Retail
Following a three-week analysis of a sample of the
fifty stores, which make up this food retailer, an 8-month implementation
project was designed to address the business needs identified during
the initial phase.
The project outline is detailed below:
The management issues were complex and the solution required professional
planning, co-ordination and project management. In the following
section the content of the project and the approach to the different
areas are laid out.
The Project approach was highly participative, directly involving
client staff in active roles, at all levels. This had the following
benefits:
- Skills transfer to Client staff
- Ownership of and commitment to the changes in behaviour
- Ability to see improvements delivered where it counts –
on the shop floor
During the course of the project, three consultants, with executive
management and account executive support, managed the project. There
were five major Activity Streams, which were developed and managed:
- The Focus Programme
- Management Control Systems
- Supply Chain/ Stock Management
- Improving Employee Effectiveness 1: the Practical Leadership
Programme
- Improving Employee Effectiveness 2: Skills Matched to Jobs
The first Activity Stream dealt with the planning, direction, monitoring
and communication of the Project.
Being derived from the Analysis and based on the requirements of
successful implementation, this Stream was relatively fixed; i.e.
it was an essential precursor to Activity streams 2, 3, 4 &
5.
Activity Stream 1:
the Focus Programme
covered two project elements; “who” and “what”.
First, a Project Steering Group was established. This comprised
most of the Head Office management team, (Executive and Senior Managers)
plus some operational (store) management. Other additions were open
to consideration by Client senior management.
This Steering Group, whose role was to manage the Project, reviewed
the Project Plan, and scheduled review meetings. The Steering Group
also decided how to inform and involve staff throughout the Company;
the Project represented a significant investment and staff needed
to know why the investment was being made, and how it was progressing.
The Steering Group decided who was to be invited to constitute the
Project Teams, which lead Activity Streams 2 - 5.
The Focus Programme also incorporated two other key Activity Streams.
One was a Team Development
process for the Executive and Senior Managers. Two was the development
of a Communications Strategy
for the Company. The first provided the leadership and direction
required and the second ensured that systematic information management
dispelled the subversive elements of the grapevine.
Activity Stream 2:
The development and installation of Management
Control Systems. This Activity stream also needed
a Project Team to handle implementation, due to the in-depth and
comprehensive coverage of the system. While the company already
had a number of information collection systems and procedures, essential
to running the business, the degree of compliance required considerable
improvement. The Project Team here installed a range of Action Review
Meetings, in order to ensure that data was collected, reviewed and
acted upon, in a timely manner. This Activity Stream demanded a
lot of management commitment and discipline.
Activity Stream 3: The
Supply Chain/ Stock Management
area. It covered buying (from all sources), supply, warehousing
and stockholding at all locations (including temporary ones) and
stores. Improvements were achievable in all these areas to obtain
significant reductions in cost. The improved effectiveness of Stock
and Order would also reduce stock outs and therefore increase Sales.
Activity Stream 4:
The Practical Leadership Programme.
This comprised practical workshops for Head Office, Store Management
and Supervisory staff. The consultants lead the first workshops,
with joint Client Team members in support. Over the course of three
or four workshops, the Client trainers assumed responsibility for
leading the workshops, and overseeing the rollout to other parts
of the organisation. This process was repeated for all training
workshops, leaving Client staff with a core repertoire of development
courses.
Activity Stream 5: Skills
to Match Jobs. The Competencies
approach to training and development was used because it is based
on identifying real practicable examples of skills. This in turn
enables us to create valid role models; better job specifications
for recruitment; better selection methods. It also enabled the Client
to clarify accountabilities and personal task objectives. Priorities
here were open to the decision making of the Steering Group and
Executive management; for example, improvements in filling managerial
and supervisory vacancies would reduce staff turnover. Not only
would this reduce costs, but it also adds to management continuity,
which is vital for consolidation of business improvements. This
activity stream needed input from the Client Personnel Department
at an early stage.
- This Project Outline was subject to ongoing review and amendment
by the Client Executive.
- Most of the Project was directed at persistent weaknesses within
the organisation, so no major change of direction was anticipated.
- The timing and detailed arrangements of the implementation phases
were co-ordinated with the earlier work of the Client’s
stalled programme change initiatives, of which this proposal formed
the most recent component.
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