How To Overcome the Challenges In Retail Recruiting

The retail industry has completely changed due to the popularity of online shopping. Nowadays, retail businesses need to offer incredible customer service in their brick-and-mortar stores to meet the expectations of modern customers.

The problem?

Not all employees are right for the job, and with the labor shortage hitting almost every industry, finding a valuable worker can be close to impossible. There are ways to overcome these challenges, though, mainly through making slow and deliberate improvements to your retail recruitment strategy.

Since we are recruitment retail consulting experts, we can show you how.

Let’s have a crack at it.

Biggest Challenges In Retail Recruitment

Each industry has its own set of recruitment troubles, and you can’t change that. What you can do is prepare yourself for these setbacks, so once they do start affecting your organization, you can minimize the damage and come out on top.

Here are the key challenges in hiring:

1. Finding tech-savvy talent

Twenty years ago, retail workers could get by without knowing how to use technology. But just like the recruitment process relies more and more on technology, so do the regular retail job duties. This means store managers and other workers need to possess a higher level of technical skill, as well as adaptability and the ability to learn new skills quickly.

For instance, since new customers may want to order something to your store (the buy online, pick up in-store model), the workers need to facilitate that. Retail employees also must be able to use different tools such as ordering systems and multichannel inventory management software if they are to offer the highest level of customer service.

2. High employee turnover

For many, retail work is just a stop on the way to better things. However, this can have a drastic impact on both the workflow in your retail business and the productivity of your other employees. 

As a consequence, hiring managers are under a whole lot of pressure to minimize employee turnover at a time when finding employees is a significant feat.

3. Finding the right fit

We work in recruitment retail consulting and we know exactly how hard it is to find an employee that can provide value to a retail business. In fact, it’s such a struggle that many just settle for good enough. 

It should only be a temporary solution. When recruiting and looking through resumes, look for these qualities to find the best possible individual:

• Verbal communication skills
• Ability to learn quickly
• Kind attitude
• Ability to work in a team
• Detail-oriented
• Cash and credit management skills

How To Overcome These Challenges

With following retail consulting hiring strategies, you’ll be able to optimize your entire recruitment process. Try some of these tricks:

1. Set clear hiring goals

The adage “planning is half the battle” also applies to hiring. Having clear goals and knowing exactly what you want to achieve will help you streamline your hiring efforts. For example, you may want to improve your candidate experience, hire a set number of new employees, or simply have a clear outline of what you’re looking for from a candidate.

By establishing a clear plan of action, your entire team can work more cohesively, leading to the best outcome for everyone involved.

2. Establish which skills are non-negotiable

As we discussed, some skills are an absolute must in retail. Once you’re aware of the ones you’re looking for, you need to stick to your decision. That way, you can save time both for your team and the candidate who isn’t a good fit.

Furthermore, be clear on the skills you can provide training for without putting a strain on the productivity of your other employees. In doing so, you can hire a team member who has potential but is currently more like a diamond in the rough, creating a valuable human resource in the process.

3. Use the right channels

Since each position requires a different skillset, experience, and personality type, you shouldn’t source candidates from the same pool. The type of position should dictate which channels you focus on in your search. 

For instance, there’s no need to browse through a specialized site if you’re looking to fill a salesperson role quickly - a local job site will do. But if you’re hiring a business manager, the best place to start your search is LinkedIn.

4. Write clear job postings

For a successful hiring process, you need to be honest in your job postings. A candidate should be aware of your expectations from the get-go so they can align their application with what you’re looking for. 

This means describing the position clearly, mentioning the necessary experience and skills, and equally important, listing the responsibilities.

You’ll be more likely to attract candidates who have higher chances of excelling in the position you’re looking to fill.

5. Overhaul your interview process

To attract the best candidates, you need to change your mindset regarding interviews. An interview shouldn’t just benefit you and show you what a candidate can offer, the potential employee also needs to get something out of it. 

Typically, that something is information. You should provide your candidate with everything they need to know about your company and the associated role. 

Keep in mind that the interview should be relevant to the position and you should allow the candidate to interview you too so that you can gauge what their job expectations are. 

6. Provide a career path

The reason why employee retention is a major challenge for retail businesses is the perception that retail jobs are only a short-term option and not a full-fledged career. Thus, to keep more employees on board, you need to demonstrate to your workforce that they have a clear progression path in the organization.

The easiest way to do so is to introduce a vertical business model, where highly-skilled employees have a chance to advance in your company. 

Solve Staffing Problems Permanently

Filling your ranks in the retail industry can be downright agonizing, but it’s not impossible. With some of these strategies, you can make a positive impact right away and increase the chances of putting together a team that will exceed in customer service.

Yet, you may not have the resources to successfully do so.

If that’s the case, the best way to meet your staffing needs is to leverage retail consulting. Here at Griffin Global, we specialize in retail consulting and connecting companies in multiple industries to highly-qualified employees.

Considering how much time, effort, and money it takes to be successful in recruiting, outsourcing this process to someone who can completely eliminate all your staffing challenges is worth it.

The best thing is, we have plenty of experience in retail consulting, and will find that perfect employee for you with 100% certainty - all while you and your team focus on creating revenue. 

Get in touch with us by filling out our contact form or calling (855) 747-4334 and never worry  about recruiting again.