Stores Magazine - November 2007 - (Page 58) NUTS AND BOLTS / WORKFORCE MANAGEMENT All Business At Anchor Blue, the atmosphere is casual – but the approach isn’t BY M.V. GREENE As vice president of finance for the hip Anchor Blue youth apparel chain, Andy Boada is constantly on the lookout for ways to reduce costs. Much to his satisfaction, Boada found measurable savings as the result of a switchover to a new web-based workforce management system. The workforce at Ontario, Calif.based Anchor Blue’s stores is typically in the 20- to 25-year-old age range; some part-timers are as young as 16. (“Catch the vibe!” screams the headline on the jobs page of the company website.) “It’s a fairly young group,” Boada says. “You have to be able to reach them, speak to them, connect with them in a way that is more than just ‘this is a job and this is a paycheck.’ You’ve got to keep these kids engaged.” Most of the company’s 237 stores are located in the western states and Florida, and the youthful staff is merely a reflection of the customer demographic. “We’ve got the music playing in our stores,” Boada says. “We’re casual in our approach and we’re casual in our dress. We don’t want to be overbearing with a lot of rigidity and formality; that wouldn’t necessarily coincide with the workforce and our customer base.” Automated workforce management processes represent a key tool the chain is using to manage productivity and ultimately drive customer satisfaction and sales, he says. Scheduling, budgeting, analytics, absence management and tal- 58 STORES / NOVEMBER 2007 WWW.STORES.ORG http://WWW.STORES.ORG
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