Labor Shortage has Retailers Leaning on Technology
Published: April 24, 2023
Updated: July 26, 2024
“Now Hiring.” You see the signs just about everywhere you go. While the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that tens of thousands of people are entering the workforce, its numbers also show that the domestic labor force participation rate is 62.5 percent, a figure that doesn’t even match pre-pandemic levels. That means there are more than 2 million workers missing from the labor force compared to February 2020.
How can retailers handle the lack of workers?
Technology works
To compensate for the labor shortage, many retailers are relying more and more on technology for help. Properly used, retail technology can help stores run more efficiently and reduce the dependence on feet on the sales floor.
Ease of Use
There’s an old business axiom that within the first six months of work, approximately one-third of a store’s new hires will quit. So, setting new hires up for success with consistent processes and the right equipment reduces the chances of losing employees.
A point-of-sale system (POS) that is easy to learn, teach and use is essential. They also make it easier and more enjoyable for employees to do their jobs.
A system with a user-friendly interface makes it easy for anyone, even those apprehensive about using a computer, to become productive after minimal training.
Mark Jackson took over a small hardware store in Red Oak, Iowa, in 1983 which operated about as simply as possible.
“When we first took over, we hand-wrote our tickets and at the end of the day, we had to transfer it over to the ledger. That’s how we did it. Back then, Al Gore hadn’t invented the internet yet,” he says.
Since then, he expanded the store several times and added a Hallmark store and an Ashley furniture store. He also incorporated Paladin Point of Sale to help him run all his businesses.
“The system is so easy to use, I can bring somebody in here, and if they’ve even never seen a computer before, we can have them running the same day. Before Paladin we had a learning curve,” Mark says.
Efficient operations
The entire purpose of retail technology is to increase operational efficiency by reducing or eliminating the time-consuming, tedious tasks required to run a store.
Comprehensive point-of-sale and retail management systems help stores by providing suggested ordering, electronically submitting orders to one or more suppliers, and simplifying receiving, sales, bookkeeping, and more. They can help workers do more with less effort.
The automation has allowed us to keep our staff lean. We have six full-time and the rest are part-time, and our business runs very smoothly.
Ben Honeycutt is a Marine Corp vet and jet fighter mechanic who spent years working for Space Exploration Technologies Corp., better known as SpaceX, where he helped build hangars and launch pads for space flights. He purchased a hardware store in Orcutt, California, right at the start of the pandemic.
It was a slow start, but PaladinNsight™ Non-Performing Assets and Investment Review tools helped him clean out inventory that wasn’t selling and replace it with items that were. He utilizes Paladin Suggested Order™ reports to speed up ordering and keep a tight rein on his inventory. Overall, Ben says he is impressed with the way Paladin makes his job easier.
“I worked for SpaceX for six and a half years and my job was to find ways to save time and cut costs. That’s what I did. Paladin does this stuff for my store automatically,” Ben says.
Mobility matters
More and more retail transactions are being made away from the checkout counter. Mobile point-of-sale (mPOS) terminals gained a lot of traction during the pandemic. In-store customers were hesitant to stand in long checkout lines, so many stores adopted mobile POS units to bust lines and create a better shopping experience. Now, they are often used to enhance customer service by checking on stock and prices and completing sales in remote locations like lumberyards and garden centers.
For merchants, mobile point-of-sale systems and other mobile devices go way beyond just turning transactions. They can be used to check inventory, place orders, receive merchandise, and schedule and complete deliveries, even at delivery locations.
Mobility also helps retailers keep track of their stores when they’re not present. Mobile access to a store’s business network allows store owners and managers to work from home or wherever they can get an internet connection.
“Paladin Pilot is the best program I’ve ever used,” says Denise Page, who runs Lands End Marine Supply in Provincetown, Massachusetts with her husband Jeremy. She uses Paladin’s remote access tools to work from home. “It kind of started out being really helpful during COVID. Our kids are just old enough to get into the perfect kind of trouble. Paladin Pilot allowed me to work from the kitchen counter when the kids weren’t in school. Now, we use it all the time.”
Centralized business management
Point-of-sale systems today are much more than sales and inventory management tools. Many provide tools, or integrate with specialty software providers, to quickly calculate lumber and building materials orders, simplify e-commerce sales, daily accounting, rental department coordination, customer rewards programs, and workforce management. These tools make it easier to do more work with less effort.
Dennis Gamble, owner of Tri-County Hardware and Farm Supply in Paxton, Florida, leans on his Paladin system to simplify his sales and bookkeeping.
“This has been a labor-saver for me. The way the accountant wanted our paperwork, it was labor-intensive to put together. We put in sales, cash, credit, checks and accounts received by hand, and that better tally up to how much business we have done that day. Now, it’s all done at the front desk. It cut a lot of hours out of my week.”
Upshot
Technology can’t solve all the challenges of the labor shortage, but utilizing all the tools available in a modern POS system can help retailers run their stores more efficiently and effectively.
brian bullock
Author
