Communication is key
Aside from the ear-splitting noise of the Formula 1 track, the other sound you’ll hear is constant communication between all the team involved. The driver has a direct line to their race engineer, to allow for a back-and-forth of both race and car insight. This is essential so that the driver is clear on all the small details that can have an impact on the race outcomes.
But what you’ll also see in the background is a pit full of people staring at TV screens, connected to headsets and feeding a constant stream of data to the pit crew so that they know exactly what’s needed when the car comes into the pit. That 20 strong pit crew only has 2.5 seconds to get it right, so an error in communication could cost valuable seconds and the race result.
It can be easy to overlook just how much information you need to relay to your retail teams, but transparency and open communication channels can have a huge impact on your performance. Poor communication is costly and potentially damaging to your retail reputation.
At Worldpack, we put an enormous focus on internal communications to ensure our customers get Service with Guts. Every account has access to a team of retail and GNFR specialists working on the customer’s behalf. We make it a point to understand future business aims and filter that back to the team so we can ensure we are always on the look-out for products and solutions that will help customers save costs and be more efficient.
Define your roles
Without doubt, one of Formula 1’s resounding successes is that the team knows exactly what their role is and what is expected of them. Without this, the pit team would be a mess and things would spiral out of control. The Formula 1 team spins around each other like a picture-perfect carousel, in sync and in no doubt about the importance of their role within the bigger picture.
Could the same be true of your retail team?
Are your retail teams clear on their roles and what is expected of them? And what happens when one person isn’t delivering against that?
The recent State of the Global Workplace: 2024 Report study by Gallup shows that global employee engagement stagnated in 2023, and overall employee wellbeing took a downturn. This trend means that most employees worldwide are still facing challenges both at work and in their personal lives, leading to direct impacts on organisational productivity. And the report estimates that low employee engagement costs the global economy US$8.9 trillion, or 9% of global GDP.
Jon Clifton, CEO at Gallup says: “In this year’s report, 41% of employees report experiencing ‘a lot of stress’. Yet stress varies significantly depending on how organisations are run. Those who work in companies with bad management practices are nearly 60% more likely to be stressed than people working in environments with good management practices.
Getting clear on roles and having engaged staff, according to Gallup, is essential to improving this. In a 2024 meta-analysis, the largest study of its kind that includes data from more than 183,000 business units across 53 industries and 90 countries, Gallup has found that high-engagement business units are likely to see significantly higher employee wellbeing — as well as higher productivity, profitability and sales than low-engagement teams.
Working towards a common goal
All that teamwork comes down to one thing in Formula 1. The success of the driver. And while it might be the driver that takes all the credit, that common goal keeps the whole team moving in a synchronised direction towards a clear goal.
From the pit team and engineers to the marketing and promotional departments, everything points towards driver success and underpins the aim of the entire team.
And in retail, our connected network of stores (online or bricks and mortar), warehouses, marketing, procurement, HR and so on – should also all be leading to the same goal.
If you’re missing a clear goal, or you have one but it’s not being communicated, it’s essential to reset and place it at the heart of all your teams. Keeping everyone moving to the same purpose, whether it’s sustainability, customer satisfaction or growth in key product lines is crucial. This will ensure that your teams are clear on their purpose, be engaged and can do their roles with meaning.
And let us know if we can help more too. Our Service with Guts ethos means we want to be front and centre as part of your team helping you win in the fast-paced retail race.
We’re here to help you create a winning retail team. From sustainably sourced products to strategy-led procurement, speak to our team on +31 (0) 88 494 20 80 or email us at online@worldpack.eu.
