What Makes a Great Retail Store Manager
By William BrobstonSince several members of our team come from retail management, one of our specialties is filling retail store manager roles for luxury brands. Here is what we look for when searching for an outstanding store manager: **Strong brand representative** Your store manager is the face of your brand and needs to love it. That love needs to come through in everything that they do, because when they love your brand they will inspire their team and customers to do the same. They should have a strong understanding of your clientele and have a vision of how that can be expanded. They must take a deep pride in their personal presentation and that of their store. **Dynamic people leader** Retail is hard, and it cannot be successfully executed alone. Great store managers are an endless source of inspiration -- an example of focus and execution to their team. They can succinctly explain a variety of performance goals and lead each team member to achievement. This requires strong communication skills, emotional intelligence, and consistency. It also requires a strong sense of personal discipline and the development of a disciplined team. When you ask their team about their qualities, they should respond with "hard-working", "inspiring", "dedicated", "strategic". Be careful if the first word is "nice". **Obsessed with customer experience** The customer is the whole point of a store and every customer must be treated like gold. Great store managers will re-enforce this daily, often being personally knowledgeable about many of their customers. They will ensure that each client interaction is outstanding by providing education about the brand, showcasing the best product for them, connecting personally with the client, and building the foundation for an ongoing relationship. **Proactive leader of client development activities** What do we do when customers aren't walking in the door?? Great store managers have a plan well before this happens. They know how to rally the troops to reach out to clients and activate local marketing activities that will drive new or existing customer into their (physical or digital) doors. **Strong attention to detail** A retail store is the physical manifestation of your brand, and it must be impeccably maintained. Great store managers value the visual nature of the store and work hard to maintain a beautiful and impactful environment. **Organized operator** An impeccably front-of-house is best served with an impeccable back-of-house. This requires efficient stock, shipping and loss-prevention, and human resources activities. **Analytical and Numbers-Driven** Unless you're Louis Vuitton, achieving sales goals is a top priority -- and that is achieved with strategy and focus. Store managers must know their numbers inside and out, be quick to identify problem areas (and successes), and take immediate action to address these realities. **Corporate Partner** A retail store is the end of a long company process that designs, produces, and markets their brand and merchandise. A great store manager understands that they are part of the larger whole, knows how to leverage corporate partners when needed, and is experienced at supporting larger company initiatives. **Bonus: Formerly a top seller** Sellers don't always make the best managers, and managers don't always make the best sellers. But when you can find them in 1 person, you've struck gold. A Store Manager with a strong sales background will be an outstanding partner to their sales team, help them grow sales, and understand the intricacies of client relationships.
Please Hire that Overqualified Candidate
By William BrobstonSo you have an "overqualified" candidate interested in your open role? Congratulations!! What a great opportunity to exceed the value you were seeking to acquire. But now you have all these questions and concerning thoughts about the candidate. Maybe it would just be easier to look for a more traditional fit: someone who will be excited for more money, growth, and who will have similar experience to the existing team. But before you decide to pass, I'd like to take a moment to advocate that you give the next overqualified candidate you find an opportunity to convince you it will work - because the benefits of hiring an overqualified candidate can be enormous. It's common for employers to make many of the below assumptions: - They won't be happy earning less money - They won't be happy with a more junior title - They won't be happy with fewer direct reports, requiring you to be more hands-on and have less support - They won't assimilate into a more junior team - They won't be happy reporting to someone who may have less experience than you Since each person is in a different place in their professional life, it's worth exploring the candidate's feelings about each point instead of making assumptions. I suggest these goals of that exploration: Does the candidate effectively demonstrate their humility, while explaining what their professional objectives are, and making their case that none of these 5 points is a factor for them? So you've explored these questions and the candidate has convinced you they are not a factor? Why should you hire them? Because they can significantly benefit the company. - A candidate that demonstrates humility, competence, confidence, and collaborative abilities is a winner. - Their professional maturity will be contagious and will benefit their more junior colleagues. - Their hire will likely stimulate professional growth in their supervisor - as they now will learn how to manage a team-member with different strengths. - Since they will likely be older than the team average, they will increase diversity in your workplace - a goal of most organizations at this point. Diversity drives creativity and can enable new solutions to old problems. - The company will be the beneficiary of their skills and years of experience. - They are a bargain! *They have all the skills and experience required for the role, expressed a strong interest, and are perfectly happy with the title and compensation. Hire them!*
Resigning the Right Way
By William BrobstonYou will likely be resigning from a job at some point in your career. I'd like to share a few insights and tips to help you resign the right way. At first glance, it might seem unimportant -- you're leaving them anyway so why worry about this?
There are three big reasons this is important:
As you progress in your career, more and more of your important moves are going to come from your professional network instead of applications to jobs. It's vitally important that as you move from one company to another, you place significant value in the professional relationships you have -- because you're going to need them. They are going to help you get jobs in the future. Your previous employers are your references. You should be cultivating outstanding references through each step in your career. Your industry is smaller than you think! One of your potential future employers is probably going to be connected to someone at your former company. At some point, a prospective employer is going to reach out for an unofficial reference -- be sure they will always have good things to say about you.With that out of the way, let's talk about resigning the right way.
Whether you're leaving for a new role or for a personal reason, here are the basics: be positive, appreciative, respectful, flexible, and work hard to the end. Since your departure is unexpected, your soon-t0-be-former supervisor is going to be stressed and under pressure to resolve the problem (your resignation). So be kind, and work hard for your last few weeks. Here are a few specific tips:**The conversation** Try to meet with your supervisor in person or at the very least by phone. Try to avoid email and especially text. Prepare your thoughts beforehand and plan to keep it short. "I wanted to let you know I have decided to leave the company soon." Express your appreciation for the company, colleagues, and opportunities to learn and grow. Share your planned last day. Ask what you can focus on for the remainder of your time that will be most helpful to the company. Thank your supervisor for their support (even if they didn't give you any). **The written resignation** If you are meeting in person, bring a typed resignation letter with you and leave it with them at the end of your conversation. If by phone, plan to send it after your call. The letter should express everything noted above from the conversation. It doesn't need to be long. The key points: I am leaving effective xxx; thank you for having me; how can I help while still here; thank you again. Signed and dated. **Notice period** Provide at least 2 weeks notice unless completely unavoidable. More is always appreciated when possible. Note: in most states, the employer is within their rights to ask you to leave immediately, so be prepared for either outcome. **Afterwards** Be sure to work hard in your last few weeks! Try not to just breeze to the end without supporting your colleagues. **Caution** It can be tempting to air your dirty laundry once you have announced your upcoming departure -- don't do it. Even if you are leaving because its a miserable place to be, stay positive -- its almost over! Don't start complaining to your work friends, your supervisor, or to their supervisor. Remain professional and positive. **Handling questions** Where are you going? I don't feel comfortable announcing that yet, but I will share with you once I start! Why are you leaving? I was offered a great opportunity that feels like a good next step for me --OR-- I have decided to take some time to focus on my personal life. More details are not important or suggested. **Disclaimer** If you have been the victim of any type of harassment or discrimination, some of these guidelines may not be right for you. In these cases, especially if you are considering taking legal action, we suggest consulting an attorney.
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