"It’s not about clocking in more opening hours": Mr Teo Ser Luck

It has been shown that higher productivity has led to a positive improvement in sales, quality and customer satisfaction.

It’s not about clocking in more opening hours. It’s about looking for creative ways to enhance the customer experience, garner a larger customer base or diversify your product offerings. I would encourage retailers to explore new tools and learn from others on how to boost productivity in your business.

As human capital forms an integral part in providing a great customer experience, retailers must find ways to retain their staff, upgrade capability and knowledge through training. These will facilitate companies to move up the value chain and spur productivity. One important industry initiative to assist retailers in this is the National Retail Scholarship. The Programme aims to groom future leaders of the retail industry; attract and retain talents; profile retail as a career choice; and professionalise retail jobs. Since the launch of NRS in 2007, a total of 78 scholarships benefitting 66 retailers have been awarded.

In response to the positive feedback received from retailers and the continued demand for middle management training, SRA and SPRING have decided to extend the Masters in Retailing Scholarship to 2015. This will help bridge the existing talent gap between middle and top management in the industry. I would like to encourage more retailers to look within your existing management pool, identify potential “stars” and nominate them for these scholarships and build a pipeline of future leaders within your organisations.