We absolutely must improve our service and support. In the next few pages I will propose a plan to improve the overall ratings of our customer service in stores and online. Proposal to Improve Customer Service When we talk about customer service we all remember that one instance that was either good or bad, most of the time, it was the bad service that we remember. Our society today is fast-pace and most people, especially those in the retail field, do not have enough time to spend with each individual customer. Most companies have cut the sales force because of the unstable economy.
Several positions and many successes later, he found himself managing a plant that manufactured siding in Canada. Dick enjoyed getting out on the production floor and “making rounds” just to see what was going on and what was being said. He never relayed any information he saw or heard immediately but instead waited until the appropriate time to speak with the area managers about any concerns he had. The staff and managers were uneasy about his presence on the floor. One day during his rounds he realized there were some wasted resources, both in staff time and equipment.
Nevertheless, Goldman received unfavourable feedback from the company’s wholesaler who did not agree with the proposal. INDUSTRY BACKGROUND Wholesale and retail distribution in the U.S. carpet and rug industry has gone through a lot of instabilities since the 1980’s. There have been three major competitive trends that occurred within the industry. The first trend to occur happened in the mid 1980’s when the larger carpet and rug manufacturers began to eliminate the margins paid to wholesalers by bypassing them and selling directly to retailers. Similar manufacturers continued their use of wholesalers due to their lack of capital.
Six Sigma is a system that allows companies to isolate the exact number of errors in their production, operating under the assumption that if it is possible to isolate an error it is possible to correct it. By 2005, MLF had had success with this system and wanted to spread it to a new area. This new program was called “Six Sigma @ The Edge” and was designed to engage front line employees in the Six Sigma methodology. MLF’s Rivermede plant was part of the bakery line of MLF products. At this plant, products were baked to 90% and quick-frozen for shipping to customers, who would do the last 12-15 minutes of baking, mostly in in-store bakeries.
D’ Leon, Inc. Executive Summary In 2007, D’Leon underwent a massive expansion project in an effort to become a nationally known snack foods company. The company proceeded into this expansion to aggressively and is now in financial confusion and financial trouble. D’Leon doubled its capacity immediately as well as using an expensive advertising campaign in addition to adding the new sales office. Even with all these ambitious goals and decisions it is unlikely that D’Leon could achieve the necessary limits needed to reach the anticipated financial projections. The company is currently experiencing losses and this is causing shareholders and suppliers to become wary of D’Leon.
The retailing recession was what the company believed caused this decline in sales. A company’s ability to pay off a short-term loan relies heavily on the company’s sales and profit. If these are declining then there is no way the company would be able to pay off the loan at the original forecasted time. Along with the downturn in sales SureCut Shears did not accurately forecast its financial needs. The company’s proforma statements did not take into account any external factors such as a retail recession taking place.
He saw that more than half of Sainsbury’s 240 million pound (₤) annual marketing budget went to Nectar and said: “Nectar represents a significant investment for Sainsbury’s, and I can’t help but feel that if we put the investment into more staff in our stores we’d see a better return. I was part of the senior management team that turned around the ASDA supermarket chain before it was sold to Wal-Mart, and the changes we made at ASDA were all about price and value for money. ASDA didn’t have a loyalty program.” He continued: But I do understand the value of knowing more about what our customers are doing dayto-day and this is part of the value we get from Nectar. We use the Nectar data on our customers to help us determine which stock to carry in which stores. The Nectar data also allows us to do much better and more targeted marketing to our customers.
The case study discusses how and why the changes were made, how they were implemented, and the impact it had on the business future success. MCDONALD’S CASE STUDY Outline the talent management program that led to success for the company. In order to achieve success, McDonalds primarily decide to redesign their performance development system for all positions within the company. The current system is based on performance, in which all employees are measures falsely representing excellent or above average reviews while the company was becoming insolvent. McDonalds have introduced performance drivers to measure how they achieve their accomplishments.
Doing this allowed Home Depot to attract new customers because of the new, innovative products they now stocked. (Constantineau) With the addition of HR managers in each store, proper training and the evaluation process became a focal point. Pre-Nardelli, there were 157 employee performance evaluation forms in use. He cut that down to two, one for management and one for regular employees. Distinguishing itself from competitors is a constant battle, and the macroeconomic environment may shift against the corporation.
However, the SPH program put a lot of pressure on store managers and sales. In 2010, a large group of the R&R associates sued it for “working off the clock”. This lawsuit might cause reputation damage, and the settlement is up to $200 million. In 2008-2009 before the case, there was an economic recession. The whole luxury goods industry in the U.S. dropped over 14%, and R&R revenues declined 10%.