Why Do Companies Put The Person Who Can Hurt Them The Most In The Middle Of All The Action?
In 1994 I lived in Center City, Philadelphia. At the bottom of the building where I worked there was a convenience store, so it was no surprise that around 7:15am I would walk in and pick up a few things for breakfast. Actually I would always pick up the same things. Please don’t laugh at my order (which was a Rice Krispy Treat, chocolate milk and a pack of Big Red gum). Please stop laughing–I am very sensitive!
Ok lets get past what I ordered which isn’t the real point of the story. The real point is that I would get those same three items day after day, week after week and was charged different prices…yes different prices. I understand items can be on sale, but they DON’T typically change everyday.
Last week when I paid for parking, I was given the wrong change. The same thing happened when I bought some food at a recent concert. Frankly I could go on and on because I truly believe it happens over 30% of the time–yes 30% of the time.
I’m sure stuff like this has happened to every one of you. The real question is why? If you owned a retail establishment wouldn’t you put the person who is most numbers oriented on the cash register? Wouldn’t you put the person that you trust the most on the cash register?
I am sure you have asked a cashier for directions or where an item is in the store. This just happened to me again this past weekend and I get this puzzled “why are you asking me” look and “NO I can’t help you!” I am still amazed when this happens. This kind of stuff affects where I shop the next time. I can’t be alone in that type of thinking!
I have nothing against cashiers (I was one of them in High school) but it doesn’t make sense to me. Typically cashiers are paid minimum wage or a little above and aren’t always looking at it as a career. Since that is the case wouldn’t it be better, smarter and frankly more efficient to have someone up front that is your best! Not to mention customers do notice if they are short changed or charged too much and I am sure all of that affects customers and their future shopping habits.
How do you feel when it happens to you?
- Are you amazed how often it happens?
I look forward to your stories and comments.
May 14th, 2007 at 10:07 am
Merrill you struck a nerve.
In high school and all through college I worked for the grocery store, Harris Teeter (yes, 7 years of service). Harris Teeter’s rules on customer service are stringent (if someone asked you where an item was in the store, instead of saying “Isle 4″ you had to walk the customer to the item and hand it to them). Their cash flow checks and balances are just as buttoned up. As a cashier, if your register is $2.00 off in either direction you were reprimanded. As an store accountant for Harris Teeter; we literally had 1 write up a month on a bad month. The reason i believe that was the case wasn’t the punishment; it was the respect for the establishment.
Some people complain that HT’s prices are higher than the competitors; but i would pay 2 cents extra in any product to enjoy my experience at the store!
I HEART HARRIS TEETER
May 16th, 2007 at 8:29 am
Merrill - To go a bit further with your post .. why do so many companies insist on placing junior people, with minimum training, at the point of critical and/or first impression customer interaction. e.g., the cashier, the telephone service rep?
Applause to Harris Teeter.
May 16th, 2007 at 10:30 am
Merrill - This sounds like a good topic for an upcoming edition of Measure.
-L
May 16th, 2007 at 11:36 am
Toby,
Your questions is very interesting. I can only think of one reason - money! More experienced people command a higher hourly rate. Companies appear to place a low value on customer service reps where I believe that should be where your strength should be.
To bring it back to research our account managers have 10+ years of experience. Our feeling is this is the best way to react to client requests and manage our business.
Merrill
May 18th, 2007 at 12:37 pm
Customer Service or the lack there of, is a big pet peeve of mine. When I walk into a store I expect to be greeted by an employee. I expect courteous, knowledgeable service from the salespeople and cashiers. And when I leave the store I expect to be thanked for coming in. These seem like pretty basic rules most stores would follow to show appreciation for your business, but more and more I find that these simple rules are not followed. Countless are the number of stores that I have stopped in to simply be ignored by salespeople gossiping in the corner or busy doing some task they deem more important than their customer. One of the worse violators is the Calloway’s Nursery near my home. This is a business that I frequent quite regularly as there always seems to be something in the yard that needs tending to. Very rarely am I greeted by an employee when I come in. Instead I am left to wander the store looking for what I need and when I have to ask an employee for help they act put out by me interrupting their watering of the plants.
Equally prevalent in business today is the surly cashier. I constantly find myself initiating conversation with unfriendly cashiers instead of the other way around. Something like,
Me: “Hi, how are you today?”
Cashier: “Fine” continuing to ring up items
Me: “So, we’ve had a lot of rain lately”
Cashier: “Yep, that’ll be $75″
Me: “Here you go, thanks.”
Yes, I actually thank them. What am I thanking them for, letting me buy something from their store? I kick myself as I leave for being too nice.
Occasionally, I play the game of not initiating conversation with the cashier. Instead I wait to see if they will acknowledge me at all. It’s amazing the number of times I have checked out without one word transpiring.
One store that consistently bucks the trend of poor customer service is Whole Foods Market. This grocery, much like Stephanie’s Harris Teeter prides itself on providing a great customer experience. Employees greet you when you come-in, they walk you to the item you are looking for and the cashiers actually remember you and ask “How are you doing? Did you find everything you were looking for?” All while checking to make sure the eggs you just bought are not broken. I pay a premium to shop there, but it is certainly worth it to turn a weekly chore into a pleasant shopping experience.
So why do employees in some stores care about the customer and why do so many others not? I think more than anything it is the mind set of the management. If management believes in superior customer service then they will not tolerate anything less from their employees, whether they are minimum wage earners or highly paid professionals. And when we encounter those businesses that do not value customers then as consumers we should take our business elsewhere. We should support those business practices that best represent the values in which we believe.
May 18th, 2007 at 2:49 pm
Good post Merrill. In response to Toby’s question, I don’t think it’s only about money. Junior people cannot become senior people without being in the throws of the action. There will have to be a ramp-up period, and mistakes are bound to happen, but mistakes are the best way to learn. Good clients understand this, and even those that don’t usually make it known to someone higher up in the company, so you can then rectify the matter.
With regards to the original point of your post, Merrill, I think that it’s one of those things where theoretically what you say makes sense, but in practical terms is again the result of trial and error. As you said, these people are not well paid. I worked in some retail establishments in HS and college, and I don;t ever recall someone testing me for my math skills, so how do you even make the determination? I do recall, however, other coworkers being either reassigned or let go based on mistakes made, with money being one of the examples.
I certainly am NO EXPERT on this, but I don’t believe retail locations go to great lengths in the pre-hire screening process or have much, if any, post-hire systems in place in order to determine who is best with money. And the best employees? I imagine they are either promoted to manager, or on the floor dealing the customers in a more customer-service manner, rather than being stuck behind the register. I also think of greater concern is likely that the person behind the register may have been put there more for their honesty than for their ability with numbers, which if I were a retail store owner, would be of equal if not greater concern to me.
May 18th, 2007 at 3:28 pm
Jonathan/Lance,
Great points - why don’t retail stores realize what we have? Why don’t they put themselves in the shoes of their customers and realize that type of behavior is not only wrong but really hurts their business?
They have to notice these things - I have stopped going to two stores in the past three weeks because of the cashier experiences that Jonathan mentioned.
It just doesn’t work for me in today’s business environment. It doesn’t cost anything to be nice.
Thanks for your contributions.
Merrill