BOSTON, MA--(Marketwire - January 5, 2010) - The recession is turning the focus of retailers
away from manual store-level scheduling, task management, and time &
attendance processes and toward optimized workforce optimization to ensure
the most qualified employees are servicing customers in a timely and
effective manner. Eighty-two percent of top performing retail organizations
have a formal store-level workforce optimization program in place for more
than two years, and 72% of these same organizations consider themselves
very satisfied with their results, according to the Aberdeen Group report,
"
Retail Workforce Optimization: Establishing the
Customer-Centric Store-level Employee." The research from
Aberdeen Group, a Harte-Hanks Company
(
NYSE:
HHS), details the business benefits derived from upgraded workforce
performance and cost optimization.
According to Aberdeen data, as a means to increase the overall value of
their customers, top performing retailers are focusing on optimizing the
store-level customer / associate interaction. This is achieved by matching
associate skill level, interests, and availability with the needs of the
customer. Store-level managers are taking advantage of workforce
automation, which ensures the completion of this task quickly and
effectively, which also enables this manager to spend more time on the
store floor to more effectively service customers.
Given the challenging economy categorized by decreased consumer spend,
increased availability of alternative commerce alternatives, and decreased
amount of per employee spend internally, it seems logical that retail
organizations are turning towards optimizing existing workforce processes
such as scheduling, time & attendance, and task management versus relying
on haphazard, "gut feel" decision-making.
"In a challenging economy, customer expectations are through the roof. When
they walk into a store, they expect a knowledgeable, attentive associate to
help them make a purchase. They know they have other shopping alternatives
at their disposal. Thus, the right employee needs to be available to
complete the right tasks at the right place and time," says Greg Belkin,
chief author and e-Commerce analyst, Aberdeen.
Aberdeen has found that top performing retail organizations are overcoming
many of the traditional internal challenges previously associated with
workforce optimization. Just 22% of retail respondents cited issues such as
budget, buy-in from senior management, and lack of a clear corporate vision
as top organizational hurdles. Conversely, top organizational hurdles
centered around data management and technology proliferation around the
enterprise. This is not to say that these issues have completely dissipated
for retailers, but the fact that they are not top challenges suggests the
importance that customer-facing workforce optimization at the store-level
plays for traditional brick and mortar stores.
"The need for a highly efficient associate / consumer interaction at the
store-level in a difficult economy has given workforce management
optimization the internal push it needs to overcome traditional process
challenges," says Greg Belkin, co-author and research analyst, Aberdeen.
"Technological challenges remain a concern, but can be overcome by a close
examination of existing systems, and a good partnership with appropriate
solution partners."
A complimentary copy of this report is made available due in part by the
following underwriters: Infor, Kronos, and SAP. To obtain a complimentary
copy of the report, visit:
http://www.aberdeen.com/link/sponsor.asp?cid=6263.
For additional access to complimentary
Retail Research,
please visit
http://research.aberdeen.com/index.php/-retail
About Aberdeen Group, a Harte-Hanks Company
Aberdeen provides fact-based research and market intelligence that delivers
demonstrable results. Having queried more than 30,000 companies in the
past two years, Aberdeen is positioned to educate users to action: driving
market awareness, creating demand, enabling sales, and delivering
meaningful return-on-investment analysis. As the trusted advisor to the
global technology markets, corporations turn to Aberdeen for insights that
drive decisions.
As a Harte-Hanks Company, Aberdeen plays a key role of putting content in
context for the global direct and targeted marketing company. Aberdeen's
analytical and independent view of the "customer optimization" process of
Harte-Hanks (Information - Opportunity - Insight - Engagement -
Interaction) extends the client value and accentuates the strategic role
Harte-Hanks brings to the market. For additional information, visit
Aberdeen or call (617) 723-7890, or to
learn more about
Harte-Hanks,
call (800) 456-9748.
© 2010 Aberdeen Group, Inc., a Harte-Hanks Company
451 D Street, Suite 710
Boston, Massachusetts 02210-1928
Telephone: (617) 854-5200
Fax: (617) 723-7897
www.aberdeen.com
Contact Information: Media Contact:
Greg Belkin
Aberdeen Harte-Hanks
(617) 854-5228
greg.belkin@aberdeen.com