Leading successfully during major uncertainty

Trust in leadership is the key to surviving and thriving in periods of major uncertainty.

Retailers that continue to find their way through 2020, amid the uncertainty and turmoil of the COVID-19 pandemic have done so, in large part, due to strong leadership. Some retail commodities like luggage and travel accessories or swimwear may have greater challenges simply due a lack of consumer demand. Retailers in others have survived - and in some cases, thrived - by changing product mixes, improving delivery channels and embedding themselves more deeply into their communities.

Attracting top retail talent in remote locations

Rethinking the route to success: Is it time to take the road less travelled?

Recruiting for retail opportunities can be challenging at the best of times.

It can be doubly so for retailers looking to hire in remote areas where the talent pool is smaller or the aim is to attract people in larger cities to relocate. It is possible to compete against big cities like Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver, the recruiting process just needs to be more locally driven.

Looking for a relevant Retail EVP (Employee Value Proposition)

In the new normal, changing to attract talent can be as important as changing to attract customers

Workplace challenges have existed since the beginning of the first companies. These range from life-altering automation to more common ones like managing people around change. And 2020 has certainly seen unique circumstances even long-established names like Canadian Tire or Sobeys have never experienced.

Rebuilding your Retail Analytics for the New Normal

“Everything’s changed!” takes on a whole new meaning when it comes to analytics

Predictive models, forecasts, and dashboards are all based on an environment that no longer exists. Shopping habits and even customer communities have changed. Data volumes shrunk as store traffic became almost non-existent. Even the data collected today is suspect as a basis for predicting what could be a very different future.

Fostering Mental Health in the Retail Industry

How do you make the move – and why?

In this time of great uncertainty, as many struggle to maintain and retain their footing career-wise it’s important to check in with one another and initiate a conversation around mental health. Research has shown that a proactive approach to mental health awareness within the workplace is generally more effective than a reactive one. Initiating an open dialogue within the workplace about this often stigmatized topic can lead to more efficient remedial care and ultimately, prevent the problems from arising.

Cultivating Customer Loyalty in an Evolving World

The question is, how do you build that loyalty and promote its longevity in your relationship with your customers?

The past few months have been a learning experience for everyone in the retail sector. We’ve all faced unprecedented challenges that we’re still navigating through. However, it’s important to also recognize what we’ve gained from this experience. Notably, we have been reminded of the intrinsic value of customer loyalty and having a positive business/consumer relationship.

Safeguarding Against Hiring Bias

The question is, how do you guard against the biases that get in the way?

The JRoss team have been listening to and learning about the issues currently facing our society. Our goal in this email is to talk about bias and prejudice within the hiring process so we can understand its impact and learn how to minimize or eliminate it. In this issue of our biweekly email we will touch briefly on how to check for it and how to guard against it during the recruitment journey.