There seems like the communication between the home office and store is delayed because of the light years in distance between them.
I watched as the local supermarket chain remodeled its stores. Had a grand reopening. Then changed aisles back the way they were. The store associates shaking their heads saying, we knew they were making mistakes but no one would listen.
The home office on the other hand make decisions based on the analytics. In theory what changes they made make sense. But these people don't have any practical experience. They cut costs by making cookie cutter decisions. They don't realize people's buying habits are very local things. You don't sell Matzo ball soup in Chinatown!
Local store employees know what their customers want, because they interact with them every day. Yet, no one asks them. The home office employees spends less than 24 hours a year working in a store. Yet, they think they know best.
In the end they realize sales dropped because categories were removed. Things the employees were as saying all along. Now they have to hope they didn't lose any customers.
All this could of been avoided had the boss come to Earth in peace, used a universal translator when talking to the store associates. Instead they spent extra time and money undoing mistakes they made.
The store employees are now running around preparing the store for the grand reopening. Not to impress the customers. But, worried because the "BIG BOSS" was coming!
I know the boss has no idea what the employees are thinking. Just like I know the employees have know idea what management is thinking. Why, because I've talked to them both, I've worked both for both sides.
Why is it they can't talk to each other? The employees are scared of upper management. Some are known to hide when they come to the store. They see the big boss tour the store usually ignoring everyone around them.
I love watching undercover boss. I like most when the boss realizes he doesn't really know what's going on in his business. 😟
Somewhere in the trip from Jupiter to Earth the Boss forgot what it was like work in a Retail store. Or worse, they never did!
I remember 2 experiences while starting my career in retail management. In first job a Regional Vice-president who knew I was afraid of him told me, "You don't have to like everyone you work for." How true, but, was this the right thing to say to me?
The second, just after and not unsurprisingly, that company went out of business. In my very next job a store manager told me to "Remember that the boss isn't special, He puts his pants on one leg at a time like the rest of us. Don't be afraid to talk to him. "
In that company I got my first promotion to store manager! And that company through mergers is now one of the largest retail drugstore chains in the Nation.