Sunday, November 23, 2008

The Big Three. About As Bad As The Lions

Michigan's economy is the worst it has been in a long time, and I feel like it just keeps getting worse. Michigan is so dependent on the Big Three and the auto industry, and with the struggles of Ford, Chrysler, and GM, our state is headed in the wrong direction. The Big Three has asked our federal government for $25 billion to bail them out of their financial problems, but even living in Michigan, I liked Congress' answer. Congress abandoned a vote on the bailout after a disastrous appearance in which the automakers were criticized for lavish corporate travel, as well as for having poor business plans and high labor costs that some members said would keep them from being competitive with Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda Motor Co. The announcement came just days after Ford CEO Alan Mulally, Chrysler LLC CEO Robert Nardelli and General Motors Corp. CEO Rick Wagoner traveled to Washington on separate corporate jets. Why are these guys still traveling around the world in corporate jets if their companies are having such financial problems?


I know that something needs to be done, and something has to change to stop the downfall of the Big Three. Maybe it needs to start at the top of the companies. Now I don't know all that much about economics, or everything that is going on with Michigan's economy, but I do know if I was running one of these companies I wouldn't still be traveling around in my lavish private jet! I think it's absolutely ridiculous, and if I was a part of Congress, I would have ripped the CEO's as well. The Big Three can't just expect to have our government give them billions and billions of dollars if they aren't willing to make some sacrifices.


"Ford Motor Co. said it may sell its fleet of five corporate jets after top executives of the three Detroit automakers were harshly criticized by members of Congress this week for their travel expenses."(The Associated Press). What I don't understand, and I guess I never will, is why it took Congress to call out the Big Three for them to realize they should probably cut back on travel expenses, including traveling in private jets. I really hope things turn around for Chrysler, Ford and Gm, but they need to start making sacrifices themselves. Instead of laying off employees, how about the CEO's start taking pay cuts and traveling first class instead of their own planes!

Monday, November 17, 2008

Meijer Trying To Speed Up Checkout Times


Recently all Meijer stores implemented a new program that monitors their cashiers speed at the checkout lanes. From the second the first item is scanned a timer starts and doesn't stop until a receipt is spit out. To assess efficiency, the store's computer takes into account everything from the kinds of merchandise being bagged to how much each customers is paying. Each week, cashiers get scored and if a cashier falls below 95% of the baseline score too many times, they are likely to be demoted to a lower paying job, or in extreme cases, even being fired. Because of the economy all retailers are trying to do anything they can to increase efficiency inside of their stores, but is this the best way to do it?


I am one of those people that wants to get in and out so this sounds like a great idea to me. On the other hand, there are many people that like to talk and have a friendly conversation with their cashier, so they would hate this new operation that Meijer has adopted. Interviews with cashiers at 16 Meijer stores suggest that its system has spurred many to hurry up and has dialed up stress levels along the way. One cashier, who is 22 years old, says he recently told a longtime customer that he couldn't chat with her anymore during checkout because he was being timed. Other cashiers say they avoid eye contact with shoppers and generally hurry along older customers who might take longer to unload carts and count money.


I understand what Meijer is trying to do, and what most retailers are trying to do. Speeding up customers through check lanes means that they can keep the number of checkout lanes open to a minimum, reducing the cost of labor, but I don't know if this is the right way. There are older customers that do take longer, or even some that do want to chit-chat, so why should the cashier or customer be penalized for this? Why not take an approach like Target, my current employer? When check lanes begin to get backed up, employees are taken from the salesfloor to come help cashier until the lines decrease. To me it makes more sense and if a customer is taking a while, or they want to have a short conversation, the rest of the team helps out. I think it will be interesting to see how this works out for Meijer in the long run.

Sunday, November 2, 2008

Last Minute Shoppers

I have worked in retail for over two years now and nothing bothers me more then last minute shoppers. I just don't understand how you can wait til the day before, or even the day of a big event to go out shopping. This Friday was Halloween, and all across America kids of all ages put on their costumes and went out to gather up as much candy as they could. I happened to be working at Target on Friday and let me tell you, I honestly don't understand what all these people are thinking. Why wait til Halloween to come get a costume or accessories. When I walked past the Halloween section it was like a mad house. People rummaging through the few costumes we have left looking for a certain outfit, then when they can't find what they are looking for they come complaining to you. It is so difficult to deal with these people because they don't understand why Target is sold out of what they are looking for. Probably because TODAY IS HALLOWEEN! It is so hard not to look at these people and say... where were you 3 weeks ago!? It's not like Halloween came out of no where, it's happens to be on October 31st every single year.

I understand that there are always going to be some people that wait until the last minute to go shopping. I really wish that when these people came into stores that they would have some understanding of why the stores are sold out of items. I mean if you think about it, it's ridiculous. With Christmas approaching fast, I am already prepared to deal with upset customers on Christmas Eve that want the "hottest" toy of the year for their kid. I mean the same thing is going to happen on Christmas Eve this year, next year, and the year after. I just wish that these people would have some understanding of why the store may not have the item is stock, rather then making a scene, and making a person like me, an normal employee, feel bad because they just had someone yell at them for 5 minutes about a toy for Christmas or a costume for Halloween. So here's a little hint for all you people planning on waiting until the last minute to do your shopping. Go to Target soon, we are already putting Christmas products out on the sales floor. You have two months, don't wait until December 24th.