Job Roles at Sainsburys Supermarkets

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Sainsbury’s

I have chosen to investigate Sainsbury’s. J. Sainsbury plc is the parent company of Sainsbury's Supermarkets Ltd, commonly known as Sainsbury's, it is also second largest chain of supermarkets in the United Kingdom with a share of the UK supermarket sector of 16.6%.The group's head office is in the Sainsbury's Store Support Centre in Holborn Circus, City of London. The group also has interests in property and banking.

Sainsbury's was founded in 1869 by John James Sainsbury and his wife Mary Ann in London, England, and grew rapidly during the Victorian era. It grew to become the largest grocery retailer in 1922, created self-service retailing in the UK.

The founding Sainsbury family still retain approximately 15% of J Sainsbury plc shares (as of May 2008), through various trusts. The family sold down their stake from 35% in 2005. The largest Sainsbury family shareholders are Lord Sainsbury of Turville with 5.83% and Lord Sainsbury of Preston Candover, who controls just fewer than 3% of the company, and benefits from 1.6% of the equity included in the above. The largest overall shareholder is the investment vehicle of the Qatari royal family who now hold 26.145% of the company.

Store Managers

In order to properly cater to the needs of customers, a supermarket (Sainsbury) must staff an expert, attentive management team. A supermarket manager may assume many different duties, such as supervising employees and store operations, taking  and ordering products, performing administrative and human resources work, or engaging in safety inspections and loss prevention. Most managers are very skilled at organizing merchandise, communicating with employees, and providing excellent customer service.

Sainsbury managers are considered as a very important part of the Sainsbury organisation and have various roles and responsibilities. There are a number of different managers such as Store managers, Duty managers and Department managers. It is their responsibility to ensure that their department is fully staffed, that their employees are on time and are happy at work. The roles and responsibility of a manager in Sainsbury are as follows:

Store Managers are vital in achieving Sainsbury business objectives. They have complete responsibility for everything that happens in their store. Leading and motivating a team, ensuring store standards are first class and that the store, stock and people are in place to deliver the customer experience people expect from Sainsbury.

Sales generation:

 A store manager must meet monthly, quarterly, or annual sales goals, depending on the company's cash flow. This involves setting individual sales goals, holding contests for employees, or offering sales promotions.

Division of responsibility:

A store manager may have several subordinates who have management-level responsibility. These employees may be called assistant managers, supervisors, key holders, shift leads, or leads. A store manager over all is responsible for day to day activity of the store. Managing controlling staffing and planning are essential point of the store manager.

Hiring, training and development:

The store manager is responsible for hiring, training, and in some cases, development, of employees. The manager must ensure staffing levels are adequate to effectively operate the store, and ensure employees receive training necessary for their job responsibilities. Managers may be responsible for developing employees so the company can promote employees from within and develop future leaders, potentially for employment at other locations. This kind of roll store manager has to be doing according to company to company.

Responsibility

  • Human Resources, specifically: recruiting, hiring, training and development, performance management, payroll, and schedule workplace scheduling.
  • Store business operations, including managing profit and loss, facility management, safety and security, loss prevention and banking.
  • Product management, including ordering, receiving, price changes, handling damaged products, and returns.
  • Team Development, facilitating staff learning and development.
  • Problem solving, handling unusual circumstances.

Another thing that a store manager is responsible for at Sainsbury is to make sure that all the staff is working effectively and that the organization is operating efficiently and safely. All managers should be motivated by the need to maximize sales and maintain unbeatable customer service levels. They should also be able to motivate staff and help them achieve their targets by offering them the right advice and encouragement.

 Supervisors

The supervisors within the supermarket should have full knowledge of the products within the departments, be able to train staff, delegate tasks to other members of the team and cover other staffs duties as and when required. As most supervisors are promoted internally and from previous lower end roles, the supervisors would and should be trained on various different duties and departments.

Supervisors can either run a certain department or supervise the entire store depending on the size of the store. Supervisors will need to be on hand as and when needed and be able to solve any problems and queries whenever necessary. It is the responsibility of the supervisor to ensure the effective running of the staff and operations within the supermarket, reporting any problems and liaising with department heads to ensure the working progress is running smoothly.

The increase in the number of supermarkets opening 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, have resulted in the need for more staff including supervisors as well. Although most of the supervisor roles are promoted internally, people with previous supervising skills and experience can also apply by applying to the company’s website or in store.  

 

Roles

 

1. Trains, schedules, monitors, evaluate and provide direction to store

Staff and volunteers; complete timesheets and attendance records. They also promote the store by performing duties such as placing advertisements in newspapers, on radio and television and attending trade shows. Purchases products for sale and purchases supplies. Receives product donations and prepares them for display in the store according to established policies by performing duties such as sorting, pricing, folding, hanging and maintaining related records.

2. Maintains or changes product displays including those required for periodic sale events. Performs product inventory in accordance with established policies and maintains related records. Greets and assists customers with product selection. They can handles cash and receipts for the sale of merchandise by performing duties such as counting the float, balancing cash, providing change, sorting Securing cash. Prepares and makes bank deposits; maintains financial records such as the daily journal.

3. Opens and closes the store by performing duties such as placing and removing signage, opening and closing tills, unlocking and securing the store.     They provide information about the retail store and service to members of the public in person and over the phone. They also maintain the cleanliness of the store by ensuring that maintenance duties are completed and by performing duties such as cleaning windows, sweeping floors and dusting product shelves as required.

Employees

Other Sainsbury employees such as sales assistants for example have; lower levels of authority compared to supervisors and managers, and their work is usually routine. For instance, sales assistants working in the bakery department of Sainsbury’s might have to complete the same tasks and work set to them every day, like serving customers, replacing empty trays of food with new, fresh trays, cleaning their work area, and improving excellent customer service.

Despite, having lower levels of authority Sainsbury’s operational and support staff still has many roles and responsibilities with their jobs. A sales assistants who works at the checkouts at Sainsbury’s would be a good example as they would have to

  • Ensure that they are working safely and complying with Sainsbury’s policies and regulations.
  • Offer high – quality customer services and advice
  • Report to their supervisors if they have a problem/need assistance etc...
  • Be aware of Sainsbury brands and current stock
  • Keep their working areas tidy and clean.
  • To be able to communicate effectively with all members of staff as well as the customers.
  • Be fully aware of their targets and what is expected of them.

If employees with these jobs do have any problems or issues they  are advised to inform their supervisor first however, if the problems elevates or is classed as important then the employee will then see the appropriate manager e.g. the store manager at that particular Sainsbury’s store.

Although employees at this level at Sainsbury’s have to be able to make good decisions associated with their work, decision making for hem is actually classes at a low level due to their level of authority. Problems – solving is usually bases on as a sales assistant at the checkout to refund or exchange a product for them from a store, however , if any issues arise then sales assistant will have to notify their supervisor who has more authority to make decisions.

Support staff within Sainsbury’s provides the specialist service to staff at all levels in the organisation. Two examples of these support roles include information technology support and administration and secretarial support which are two important areas of work within Sainsbury’s.

Sainsbury’s operational and support staff, despite being at the bottom of the chain of command within the organisation, still has a considerably large amount of roles and responsibilities. Their work is significant to the company and is valued greatly as without them Sainsbury’s would not be able to operate efficiently. They report to their supervisors and managers who set them their targets, goals and work.

Customer Service

The first duty of the Sainsbury employee is to be friendly and provide excellent customer service. This service extends beyond just the checkout line. While store often has a customer service desk, many patrons will choose to locate a cashier or any other member of the staff to get help with their shopping experience. This often includes helping customers find specific items or answering questions about current sales or promotions. The employees must maintain a friendly behaviour while providing whatever help the customer might need to ensure they have a positive experience in the store.

Price Checks

Sometimes the grocer does not properly label the items or the bar code scanner may refuse to read a label to determine the price. At other times, a customer may claim that there was a price marked on the shelf that differs from what the register displays. In these instances, the cashier must be able to use the in-store communications to run a price check. This may involve contacting a stock person clearing the problem up.

Register Functions

Supermarket cashiers scan or enter the price of all items at the register in order to determine the amount of money the customer owes. The cashier must be comfortable and confident in all the necessary functions of the register and should be efficient in taking payment and counting back change or processing credit or debit cards. The cashier is also responsible for maintaining a bank of money in the register drawer that must be verified at the beginning and end of the shift by a thorough count. The cashier must also be familiar with store policy regarding the use of coupons, and be aware of how to enter those into the system in order to adjust the price correctly and file them so that the store can receive the manufacturer credit.

Qualities of Sainsbury’s

To qualify and be successful in the above jobs at Sainsbury’s a number of qualities and skill in required.

In order to be a store manager at Sainsbury’s the following qualities are required:

To be able to handle many tasks at once                                                                                       

This an essential quality to have as a store manager can expect can expect to have a large amount of work on at the same time e.g. ensuring that everyone is working effectively as well as solving problems which might occur during the day of reoccurring problems which will then need to identified and resolve immediately.

To be able to prioritise effectively and decisively

Due to the workload of store managers they need to be able to prioritise effectively the work which needs to be done. By doing this means that the urgent and important tasks are completed first this could be crucial to Sainsbury’s. Good organisational skills play a major role of being a manager in Sainsbury and therefore very important.

To be committed, motivated and dedicated

Sore managers of Sainsbury’s have to enthusiastic about the organisation and the work that they do in order to be motivated to others. They must care about their work and be committed to doing it otherwise they would not work effectively. Store managers should set a positive example to those who work for them. So they should be motivated, dedicated and committed to their work in order to complete their tasks to the best of their abilities.

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Must have strong communication and interpersonal skills.                                                                                                                                            

Excellent communication skills are critical that managers within Sainsbury’s as managers will have to do a lot of communicating. Hey have to plan, ...

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