Employee retention strategies in the retail sector
Retaining staff is a challenge for all businesses but this challenge is particularly prominent in the retail sector. Employee turnover rates in this industry are exceptionally high and if they aren’t kept under control, they can pose a massive threat to business success. With so much competition for top-quality candidates, it’s easy to see why employees are jumping ship when things don’t go their way but these career changes can be costly moves for retail managers like you. Did you know, that the average cost of recruiting a new employee in the UK is around £200-£5,000?
Unfortunately, it looks like this problem is here to stay with the average turnover rate in retail hitting 69% last year alone! That’s the highest it’s ever been in the last five years. To put these figures into perspective for you, we discovered the average yearly turnover rate for all kinds of businesses and it’s a mere 18%.
So why is it so hard to retain employees in the retail sector and what can you do to make your working environment so good, that your staff won’t want to leave?
Why is it so hard to retain employees in retail?
We took a deep dive into the reviews on Glassdoor looking at a range of different retail companies to find out the most common reasons which cause employees to leave. Here's a roundup of what we found.
Not enough money
Unfortunately, a glaring reason it’s so hard to retain employees in retail is that the pay simply isn’t enough. A lot of people expressed how physically hard the job was and how the pay didn’t match the amount of work they had to do. This left them feeling unappreciated, stressed and exhausted.
No variation in the role
A lot of reviews mentioned that they were stuck doing the same task for hours on end. This made their job incredibly tedious and unenjoyable.
Poor management
Issues with management were common reasons for staff resignation. Employees are unsatisfied when there is no clear direction from management and when they think they’re being treated unfairly.
Not enough progression
A common feeling of being stagnant in a company was very evident. Employees felt that there was little progression which made them worried about their future careers in the retail company.
Now we’ve got a clear understanding of why the majority of employees are leaving, let’s talk about employee retention strategies. These strategies can be easily used to keep your employees happy, motivated and engaged so they don’t want to look elsewhere.
Employee retention strategies in the retail sector
Strategy #1 - carry out staff observations
As humans, we all need a purpose in life. In fact, it’s hard-wired into our brains to find meaning in everything we do and it’s been proven to improve mental and physical health.
When your employees are working tirelessly with no real purpose or intent it can be hard for them to stay motivated and engaged. This can lead to them feeling unhappy and empty inside so it’s no wonder that after a long period of time they decide to part ways with you.
To prevent this from happening we recommend carrying out staff observations and following a career development plan which looks something like this:
Observe your employee's behaviour.
This will help you spot what their strengths and weaknesses are. You can then make notes on what they need to improve to help them advance into the next position in their career. We recommend using an employee observation tool which makes it easy to carry out reports. Managers can simply log on to the app on their mobile or tablet device and tap to collect their insights, the platform will then generate an automatic report which makes it easy to spot areas of improvement.
Generate constructive feedback as you go to help shape your employee's behaviour.
This will help them to feel supported and guided in their journey with you. Our employee observations tool makes it easy to set tasks ‘in-the-moment’ whilst you carry out the report. These tasks will show up on the employee’s home page of the platform making it easy for them to know exactly what they need to do to improve.
Hold a post-observation one-to-one.
In this meeting, you can discuss your observations and give them a chance to express to you what they’re struggling with. This makes them feel valued and appreciated and it should help you resolve any issues which could be pressuring them to leave. Discuss the tasks or training you want them to complete before their next observation and schedule their next one in the diary.
Carry out the next observation and use the previous results as a benchmark for improvement.
In one-to-one, you can chat about how much they’ve improved and what you’ve noticed they need to do for their next observation and so on.
This strategy works well because it resolves so many different issues using just one retention method. It resolves;
Staff not feeling valued or appreciated - this is because on a monthly basis you’ll be watching how they work and giving them praise for what they’re doing well.
Staff feeling stagnant in their career - by aligning their actions to career development, it allows them to see what they need to take responsibility for in order for them to move up in their career. It also encourages them to uptake the necessary training because they can see how it will help them as opposed to just helping the company.
Staff not agreeing with management styles - when you enforce a company-wide management task, it makes it easier to keep control of differing management styles. This consistency makes employees feel more at ease and the one-to-one style of training will form stronger relationships between teams.
Strategy #2 - rotate their responsibilities
As we discussed at the start of this article, a lot of employees leave their retail job because it’s just too boring. It’s not realistic to have the same person stand in the same spot for hours on end and expect them to be happy. Your employees are not robots and their happiness and well-being should be considered at every opportunity.
To prevent employees from feeling disinterested and bored, we recommend rotating their responsibilities.
Split their shift into thirds or even quarters and allocate them a different task for each time slot. So they could spend the first third of their time on the tills, the second in the stock room and the third on the shop floor helping customers.
Not only is this a great way to add variety to your employee’s day, but it also means you can upskill your employees in different areas. Allowing them to practice their new skills on a daily basis will make them confident in these areas. This is essential during busy periods like Christmas and summer sales because it means you can have more help in the areas that need it most.
Strategy #3 - offer monetary incentives
One of the main reasons that employees leave their jobs is because of money. Now we know that if you could pay them more you probably would, but sometimes it’s just not possible.
Rather than boosting everyone’s salary, why not introduce monetary incentives? These allow you to maximise productivity and efficiency by giving employees a compelling reason to do the best they can at work.
It won’t cost you too much to introduce this strategy because you only have to hand out extra money when an employee’s performance improves. This can just be on a quarterly or even yearly basis.
Strategy #4 - use an employee incentive scheme
A good employee retention strategy should be focused on employee well-being. This is because a major factor which pushes employees to leave is the fact that they feel overworked and stressed. Not to mention the fact that having unhappy employees can have a detrimental effect on your bottom line. We’re talking about poor engagement, bad customer service and too many sick days.
There’s just no getting away from the fact that working on a shop floor can be hard work and whilst this cannot be changed you can offer incentives which can improve the quality of your employee’s wellbeing.
Good incentive schemes offer everything from stress management programmes, food, drink and shopping discounts along with reward and recognition schemes.
Strategy #4 - offer a structured training programme
Retail jobs are too often viewed by the younger generation as a stop-gap between education and their ‘real job’. They don’t take their role seriously and more often than not, see them as a means to earn some money whilst they are still in education.
If you want to retain employees in retail you need to change this perspective and get your younger team to take their job more seriously.
You can do this by offering a structured training programme which they can see helps them progress up the career ladder within your business. Avoid doing bulk training where your employees attend a workshop or presentation once a year and then never revisit the information again. Instead, introduce short training which they can carry out daily. Our microlearning platform is perfect for this. Instead of a 45-minute course that tests, we use quiz-like microlearning on our knowledge platform to embed knowledge. This means that learning can fit flexibly into employees’ daily routines.
Strategy #5 - develop an unbeatable company culture
When people choose an employer, they’re conscious that they need to enjoy the work they do but they also need to be happy with the overall environment of the workplace. If you’ve got a poor company culture then no matter how many retention strategies you put in place your employees are never going to be happy.
How can you develop a positive company culture?
Train your managers on your company’s values - a strong company culture starts with management because they set the tone for how the rest of the team will behave. Get them aligned with your company values and have them express them in everything they do.
Give your team gratitude - rule number one of a positive workplace culture, is to never take your people for granted. They are what keep your company going so make sure they know how much you value them and their work on a daily basis.
Keep an eye out for behaviour that doesn’t align - If a manager or team member is displaying negative values that don’t align with your culture be sure to let them know. Tell them why you don’t accept certain behaviours and the negative impact they can have on your team and business as a whole.
Have frequent company social events - a positive company culture begins with the bonds your people have with each other. If your team has great relationships and can fully trust one another it will have a profound impact on your company culture. To foster these kinds of relationships it’s essential that you hold company social events because people can be themselves and connect with their colleagues in ways that they wouldn't be able to at work.
Look after your people - treat your employees with kindness and respect and they will do the same for you and everyone around them.
Make their working environment bright and positive - You might not be able to change the decor on the shop floor but you can make their staff room a desirable place to be. Use paint colours which lift their mood and frame positive quotes that you can dot around the room. Give them a relaxing place to chill and unwind after a hard shift on the shop floor and make sure it’s kept clean and tidy.
Whichever employee retention strategy you decide to use, make sure you stay consistent with it as this is the only way you’re going to see results. The changes may be slow and steady but over time their impact on your business will become hugely significant.
If you need help retaining employees in your retail store check out our retail training app. It encompasses everything your sales team needs to feel guided and supported on their road to career success. Join the likes of Next, Virgin Media - 02, Victoria’s Secret and Tesco Mobile who all use the app to improve their performance in retail.
