Page 251 - DMGT553_RETAIL_STORE_MANAGEMENT

Retail Store Management

Notes First of all, students who are looking to build their career in retail sector should know the
various designations offered in retail sectors. Accordingly students should also think about
skills and knowledge required for different designation. Retail is in itself a big business and
asks for many supporting services also. All Management students can build career in retail
sector as they have knowledge and skills to manage business. Students can also develop skills
and gathered knowledge to manage specialize functions of retailing process such as inventory
management, retail advertisement, retail brand management, visual merchandiser.
Table 14.1 gives an idea about some of the designations of retailing and required knowledge
and skill base. Apart from skills set and knowledge base, one should also have right aptitude
and attitude to be successful in retailing. One must have the ability to mould self as per the retail
sector’s requirements.
Students should also be aware of various big players in retailing, future trend of retailing, major
recruiters in retailing, placement consultant dealing specifically in retailing, major retail institutes,
major government and private authority in retailing, etc.

14.2.3 Training and Development in Retail

One of the major challenges faced by Indian retail sector is difficulty in getting right, skillful and
knowledgeable employees for different function of retailing. There are number of studies found
in the area of retailing that identify skill and knowledge gap in retailing. Following paragraphs
presents findings of some of the studies that help to understand required skill and knowledge
base for retailing.

In a study spanning across five countries in UK collecting responses of 52 retailers, Hart et al.
(2007) found that two of the most fundamental skill gaps identified by employers were young
people’s “attitude gap” and the “management skill” gap. So students who pursue retail sector as
career option should take care of these two aspects.

Possibly the most appropriate focus for this area of analysis is provided by Katz and Kahn (1978)
who suggest that organization effectiveness can be expressed in Goal achievement, Increased
resourcefulness, Customer satisfaction, Internal Process improvements. Jacqui Gush, (1996) in
his study emphasized that Employers believe that technical skills can be learned on the job, they
have a limited “shelf-life” and are company specific, therefore little emphasis was placed on
these skills, and beyond the acquisition of degree, employers are primarily interested in personal
traits which demonstrate potential management competence.

Graduates in store-based positions seek greater autonomy and decision making which, within
retailing, is more often associated with head-office positions, as they come to realize that their
intellectual abilities and subject knowledge are being under-utilized. When asked about their
expectations from the job graduates mentioned following aspects – good training and structured
development within a company with a good name and reputation; career prospects and “rapid”
opportunities for advancement; interesting job offering challenge, responsibility and variety
within the area sought. The study used Parasuraman gap analysis model of service quality.

Notes Several studies have reported on the benefits of training. Organizations that are
committed to employee training realize the rewards of increased skill-sets, motivation,
higher productivity and knowledge transfer of their employees. In particular, job-related
Contd....

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