Home Depot – “If you want to 'see red', just wear orange, it's all waiting for you at your nearest Home Depot!”

Pros

1) Very loyal and extremely appreciative customers, many will seek me out just to say thank you for something I helped them with on a previous visit, and to tell me how thankful they are knowing I'm there for them and how much it means to them. 2) (Most) fellow associates are great 'team players' who are respectful of each other, genuinely helpful, and are always there for you when you need encouragement. The customers and associates are the ONLY ones you will EVER get positive feedback from, but you'll get LOTS of it...(and you'll NEED it-Managers/Supervisors will rarely even acknowledge you, and then only long enough to chastise you for any insignificant thing.)

Cons

ALWAYS short-handed, usually you will be doing the work of AT LEAST 2 (usually 3) people. Management has almost zero interaction with store employees (or customers), and most have absolutely NO knowledge whatsoever about the products sold in the store they are managing. They will refer ALL customers they come in contact with to an associate, because they are literally clueless as to how to help them. You will live in constant fear of losing your job, because you are reminded almost daily that you are replaceable. You will almost never get your breaks, and you must request days off 3 weeks in advance, or it won't even be considered...even if you request a particular day off and follow the rules exactly, it's very likely you won't get it, and its pretty much understood that you will always be there when they need you to be there, regardless of all else. You are required to go 'above and beyond' at all times, and to expect absolutely NOTHING in return, except maybe to keep your job. Lastly, your yearly raise will never be more than 2-4% (less than .50 cents an hour.)

Advice to Senior Management

Store Manager: Read a book or two on leadership, you might be amazed to find that your personal benefit from the knowledge you gain, (and ultimately put into practice), would be well worth the effort. Your own individual success will ALWAYS be decided by, and dependent on, your employees. How you choose to lead them, or how you choose to treat them, is WAY more important than you could ever imagine - but by the time you come to that realization, it will already be too late for you... and we'll still be there, singing "Another One Bites The Dust', and hoping for better on your replacement. Your odds look bad, _ years, and as many fired managers, I expect you'll be next come inventory time.... that's usually how it goes anyway. Try ADDING hours, rather than constantly CUTTING them, THEN, we would have time to effectively INCREASE SALES!! C'mon just TRY it...you might like it! Corporate: Tour America, visit your stores, PLEASE don't announce yourself beforehand (as you ALWAYS do...yes I know reality is hard to deal with, but maybe you would actually DO something if you were FORCED to see it...), BE a customer, HAVE that experience, listen to your employees, listen to your customers and learn their needs-find out what they want-and they will come, and you will survive. Realize the importance of all of the above. P.S. They will happily throw money at you, time and again, when you sell what they want - They will abruptly disappear forever when you no longer have what they want, because you chose to replace it with cheap crap (because it has a higher mark-up), they don't mindlessly just 'buy what you have'...It's SIMPLE really! Oh yes, you might want to brush-up on your History home-work...[think Rome] :)