I Wonder How THAT Will Play Out?

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I was supposed to work from 8 until 3 yesterday.   I didn't finish my order until 3:30.  Just before three the co manager called me and asked how much longer it would take.  I'm never sure how to answer that question.   So she asked me to hurry.  I said, "If you say to, I can turn my book in right now."    "No, I want you to finish,  We're going to have a stock test this week. I just want you to hurry. We have to be able to transmit today."


Duh.   Like I don't know we have to transmit today.
And I also know that I have the biggest orderable department in the store.     But I also know how long CORPORATE has determined it takes to do my order when I do it like CORPORATE says do it--over six hours, just for ordering.   That's not counting time putting up ad signs, going to the front to find out what cashiers need when they call me up there, helping customers, or anything else that takes me AWAY FROM just ORDERING.  


When I turned in my book, I asked the co-manager:  "You did remember that the ad for my department had over 4000 items on sale last week, didn't you?"  


Let me say that I do understand where she is coming from in wanting the books in earlier on Monday.   Almost everyone used to turn in their book on Monday afternoon, whether they had a small department or a larger one.  That meant the book keeper was sometimes here until six o'clock on Monday keying in books.  It was a long, exhausting day for her.   

BUT, she can only start keying in books on Monday after she does all the other stuff that is being required of her by our District Manager to do on Monday mornings now because he likes all kinds of reports on this that and the other to be sent him then.   And then she has to count out the drawers from the previous Saturday and get the money ready for a Brinks pick up.  

Normally it is late morning on Mondays before she gets ready to start keying in books anyway.   So, if a book was not turned in on Saturday, it is not going to be keyed in early because of those things.  


Giving this new co-manager credit where credit is due, she has kept up the reminding process that orders need to be done on Friday and Saturday and books turned in then.  But, again, they can only be keyed in after the money is done so only if a book is turned in on Friday or early on Saturday would she be able to do it.


It took me all of Thursday to finish getting my freight out from last week.  I was off on Friday.  I came in at three on Saturday.   Someone who was to help close had called in so we were short on the floor.   We were very busy and people were trashing the store like crazy, so I actually ended up doing nothing but picking up after people and recovering pretty much the whole evening.  And, oh, we have to pull ad signs.  Which I had a million of because of the huge ad.


Anyway, to get back to the question of my title.   I wonder how THAT will play out?


I have no idea how big my order is going to be when it comes in on Wednesday.  I know that it is going to be very important that I get it out because we will probably have that stock test on Thursday afternoon.   Everything is RUSH RUSH RUSH.


Today I have a bunch of "odds and ends" I have to catch up on.  Repairing merchandise.  Doing deletes.   And I have been given a deadline for accomplishing a task that our District Manager told the managers he wanted done when they went to their last meeting.   

All the deleted scrap paper that has been packaged up  for resale in bulk (25 pieces) is to be broken down into single sheets. (This is directed to ALL scrapbooking departments in all stores.)  That will be a nuisance, because when I packaged it, I went through and picked out two of each design.   That means the paper will be all mixed up.   BUT, believe me, he'll be looking for the implementation of what he asked for and I have been given a deadline of October 26 to get it done by.


I want to add at the end of this post, so there will be no wondering about it, that I'm happy with our new management team.   The new manager is really a manager-in-training.  He (evidently) was a very good co-manager in the store he came from, which was a much higher volume store than ours is, but the District Manager he had did not have the same priorities and he's having to learn to do things differently than they did.  Besides that I don't think he was given much Manager training. 

I think....I'm not positive... that generally co-managers are given the responsibility of taking care of the seasonal corner of the store.  That is a HUGE RESPONSIBILITY.  And it is the area that is MOST critiqued when we get visitors from higher up-- not just how it's handled on the floor, but also how it's organized in the stock room.


On an aside note, the answer to that question "everyone" asks (Do you have more of this in the back?) is answered this way:  Our stockroom is for seasonal merchandise.   Especially is this true when Fall, Halloween, and Christmas stuff starts coming in-- in April and May and from then on.   The stockroom is chock full of all that stuff, chock full and overflowing. 


When a regional or district manager walks into our stockroom, they absolutely "have a fit" if it is getting piled up. (If someone even higher walks in and it's not right, it's even worse on the manager.)  They want it organized in such a way that nothing is overlooked and pushed to the back because it got mixed in with something else.  


Christmas comes in in two phases.  But Phase two comes in before all of phase one is out of the stock room.  If phase two hides phase one, then some of that phase one stuff is not found until phase two goes out.  It's generally not as salable  at that time.   I think they have it figured that people shop for decorating purposes and crafting first and later they shop for gifts and gift wrapping.   So all the items to decorate or make stuff is in the first phase.  Gift wrap, gift boxes, tags, and other stuff that you'd want later come in the second phase.


So, a co-manager takes care of all that and it is a HUGE job.   But it does NOT get them involved in learning all the things managers have to do that are not just routine like approving returns or closing the store at night or handling difficult customers. 


Managers have to manager all aspects of the run of the store.   ALL.   And there's a lot of stuff they have to know how to deal with.  


Our new manager just did not have training in all these areas.   The co we were given had been running a store even before she became a co.   (She's very good.)   So, pretty much, she's training our manager in how to make it in this district.  

One thing that makes all of that go smoothly is--even though he is a tough guy who doesn't mind dealing with issues and can be very intimidating-- he is totally willing to learn from her.  He does not have a know-it-all attitude or I'm-in-charge here way of operating.   He IS in charge.   He is the one that the axe falls on. (And SHE always handles herself in such a way that you know she's aware of that.)  But he is very much willing to learn the ropes from our co.  And she is teaching him as we go.   But, because of his lack of experience in this area, and her expertise, we pretty much by-pass him and go to her to find out what's going on and how things should be and  information on what is required.   And, she likes this part, if someone needs reprimanded, he doesn't mind taking care of that part.   He's good at that.


He's a nice guy but he has used his willingness to chop a little hastily and he does make DEMANDS sometimes that are not possible to fulfill as easily as he makes them   Knowing that he would not mind chopping anyone off, makes all of the stuff they are pushing us to do so quickly a little more stressful--especially since we know that it not only has to be done quickly but also PERFECTLY.  

You know that at anytime you could be the next one he decides to chop off.   As a matter of fact, one of the conversations held regularly in the breakroom now is who is most likely to be the next one to go.  Everyone of us know that we could be next.   It makes for a very stressful work environment.  And it has caused me to reassess  my former attitude of I'll-work-here-until-I'm-84-like-Miss-Irene did.  Now, I just hope I'll make it until it's time for me to retire and I hope that they will consider keeping me on as a part timer then.   It's all hope...hope..hope.  No certainty.