For Information & Knowledge Management Professionals (Length: 11 pages)

Executive Summary (This is a document excerpt)

Training retail associates is hard work. Many retailers face more than 100% turnover by store associates, who need continually updated training, and presenting all associates with face-to-face training is cost prohibitive. Furthermore, the fast pace of the retail business — with new products, seasonal offerings, and ever-changing customer-service policies and company procedures — requires a method of bringing employees up to speed quickly. That's why despite obstacles like old store infrastructure and the lack of store classroom space, retailers are beginning to combine traditional self-paced and classroom learning with newer online learning practices. This blended approach allows retailers to get right-sized and timely training lessons to associates, using existing store technologies like backroom PCs, store kiosks, or Web-enabled POS systems. In two examples, Nike has found that online training has driven a minimum 2% increase in sales dollars since its program started, and Best Buy found that by creating special learning segments for slow-moving products, sales can increase as much as 20%.