by Michael Sansolo
There’s an old adage that says if you want something done, give it to a busy person. The foundation of that maxim is that busy people are the ones best able to multitask and produce even more results.
Now, it appears, retail managers (who usually are way, way beyond being simply busy) have yet another job – to educate an increasingly uneducated workforce.
A recent article in the New York Times detailed a scary problem impacting virtually every sector the country, from schools to the workplace. The problem is simply that today’s recent high school graduates seem far less prepared than ever for many basic tasks.
The article makes clear that a critical area is lack of skill in mathematics, a subject that maybe all of us whined about in school at some point, but one that we all use on a regular basis. (My sister taught middle school math for 30-plus years, and to be honest, this entire subject is painful to me.)
The reason why this matters to the retail managers so much is pretty simple: for many people the first job they ever have is in retail so it may be the first time in life they get an understanding of how much they need math. And we aren’t talking calculus, but basic skills that might come into play throughout their work duties.
Now granted, some elements of math aren’t as critical as in the not too distant past. Back in the 1970s, when I last worked as a cashier, a critical part of my job was knowing how to properly take money and return change, something computerized checkout machines have long since made far simpler. Likewise, the fact that nearly everyone is now carrying a calculator in their phone also makes lots of math simpler.
But it doesn’t handle everything. As Tom Furphy said here on MNB in a recent Innovation Conversation with KC, even AI doesn’t solve every problem. Users need to think. Likewise, one commentator in the Times article said: “A.I. can do the first draft of the memo or solve the math equation. It is the worker who needs to understand what they are reading, be able to ensure it is accurate and decide what to do next.”
Retail managers are already confronting this problem. As if they needed another headache.
But that problem might also provide opportunity. As recruiting is always a challenge, perhaps companies can start advertising the benefits of a retail job as an extension of schooling and a place to acquire and hone skills important throughout life and careers. Just maybe that will make retail jobs more appealing especially to parents worried about their kids’ lack of skills.
It also will reinforce the importance of mentoring on the job and the necessity to encourage older workers to impart knowledge and skills to their younger counterparts. Countless studies have shown how this can have benefits for both the protégé and the mentor.
Either way, the reality is that another challenge is being thrown the way of an industry and managers already awash in them. But a with so much, it’s likely the companies that embrace this challenge will find new ways to gain competitive advantage. That seems as simple as 1+1.
Or maybe, done right, 1+1 can equal 5.
Michael Sansolo can be reached via email at [email protected].
His book, “THE BIG PICTURE: Essential Business Lessons From The Movies,” co-authored with Kevin Coupe, is available here.
And, his book “Business Rules!” is available from Amazon here.
Content Guy’s Note: Michael just celebrated a big – BIG – birthday, and Mrs. Content Guy and I were thrilled to be invited to a surprise party for him over the weekend. (I’m not going to tell you how old he is, except to say that it ends with a “0” and begins with a number shared by Ed Kranepool, Jose Reyes, and Brett Baty on their New York Mets uniforms.
Happy Birthday, Michael! And thanks for making MNB not just more informative for our community, but a tons more fun for me.
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