ATLANTA – Positive numbers are a vital part of any successful business, but those numbers are often linked to something difficult to measure—the culture within a business. However, a recent NACS/Coca-Cola Retailing Research Council (NACS/CCRRC) report does measure the influence of a positive
atmosphere on a c-store’s success.
“The research confirms what we have always believed Highly engaged employees make all the difference in your company’s success—great customer service, employee retention and great sales,” Stephanie Doliveira, vice president of human resources at Sheetz Inc., said in discussing the report, which will be discussed in-depth tomorrow during the education session, “Power Up Your People: Keys to Building a Winning Culture.”
The NACS/CCRRC report, “People Power for C-Stores,” was released in July based on a survey of more than 20,000 c-store managers and employees from 11 companies. The report identifies how employee engagement and business outcomes are related in the convenience industry, which factors are most important in influencing employee engagement, and the opportunities opened up by high employee engagement.
The study found that:
- High employee engagement leads to better customer service and loyalty
- Highly engaged employees are brand ambassadors who encourage friends and family to shop at their place of employment
- Companies with high engagement provide faster service
- High engagement is correlated to higher profit and lower turnover
Companies can help drive higher employee engagement by being concerned about their employees’ well-being, setting clear expectations, giving employees opportunities to use their personal strengths and making employees feel safe at work.
“A chunk of this is actually about supervisors listening,” said Michael Sansolo, research director for the NACS/CCRRC and a session speaker. “Middle managers found there were tremendous gains to be made by simply listening to what folks have to say and by engaging them better in conversation.
“A lot of us, as supervisors, tell people what to do. We don’t really talk and listen, and have normal conversations.”
The study also found that a corporate culture did not carry over to all stores within a chain despite efforts to be consistent, said speaker Jeff Jokerst, vice president of client services for Service Management Group.
“A challenge that exists in the c-store industry and most businesses in general is the fact that there is a great degree of variance within engagement,” Jokerst said. “Imagine going into one location and you see highly engaged employees, then you go into another company location and you experience a completely
different culture. Understanding how to minimize these mini-cultures allows organizations to create more consistent customer experiences and overall business performance.”
Convenience retailers can use education materials developed by the NACS Coca-Cola Retailing Research Council to create a culture of greater employee engagement. The materials can be accessed at nacsonline.com under the “Research” tab.
“The No. 1 driver of employee engagement was that management cares about its employees’ well-being,” said Doliveira. “The No. 1 impediment to engagement was not feeling safe at work; make sure your employees feel safe by improving lighting levels and keeping a good number of people on duty. You should also find ways to communicate with store teams.”
Other key factors to improve engagement include having more full-time employees and encouraging employees to make more decisions about work so they develop a sense of ownership.
“The study showed that it is a win for employees when organizations are maximizing the impact they get to have on customers and are demonstrating an impact on their co-workers,” Jokerst said. “That creates passion among employees to serve the organization in the most powerful way possible. Engagement is something that is a win-win for companies and employees.”
For more information and to download the complete report and access its videos, go to ccrrc.org/2016/06/22/power-people.