Blog #21 Exit Interview 

Content:

(1) What is your essential question, and what are your answers?  What is your best answer and why?

My EQ: What is the most effective way to manage a store during the busiest hours of the day? 

1. Answer 1: By practicing smart and efficient prioritization
2. Answer 2: Increasing employee engagement and job conditions within the workplace
3. Answer 3: Have a strong presence and show that you're in control towards both employees and customers alike.

With employee turnover higher than it has ever been nationwide, increasing employee engagement and job conditions within the workplace is unremittingly the best answer. Employees are the lifeblood of the store. Without dedicated and capable employees, the manager would have nothing to work with. Increasing employee engagement is essential because employees become more productive and are less likely to leave during the duration of their jobs or careers. Having the lowest employee turnover ensures that the workforce can grow in both job ability and experience.

(2) What process did you take to arrive at this answer?

Common sense. With all honesty, after the duration of my mentorship, I found that within a department store environment, the work output expected from each employee on a daily basis is more than anticipated. There are a lot of tasks and missions put upon the backs of the workforce, and in anyway to ease the work experience of that work force is very helpful. At my mentorship, the ReStore, all volunteers, staff, and management are encourage to both ask and lend assistance wherever and whenever needed. When I, as a volunteer, work in that type of environment, I tend to built up strong ties with the staff, management, and other volunteers. It feels rewarding and it's what keeps me going back to lend my time and support. Work is only excruciating when the job isn't meaningful or you aren't getting anything out of it in return. I see my ReStore as a place of learning and a good environment to learn about customer service skills, prioritization, and ethics of great teamwork. 

(3) What problems did you face?  How did you resolve them?

Biggest problem would be my mentor, Andrew Johnson leaving. I really grew attached to both his managerial style and the way he's taught me various skills over the past couple of years. However, this problem was a morale issue, not a technical issue. The biggest technical problem I could see would be thinking of an activity and sifting through the many possible answers for my EQ. There are MANY sentences and tips that could answer the my essential question. Management of anything tends to be very situational depending on what is being managed. Stores are a tricky concept. I've had the pleasure of working at the ReStore and volunteering to do some tasks at a grocery store. My answers tended to cover the more leadership and store presence aspect, but I felt those were the most important. Everything within management can be subjective, depending on who's giving the orders and what the status of the situation is.

(4) What are the two most significant sources you used to answer your essential question and why?

Learning by reading solely books has never worked out for me. The most effective way I learn is through experience. I've had over a year and a half of experience through the ReStore and I've learned a ton of info on the following elements of management: customer service, human resources, logistics, teamwork and leadership, department organization, and more. However, none of these things would have been possible if they weren't facilitated by my two mentors, Andrew Johnson and Sara Timberlake. Both of them have gone through leaps and bounds to teach me. Without the ReStore, the organization of Habitat for Humanity, and they, I wouldn't have had the slightly chance of knowing what I do now. My two mentors were very hands on with me and they both gave me invaluable feedback whenever I performed an important task for them, whether it would be right or wrong. They would go through and critique me, telling me ways how I could do better the next time I perform that activity. Those two were both very awesome to my learning experience.

Now, the second source, which is a book, is actually tied between four books, which are listed below. 

1. Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-free Productivity by David Allen
2. The Virgin Way by Richard Branson
3. Managing People's Performance in a Nutshell: Fast-Track to Success by David Ross
4. The Complete Idiot's Guide to Leadership Fast-Track by Susan Caba

All of these books have taught me valuable concepts relating to leadership, team management, decision making, professional speaking language, and manager presence. The best source, however, would have to be Managing People's Performance in a Nutshell: Fast-Track to Success by David Ross. This book has taught me a lot about employee coaching and performance management, which correlates with my best answer. The author is a coaching expert and the founder of a leadership workshop group known as "Performance Unlimited." The way the author's facts, arguments, and opinions are presented within the book are backed up by real life experiences, examples, and science.