The current skills shortage has hit the retail sector hardest. That’s because of a lack of available people, workers making career changes, a lack of correctly skilled people, salary expectations being too competitive and employees experiencing burnout or poor mental health due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Because the industry has traditionally been viewed as low-paid and low-skilled, in the past it has struggled to attract the best talent. The situation has only worsened as people have quit their jobs or moved into new sectors during the pandemic and it has continued with the cost of living crisis putting greater pressure on finances.
Supermarkets have led the way in cutting costs with Tesco announcing plans to reduce its headcount by 2,000 in a restructure. Asda has also unveiled a major shake-up, which will put 300 roles at risk and reduce the pay of more than 4,000 night workers.
Other businesses have gone the other way, offering more attractive wages and terms in a bid to attract new employees and retain existing ones. For example, Pret a Manger announced that its shop staff were to receive a third pay rise in a year.
Starbucks has also revealed plans to open 100 new stores across the UK in 2023. But with so many workers continuing to leave the sector in search of better pay and conditions, these positions still urgently need to be filled.
How can frontline workforce technology solve the problem?
One potential solution to the problem of skills shortage and retention is frontline workforce technology. Thanks to the use of digital tools, such as open-shift management and two-way communication module, businesses can improve employee engagement and ensure that information always gets to the right place when needed. When implemented across a whole organisation, it also enhances employee experience, making workers feel more valued, as well as improving loyalty through a greater sense of trust and autonomy. All of these factors can result in reduced employee churn, and bring increased productivity and cost value to a business.
How can technology change the employee experience?
Frontline workforce technology’s primary functions are to improve communication and instil a sense of autonomy.
Scheduling flexibility
Scheduling is one of the biggest causes of contention among frontline workers. Last-minute shift changes, an unpredictable schedule that depends on the business’ needs rather than remaining fixed or a shift pattern that clashes with personal responsibilities. All of these situations have the potential to cause major disruption for workers and when those problems aren’t addressed, it can quickly lead to discontent among workers.
But thanks to the use of open-shift management modules, employees can now be empowered to manage their own schedules. With a simple shift-swapping capability, workers can swap shifts between themselves, without needing to involve management. It also enables them to take on additional shifts when they need the extra money or when the business is struggling – potentially in different departments, on different sites or even with sister brands.
A sense of purpose and trust
When working within a large organisation, employees can often feel like a small, unvalued cog. But that can be overcome through effective employee communication management. To improve employee engagement and build a stronger sense of value and trust, you must connect with your team members. You can’t do that through staffroom memos or rushed team briefings. By using two-way communications technology instead, you can ensure that the relevant information reaches the right employees when they need it, enabling consistent messaging throughout the business. It also empowers employees to ask questions. As a result, if they don’t understand something or disagree with it, they can more easily share their views or ask for support. They can do this, not only with their direct line managers as the first point of contact, but also anyone else within the business they need to reach, across levels, both quickly and efficiently, without having to jump through multiple hoops. This has the added benefit of enabling managing directors to maintain their open door policy for all employees.
All of this builds trust within the rank and file, while helping each worker to better understand their role and increase their sense of value and purpose.
Personal development
Another area that strongly influences an employee’s sense of value is career development. More than 70% of frontline workers applied for career advancement opportunities last year, either within their current company or with another employer, according to research by McKinsey & Company. By integrating technology that enables ongoing development within a communications module, businesses stand to benefit as it affords seamless, self-managed upskilling and allows them to more easily pursue their own career path with the company’s backing and a tailored training programme.
Attrition in logistics is influenced by a host of factors, including pay, working conditions and benefits. But the overriding one is achieving a sense of value and happiness in the workplace. By making team members feel valued and in control, you’re more likely to win their loyalty.
David Rogers, Vice-President of Sales (EMEA) at WorkJam.
WorkJam was founded in 2014 to improve the lives of frontline workers. As the world’s leading digital frontline workplace, WorkJam combines communication, task management, flexible scheduling modules, learning and more – all on one app. It is the only complete and unified system designed to revolutionise the way HQs and their frontline work together, boosting efficiencies and productivity.
