition, the survey found that 43 percent of retail employees said that if they ask for a day off but are scheduled anyway, it has a negative effect on their job performance. The top three ways it affects them are: they are likely to be less motivated at work; they may call in sick; and they may arrive late or leave early -- all of which would have a grave effect on customer service.
The results of this survey further validate what industry experts are saying in regards to employees being every retailer's most valuable asset, as they are the driving force behind consumer spending. According to the AMR Research report "Workforce Management Landscape: The Right People in the Right Place at the Right Time", authored by Christa Degnan Manning, Rob Garf, and Judy Sweeney in October 2006, "The risks today of not using workforce management can directly affect key business goals. In the retail sector, it can mean customers shopping elsewhere when checkout lines are too long and stock is not on the shelves."
By implementing a workforce management solution, retailers can reduce their risk of high employee turnover by balancing the needs of their business, customers, and employees. They are able to optimize workforce deployment in their stores and make real-time adjustments to schedules based on store-specific sales and labor budgets, business trends, and customer demand patterns as well as the unique skills, availability, and work/life preferences of each employee. Employees also gain on-line access to their personal information. They can access their schedules, approve their timecards, view accrued time, and even submit time-off requests for manager's approval. This integrated, end-to-end approach to workforce management allows retailers to enhance the experience of both employees and customers, leading to higher sales, more consistent service, higher employee productivity and retention, and ultimately, better organizational results.
Proactively planning to meet holiday sales with talent management
Retailers also can ensure a more profitable holiday season by hiring the best people. One of the secrets to attracting the best people is to allow them to apply in the way they prefer. According to the "Black Friday: Inside the Retail Employee Psyche" survey, 61 percent of retail employees said that they are more likely to apply for a job with a company that offers online applications. The top three reasons employees prefer to apply online are: I can apply at a time that fits my schedule; it is faster; and it leads me to believe they are a more innovative company.
With a talent management solution, retailers can provide candidates with the ability to apply online. Retailers also can leverage talent management solutions to systematically select the best hires and reduce the chances of making a bad hire -- a problem that is larger than most retailers suspect. In fact, the survey found that a startling 29 percent of retail employees have witnessed a fellow employee stealing from their current or past employer. Especially during the holiday season, when margins are razor thin, retailers cannot afford the cost associated with employee theft.
Best practice retailers have implemented Kronos for Retail to automate and standardize workforce planning, hiring, allocation, execution, and analysis at store level. With the use of an integrated solution, retailers are able to maximize profits by ensuring they have hired the best people and are managing them most effectively.
"Too often, especially during the holiday season, retailers are focused solely on the needs of shoppers," said Stuart Itkin, chief marketing office at Kronos. "Similar to the question, 'If a tree falls in the woods but no one is there to hear it, does it make a sound?' retailers need to ask themselves, 'If consumers are ready to spend this holiday season but employees aren't there to serve them, will we have a successful year?'."
Established by Kronos in 2006, the mission of the Workforce Institute is to provide research and education on critical workplace issues facing organizations around the globe.
This survey was conducted online within the United States by Harris Interactive(R) on behalf of Kronos between October 4 and October 17, 2006 among 1,009 hourly retail employees (aged 18 and over). Figures for age, sex, race/ethnicity, education, region, and household income were weighted where necessary to bring them into line with their actual proportions in the population. Propensity score weighting was also used to adjust for respondents' propensity to be online. With a pure probability sample of 1,009 one could say with a ninety-five percent probability that the overall results have a sampling error of +/- three percentage points. Sampling error for subsamples would be higher and would vary. However that does not take other sources of error into account. This online survey is not based on a probability sample and therefore no theoretical sampling error can be calculated.
Harris Interactive is the 12th largest and fastest-growing market research firm in the world. The company provides research-driven insights and strategic advice to help its clients make more confident decisions which lead to measurable and enduring improvements in performance. Harris Interactive is widely known for The Harris Poll, one of the longest running, independent opinion polls and for pioneering online market research methods. The company has built what could conceivably be the world's largest panel of survey respondents, the Harris Poll Online. Harris Interactive serves clients worldwide through its United States, Europe and Asia offices, its wholly-owned subsidiary Novatris in France and through a global network of independent market research firms. The service bureau, HISB, provides its market research industry clients with mixed-mode data collection, panel development services as well as syndicated and tracking research consultation. More information about Harris Interactive may be obtained at www.harrisinteractive.com.
Kronos Incorporated empowers organizations around the world to effectively manage their workforce. At Kronos, we are experts who are solely focused on delivering software and services that enable organizations to reduce costs, increase productivity, improve employee satisfaction, and ultimately enhance the level of service they provide. Kronos serves customers in more than 50 countries through its network of offices, subsidiaries, and distributors. Widely recognized as a market and thought leader in managing the workforce, Kronos has unrivaled reach with more than 30 million people using a Kronos solution every day. Learn more about Kronos at www.kronos.com.
(C) 2006 Kronos Incorporated. Kronos and the Kronos logo are registered trademarks and Workforce Institute is a trademark of Kronos Incorporated or a related company. All other product and company names mentioned are used for identification purposes only and may be trademarks of their respective owners. CONTACT: Kronos Incorporated