A Career in Retail Offers Endless Possibilities
By Peter Pilarski
For most people, the friendly sales associate at their favourite store is probably their main contact with the retail sector. Whether it’s helping customers find clothing in their size or explaining the difference between one camera and another, these frontline employees are the main touch point between the store and its customers. The sales associate’s skills in customer service and product knowledge can make the difference between making the sale and losing a customer to a competitor.
What most people don’t see, however, is behind the storefront: a large and sophisticated corporate infrastructure of innovative, highly skilled, committed professionals who have chosen careers in retail. This article highlights some of the exciting and varied careers that are possible in the retail industry and describes how Retail Council of Canada is bringing retail to the forefront—a sector with endless possibilities and advancement opportunities for professionals in countless areas of expertise.
Retail Offers Opportunities for Career Advancement
Retail is the number one employer in Canada, with over 2.1 million jobs nationwide. It’s the front line of the market economy, an early adopter of new technologies, and the kind of business where hard work, dedication and an entrepreneurial spirit can lead to endless opportunities.
“One of the misconceptions about working in retail is that it means working at the store level,” says Diane J. Brisebois, President and CEO of Retail Council of Canada (RCC). “But that’s only the tip of the iceberg. There are plenty of opportunities to grow and progress in a retail organization.”
“One of the misconceptions about working in retail is that it means working at the store level… But that’s only the tip of the iceberg.”
An industry this large and complex requires every type of professional: accountants, lawyers, marketers, logisticians, human resources specialists and truck drivers, to name just a few. The work is as diverse as the range of professions needed to get the job done, from designing a store’s floor plan to optimize sales to implementing the latest supply chain management technologies.
Fierce competition is a hallmark of retail. That means professionals who work in the sector need to constantly think outside the box—an attractive draw for creative people. Retail is also a major economic force in Canada, with several larger retail organizations publicly traded on various stock exchanges. No matter what the area of interest, this industry has something for everyone.
“There are job opportunities of every kind and in every area, from frontline customer service to senior executive positions,” says Brisebois. “This is why this industry is so exciting—it incorporates so many different professions and provides people with an opportunity to learn and grow while following their interests.”
Retailers Are Still Hiring Despite the Economic Downturn
Jenny Cruickshank, Home Depot’s District Talent Manager, Southern Alberta, never planned to work in retail. But after several experiences as a human resources (HR) professional in various industries, she decided that retail was the industry for her. “The biggest draw for me was the flexibility this industry has to offer,” says Cruickshank. “Everything is different every day.” HR professionals working in the retail industry spend little time in an office. They have the opportunity to get out on the floor and into the community.
While a number of industries are laying people off, many retailers are still hiring. They continue to have challenges in finding professionals to fill certain positions. Cruickshank says that finding HR managers can be difficult because “you need to be very flexible and need to be able to make very quick decisions. Retail is fast and there is not a lot of time to be analytical.” This is different from many HR settings, where professionals often work at a slower, more cautious pace. Most HR professionals who get some experience in the retail setting get hooked very quickly.
Other difficult-to-fill positions include Assistant Managers and Loss Prevention Specialists. Cruickshank says that both positions pay well, give people a great learning experience and have a lot of potential for upward mobility. In the case of Assistant Managers, retailers look for a combination of retail and management experience. Loss Prevention is largely considered an elite force in the industry. Retailers look for professionals who are interested and experienced in the security field, but want to expand into more dynamic parts of the business, and hone skills such as investigation and complex problem solving.
“This industry is so exciting—it incorporates so many different professions and provides people with an opportunity to learn and grow while following their interests. ”
Retail Offers Many Career Options
To remain competitive, retailers must constantly evolve. A result of this evolution is the continuous creation and development of new positions that likely don’t come to mind when people think about careers in retail.
A great example of this evolution is the career of Michelle White, Director of Sustainability for Indigo Books & Music Inc. Michelle, who has a master’s degree in Environmental Science, has skills that are transferable across many industries. She chose the retail industry because she “was inspired by the commitment of Indigo’s executive team to the environment, and because they incorporated their sustainability program into the company’s overall strategy.” She is thrilled that Indigo’s environment program touches every aspect of the decision-making process and allows her to make a personal and professional contribution. She also loves the retail industry because of the incredibly fast pace and the fact that she “never has the same day twice.”
Encouraged by the progress that the greening retail concept is making, Michelle says her job is “continuously evolving because of new demands and expectations in the retail environment, including new legislation and stewardship programs.” She adds, “It’s personally very rewarding to see Indigo’s program evolve in
a short period of time.”
Michelle recommends a career in retail and believes that the industry will offer many more non-traditional opportunities in the future. She predicts that, like Indigo, other retailers will be looking for in-house expertise to help guide the company. These non-traditional opportunities, she believes, will provide many professionals with a way to help shape the direction of retail companies as they move toward sustainability.
Developing Tomorrow’s Retail Business Leaders
To help build the leadership base, Retail Council of Canada has created the Canadian Retail Institute (CRI), which is the Association’s education arm. CRI strives to promote retail as a fulfilling and rewarding career through educational programs, scholarships and partnerships with post-secondary institutions offering retail programs across the country. To help new retail leaders develop the skills they need to succeed in management, CRI offers the Retail First Level Manager (FLM) Certificate. FLM program modules focus on customer service, communication and leadership skills, operational and marketing skills, and administrative and planning skills.
Retail Council of Canada has also partnered with many industry sponsors to offer students $50,000 in scholarships and benefits each year. These scholarships are available to students entering or currently enrolled in a business, marketing or retail-related program at a Canadian post-secondary institution. Benefits of the scholarship program for students include financial assistance with their post-secondary education as well as a chance to connect with top industry professionals by attending the industry’s annual STORE Conference in Toronto.
Seeing that a healthy retail sector is important to the provincial economy, the Government of Alberta and HR AdWorks have partnered with Retail Council of Canada to create an industry HR Web Portal and career posting website. In addition to listing retail career postings, the site will be used as a tool to promote retail as a career and will provide visitors with career path information. The site was launched as a pilot project in Edmonton and East Central Alberta in Fall 2009 and will be expanded to cover the rest of Canada in 2010.
Beyond the Storefront
Retail offers many exciting and dynamic career options. The sector is constantly evolving and growing, and the need for both traditional and non-traditional professionals grows with it. Want an exciting career? You don’t need to look any further than a career in retail! CO
Peter Pilarski is Director, Government Relations and Membership Services, Retail Council of Canada (Alberta).
